Disney v Florida: Part Two
- Feb 7
- 9 min read
Updated: Feb 15
2023
Following his reelection, Disney continued to be a top priority for DeSantis who in February had HB 9-B drafted in order to bring Reedy Creek under control by the state of Florida; the legislation allowing DeSantis to replace all 5 members with political allies to the newly renamed “Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD).”
However, during these developments, the outgoing “Reedy Creek” board quietly voted to strip itself of all authority. When the new board took over in late March, members were stunned to learn they had no power to make decisions without Disney’s approval. Using a legal “royal lives” clause, Disney granted itself the power to maintain control of the district’s land until 21 years after the death of the youngest living descendent of King Charles III.
The youngest descendent of King Charles III is Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor, the daughter of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle born in June 2021. If Lilibet lives a typical royal lifespan of around 90 years, the state of Florida cannot assert full control over the district until at least 2132—21 years after her death.
There was no questioning it: DeSantis and his administration had been outmaneauvered and they furiously vowed to “formally nullify” the agreement, claiming Disney had not acted in accordance with state law. However, Disney had taken the appropriate legal measures by holding two public hearings announced in advance and published online in accordance with Florida’s "Government in Sunshine Law” which mandated transparency in government proceedings. The hearings were also recorded with the Orange County Comptroller.
In his first shareholder meeting since returning as CEO in April 2023, Iger addressed DeSantis’ actions toward the company, describing the governor as “very angry” over Disney’s stance and accusing him as having acted in a retaliatory manner that was not only “anti-business” but also “anti-Florida."
“These efforts simply to retaliate for a position the company took sounds not just anti-business, but it sounds anti-Florida.”
Bob Iger
Days later on April 6 while giving a speech at Hillsdale College in Michigan, DeSantis expressed interest in taxing the park’s hotels and building toll roads leading to Disney World. DeSantis strangeley steers the conversation with an incoherent statement accusing Disney of “the sexualization of the child programming” and “advocating for gender ideology in kindergarten.” Take a look:
Nearly two weeks later on April 17 DeSantis held a press conference at the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District office where he escalated his threats against Disney by proposing the construction of a state prison or a competing amusement park adjacent to Disney World.
“What should we do with this land? And so, you know, it's like, OK, kids - I mean, people have said, you know, maybe have another - maybe create a state park. Maybe try to do more amusement parks. Someone even said, like, maybe you need another state prison. Who knows? I mean, I just think that the possibilities are endless. And so that is now gonna be analyzed to see what would make the most sense ”
Ron DeSantis
2 days later the Florida Board of Education, all appointed by DeSantis, unanimously voted to expand HB1557 through 12th grade.
CFTOD voids Disney district agreements and Disney files federal lawsuit against DeSantis
On April 26, the CFTOD would vote to void Disney’s development agreements. Shortly after, Disney would file a federal lawsuit against Ron DeSantis in Tallahassee, Florida accusing him of having orchestrated “a targeted campaign of government retaliation” in violation of the company’s First Amendment rights.
The lawsuit was filed shortly before DeSantis headed to Israel in efforts to continue raising his international profile for a predictable presidential run.
CFTOD sues Disney to invalidate last-mintue development agreement
On May 1, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District would file lawsuit in Florida state court, claiming the last-minute agreements were invalid and improperly limited the new board’s power.
Although the board had voted void Disney’s last-minute develpopment agreements, filing a lawsuit in state court was an effort to ask a judge to legally uphold that decision and declare the agreements invalid and unenforceable under Florida law.
Lake Nona Disney campus officially cancelled
On May 18 Disney would formally cancel plans for a $1 billion development project in Lake Nona which would have moved more than 2,000 high paying jobs with an average salary of $120,000 to the state of Florida.
A few short weeks later on May 17 DeSantis continued his odd “parental rights” crusade signing the “Let Kids Be Kids” legislative package which included five bills dedicated to protect “children’s innocence”:
SB 254 - Treatments for Sex Reassignment:
- Prohibits sex reassignment surgeries and experimental puberty blockers for children.
HB 1521 - Protects students from having to declare their pronouns in school.
- Expands parental rights in education by prohibiting classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in Pre-K through 8th grade.
HB 1438 - Protects children from sexually explicit performances in all venues.
- Prohibits a person from knowingly admitting a minor to an adult performance.
HB 1069 - Ensures Florida’s bathrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms are safe places for women.
- Requires educational institutions, detention facilities, correctional institutions, juvenile correctional facilities, and public buildings with a restroom or changing facility to designate separate facilities based on biological sex or to provide one-person unisex facilities.
HB 225 - Allows private school, virtual school, and home school students to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities at other public or private schools, regardless of zip code.
- Reorganizes the FHSAA Board of Directors to 13 members, instead of the current 16 members. Four members will be elected by school representative members while eight members will be appointed by the governor, and the final member will be the Commissioner of Education or his designee.
- Allows teams to provide brief opening remarks, including prayers, before high school athletic contests.
On May 24, DeSantis would formally launch his presidential campaign.
In June, Disney celebrated the LGBT community for the very first time with two “Pride Nite” events held at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California.
Iger’s contract extended through 2026
Iger’s contract would be extended through 2026 on July 12. The following day he would sit down for an interview with CNBC’s David Faber where he would address DeSantis’ actions towards the company, the state of the company, and its mission.
Disney files countersuit against the CFTOD
In August, Disney filed a counter lawsuit against the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District in Florida state court claiming the agreements made by the outgoing Reedy Creek board were established through proper legal procedure and alleged the CFTOD had therefore acted unlawfully in their attemp to void them, also violating Florida contract law and due process.
2024
DeSantis drops out of presdential run
DeSantis dropped out of the presidential race on January 21 after a mediocre performance in the Iowa caucus and his views and grievance policies failed to resonate nationwide.
Disney’s federal lawsuit dismissed, perplexing legal scholars
On January 31, Judge Allen Winsor dismissed the lawsuit against DeSantis claiming Disney did not prove sufficient injury caused directly by DeSantis—which is necessary to establish standing. This decision preplexed legal scholars as Disney evidence was the loss of its special district status replaced with a board of DeSantis’ own apointees —accroding to DeSantis’ very own words—as punishment for their criticism of Florida HB 1557.
The following day Disney filed an appeal on February 1.
Disney’s troubles begin to settle, starting with the CFTOD
In March, DeSantis would replace two members in the CFTOD board with individuals who had a more positive outlook on Disney, setting the stage for a compromise.
The Walt Disney Company would choose to count their loses and not persue an appeal which could potentially drag on for years towards an unknown decision.
Disney formally nullifying the last-minute agreements made by the previous board which sought to limit the new board’s powers.
Disney recognizing the authority of the CFTOD over the development and governance of the area.
Disney agreed to drop its countersuit against the CFTOD Disney and began working together with the board to create a new development agreement.
Early the following month Disney would request a 60 day continuence in their federal lawsuit against DeSantis while negotiations with the C .
Nelson Peltz attempts to join the Disney board
In an early April 3rd shareholder meeting, Disney would have the first opportunity to do away with a big problem: Nelson Peltz, a billionaire hedge fund founder who in recent years had been attempting to secure a seat on the company’s board of directors. Peltz had last launched a proxy fight in February 2023 but rescinded it shortly after Iger announced plans to restructure the company.
Although Peltz claimed his decision was motivated purely by business interests, his campaign was financed by Ike Perlmutter, the former Chairman and CEO of Marvel Entertainment who along with Kevin Feige (President of Marvel) lead Marvel in its early days under Disney.
Perlmutter and Feige had a notoriously difficult working relationship riddled with conflict; Perlmutter was known for his relentless focus on cost-cutting while Feige pushed for greater creative risks and consistently sought more financing. The power struggle came to a head in 2015 during the development of Captain America: Civil War when Feige threatened to quit due to ongoing clashes with Perlmutter and the Marvel Creative Committee.
Iger intervened and reassigned Feige to report directly to Alan Horn, chairman of Walt Disney Studios—effectively eliminating Perlmutter’s role and influence on Marvel’s film divisiomn. Perlmutter was then be regulared to focus on Marvel’s television projects and comic book publishing. In the years that followed, Perlmutter’s responsibilities continued to be diluted before being ousted in 2023 as part of Iger’s structuring. Insiders believe it was an opportunity for Disney to formally remove a “disruptive figure” within the company as Perlmutter had made at least 20 internal attempts to have Peltz appointed to the board beginning July 2022.
After his departure from Disney, Perlmutter transferred the voting rights of his 25.6 million Disney shares to Peltz’s Trian Fund in October 2023, increasing its total shares to 33 million. In the few following weeks, the Trian Fund purchased an additional 30 million shares, bringing its total to nearly 60 million — worth approximately $2.5 billion dollars—granting Peltz the influence to nominate himself and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo to the board through a proxy contest.
A proxy contest and there is no required amount, but having a significant share affirm’s one as having a legitimate interest due to their stake in the company.
Peltz and Perlmutter had become vocal supporters of Donald Trump. In an interview with Financial Times in March 2024, Peltz stated he would be voting for Trump citing concerns over President Biden’s mental fitness and declared Trump’s criminal charges to be a “miscarriage of justice.” Peltz had previously called Trump a “terrible human being” and claimed to be “embarassed” for voting for him in the 2020 election after the January 6 attack on the US Capitol which he believed Trump was responsible for inciting in efforts to overturn election results.
Elon Musk had also become a high-profile figure criticizing “woke Disney” and similar to Perlmutter, Musk held resentment towards Disney for pulling advertising from Twitter after he endorsed anti-semitic “Great Replacement” propaganda and the site had an ongoing severe lack of moderation.
Iger would successfully ask shareholders to vote against Peltz and deny him the opportunity to join the board—highlighting his lack of experience and relationship to a begrudged Perlmutter. Months later, Peltz and Perlmutter would sell their Disney shares—each earning an approximated $1 billion dollar return.
Iger renews Disney’s commitment to Florida
During the meeting, Iger also reaffirmed the company’s commitment to promoting economic growth in Florida by announcing a $17 billion investment for Disney World expansion and infrastructure throughout the following 15 years as part of a larger $60 billion global investment in its Parks, Experiences, and Productions.
The following day in an interview with CNBC, Iger addressed criticism over Disney’s projects being labeled as “woke” by right-wing figures and stated the company’s mission is to provide entertainment.
“I think the term ‘woke’ is thrown around rather liberally…I think a lot of people don’t even understand really what it means.”
Bob Iger
Disney moves forward…
In June, the Walt Disney Company would voluntarily dismiss its federal lawsuit against Ron DeSantis—ending a 2 year saga of orchestrated political attacks.
Disney has since resumed making donations to Republican politicians including those linked to HB 1557: $16,000 to Florida House Rep. Josie Tomkow and $10,000 to committees affiliated with GOP Senators Jason Brodeur and Joe Gruters.
Author of “The Parental Rights Education Bill” Joe Harding was indicted by a federal grand jury in December 2022 for wire fraud, money laudering, and making false statements after illegally obtaining $150,000 in COVID relief funds. He plead guilty and in March 2023 was sentenced to four months in federal prison.
Ron DeSantis now a lameduck governor busy fighting with his own political party and plummeting influence in Florida is under investigation for fraud by fellow Republicans.
Bob Iger’s interests are currently focused on succession planning in another attempt to chose the right individual who can best lead Disney.
Walt Disney World has the possibility of having their special tax district restored after the end of DeSantis’ governorship in 2026.