RADIODecember 05, 2023

Why Disney TANKED in 2023

Disney is taking hit after hit at the box office and marked its first (non-pandemic) year since 2014 in which it failed to release a billion-dollar movie. And apparently, Hollywood workers are all too aware of what the issue is. Glenn speaks with Film Threat founder and publisher Chris Gore, who has spoken with Disney insiders, including animators and current and former employees as part of a series of stories called "The Disney File." He reveals some of his biggest finds: "All of the veteran talent has been driven from the company," he says, "starting with John Lasseter. And his departure was not what was described in the media." And they've been replaced by what many Disney insiders have described as woke "activists." Chris also describes a "toxic" work environment that pushes DEI and trashes the company's own movies. "I have never seen a company tube their credibility faster," Glenn says. So, will Disney finally take a hint?

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Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: It was another scandal for Disney. Only now Disney has I show you or another lost its ability to shed scandals with ease.

Disney is just dying on the vine. And it couldn't happen to a better group of people. It really couldn't.

I -- I wish them to receive all of the things and the seeds that they have planted.

You know, they used to be -- they used to be the company that would bring joy and magic. And now it's black magic. And, you know, just some corporate empire. That, you know, will do anything for a buck.

And now they believe that they are the guardians of culture. And they are going to change our culture.

Their latest example is wish.

It's a movie that supposedly is to serve as the celebration of the 100th year of Disney magic.

It is hackie and uninspiring. And really not worth your time. And everybody knows that. Nobody is going to see it.

We have -- we have an inside look now, at what is -- what is happening at Disney.

And can they ever bring it back?

Film threat, the founder and publisher of Film Threat. Chris Gore is with us now. Hi, Chris. How are you?

CHRIS: Hey, doing great, Glenn. Thanks for having me on the show.

GLENN: So first of all, tell people about Film Threat. Because I'm not sure they know about it.

CHRIS: Well, it's an independent film. We were a magazine in the '80s and '90s. Now it's a website, and a podcast. And we have remained, oddly enough, politically agnostic through all of these --

GLENN: How did you do that?

CHRIS: Well, first of all, I don't know why any -- all the entertainment media outlets should actually be this.

GLENN: Yes.

CHRIS: It's really bizarre.

I feel obligated. A movie comes out. It's an independent film.

Fritz one side of the aisle to the other. We will cover it.

That's not true for all my leagues, in the industry, who cover film.

It's unfortunate.

GLENN: I mean, you did Matt Walsh's what is a woman? And it was actually objective. And I assumed it would never happen in today's world.

Never.

CHRIS: Yeah. I think it's an important documentary. It's worthy of coverage. And I don't know why it was covered by every media outlet.

I think it's an important conversation. But, you know, we'll also cover documentaries about drag queens.

GLENN: Sure.

CHRIS: We're all over the place. And I think that that's our obligation.

You know, we also -- we also reviewed Candace Owens documentary, BLM.

Which did not get a favorable review.

But we look at everything. And we try to be objective.

And I -- you know, I would like to see more of that.

GLENN: Chris, I am the biggest Disney fan.

I mean, I have the original prospectus, hand-colored by Walt Disney. I have been a fan since I was a kid. I've always been a champion for Disney.

I have never seen a company, tube their credibility, faster, than the Disney corporation.

And I have gone from a fan to somebody who can't wait to see them burn themselves out of existence.

It's -- it's a remarkable thing that's happening with Disney.

CHRIS: Well, it is crazy to watch in real time.

How they've taken one of the greatest brands.

One of the greatest brands. A family brand.

And I think it really has to do with getting away from their core values.

When I'm talking about those values.

I'm talking about the values of Walt Disney, the man. At the company.

Walton Disney was a proud American, who -- who espoused family values through his art.

And we -- we see where the company is now. It's become very corporate.

Filled with middle management bloats. Micromanaging all of their artists.

And as I like to say, I think corporate cultured kills creativity. And that's where we are at. There's more to this story.

There's a lot more to this story, actually.

GLENN: You have -- you have an article coming out, where you've talked to many of the insiders, who are giving you a real deep look into what's -- what the culture is there.

And there's one story about when everybody came back from work after COVID, and they were having a meeting about which breakfast cereals, to put into the break room. And what happened?

CHRIS: Well, it's a funny story. This was on a Zoom call.

They were coming back from COVID, and restocking the break room with cereals, which devolved into a conversation about privilege.

And if you ate certain breakfast cereals, when you were a kid, you were privileged.

But if you ate generic breakfast cereals, that said something about your upbringing, and status.

There seems to be a bizarre obsession with -- with all of this nonsense.

Identity. You know, privilege. And the fact that a simple conversation about restocking the breakfast cereal in the break room, devolved into that, shows you how bad the rot is. Which is at every level.

And the key word that's come up.

I will just say this.

The article coming up on the FilmThreat.com website, which is being written by my colleague Allan Ing.

It's -- we're currently talking about a dozen current and former employees of Disney. And also people who work in animation.

We're calling the series of stories, the Disney File. But the stories we're hearing are fairly shocking. So also --

GLENN: Like -- like --

CHRIS: For anyone that's paying attention. Shocking.

GLENN: Like what?

CHRIS: Well, ultimately, there's more specifics to it.

But ultimately, all of the veteran talent has been driven from the company.

Starting with John Lasseter.

And his departure is not as described in the media.

There was much more to it.

I believe that certain people felt threatened by John Lasseter. Probably because he was the most talented person at the company.

Nearly every Pixar film was a home run.

I mean, even the lesser Pixar films.

Even the lesser Pixar films. When you look at what Disney is putting out today.

They're amazing.

So that was the beginning of the rock. Was his departure. And that veteran talent has been not replaced by veteran talent. It's been replaced by -- and I'm using words that are in the correspondences, a key word came up in every correspondence with every person.

And that is activism. The people that have been replaced. They've been replaced by activists.

And it's at all levels.

You can't necessarily blame upper management.

But the rot is from beyond up.

GLENN: Right.

So somebody described to me. And said, Glenn, Bob Iger.

Nobody else can fix it now.

They felt that Bog Iger was responsible for this.

But they said, they hired activists.

And allowed them at the bottom, to just infest the Disney culture, if you will.

Then it just kept growing stronger and stronger.

And now there's really nobody left. To hand the company. And say, okay. All you guys, shut up. Get out of here.

You can't do it anymore.

Do you believe that's true?

CHRIS: I believe that's 100 percent true. 100 percent.

GLENN: Wow.

CHRIS: And I think it's just a company culture that's been created.

And those that don't agree with the direction of the company.

Have to remain silent. And are reprimanded, even for espousing certain ideas.

And the HR department at Disney, appears to work in an oppressive manner, creating a toxic work environment.

Where if you -- we're talking about innocuous posts on Facebook, from years ago.

An employee being dragged into HR, into HR. To have meetings at ungodly hours. You know, 6:00 a.m. or something.

With an attorney, sitting next to the HR person.

To discuss a social media post.

There is a fall in line attitude. And if you don't fall in line, you're not welcome at Disney.

Which has led to -- which has led to many of these people leaving have their own accord.

They're simply not welcome to think their own things.

GLENN: Well, I know creative people, and there's nothing that drives creative people more crazy. I mean, Walt would lose people from time to time. Because his management style was, keep them always guessing. You know, and it will make them sharper.

The animators hated that. But Walt was so good at what he did, that you're either in Disney or you're not.

Now that's not the case. No creative person is going to want to go to work every day, let alone be creative at work every day, if you're constantly looking at your DEI shoulder.

CHRIS: Well, that's 100 percent true. And on that note, interestingly enough, lecturers come to Disney often, to help animators. And discuss topics like how a giraffe runs. What does it look like when it runs. How do birds fly? Different type of birds. They have brought in lecturers to talk to all of the animators. And in our article, we will discuss the person who has been coming in with the animators.

Because not only was this DEI person saying, that based on your identity, you are -- you are racist, based on the way you look. You are just a racist person.

This DEI instructor. Instructor, lecturer, went on to critique all the Disney movies and why they're racist.

And why in particular, a movie called The Princess and The Frog is racist, which features a black princess.

GLENN: Oh, my gosh, that was to expose, to bring in African-Americans. And to expose people to a different culture.

That's what that whole movie was designed to do.

CHRIS: Well, yes. Absolutely. But this lecture pointed out, that because the -- the pretext to the film was to turn into a frog. And remained a frog for most of the movie. That that was racist.

And basically, this lecturer was telling the animators, everything you're doing wrong. Which erupted into a huge argument. Of some of the animators that stood up.

This is the problem. This is the big problem.

Is this is well-known throughout the animation industry. That Disney acts in this way.

There are other companies. For example, Illumination, you know, distributed by Universal. Their animated films. They avoided any sort of political messaging. They make movies that are entertaining.

Dominion's movies.

The Super Mario movie, which crossed the billion-dollar mark.

They're just making family entertainment, and they're well aware of that. Disney is the exception in this, where the messaging is a huge part of this. This is well-known in the industry.

It's become a whisper network.

Where animators, that have felt so betrayed, that these Walt Disney company's legacy is falling by the wayside. That they speak on private message groups about each other. About everything that is going on.

But here's the deal.

If people at the Disney company don't speak out, there won't be a company left to save. It's -- it's dire. When you look at the amount of money that they've lost this year. It's -- it's unbelievable. When you look at -- in the year 2019, Disney had seven movies, that crossed the billion dollar mark.

This year, it's zero.

GLENN: It's unbelievable.

It's the fastest. It's the fastest destruction of the greatest brand, ever. Of the 20th -- of the 20th century.

And you're right.

I'm not sure if it's going to make it.

Chris, I have to cut you short. But I apologize for that. I would love to have you on when the story comes out. And spend some real time with you because I think it's fascinating to see the price that they're paying. Chris Gore. The name of the website is filmthreat.com. Filmthreat.com.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Why Your Actions Matter More Than Words in the Eyes of God

Glenn Beck and Eric Metaxas expose the spiritual crisis gripping America’s churches — a moment they compare to Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s warning before World War II. As the culture descends into moral confusion, too many Christians retreat into silence, claiming faith while refusing to act. Together, they argue that true belief demands courage — that “faith without works is dead” — and warn that neutrality in the face of evil is itself a form of complicity.

Watch the FULL Interview HERE

Is Socialism replacing the American dream?

The American Dream used to mean freedom and the chance to build your own life through hard work, faith, and independence. But today, it’s been replaced by comfort, consumption, and debt. Glenn Beck breaks down how America traded liberty for lifestyle, why socialism is gaining ground, and what it will take to reclaim the real American Dream before it disappears for good.

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: I don't know if you saw the visualizing the American dream, Stu.

You know, what the American dream actually is, is that you can forge your own way.

You can -- you know, you can have a scrap of land, and grow your own food if up.

You can, you know, go to school. Not go to school.

You can find a job. If you're qualified for it, you have an equal chance of getting it, you know, based on merit.

But the percentage of Americans who say the American dream is retirement is 86 percent. Health care, 86 percent. Owning a home, 85. Raising two kids, 78. Owning a car, 72. Vacations, 71. Pets, 66. A wedding, 55 percent. That's the American dream, I can get married.

The American dream, if that's what you think, they've now estimated, the cost per household over the cost -- over the lifetime, retirement is $1.6 million. Owning a home now, 30-year mortgage, 20 percent you want to, is $957,594. Owning a car, buying and finance to begin with new cars every ten years is now $900,000 over your lifetime. Raising two kids to 18, plus four years of public college, $876,092. Two kids. Health care, over your lifetime, spending from ages 22 to 85, $414,000. Vacations, annual vacation from '22 to '85, $180,000. One dog and one cat for 11 to 13 years is $40,000!

That's more expensive than a wedding. The engagement ring, the ceremony, and the reception is now estimated to be $38,200.

There's a reason socialism is doing well. You look at that, and you're like, wow. I mean, if that's the American dream. And for a lot of people, that is the American dream!

That's not what the American dream is supposed to be, but, you know, once -- you know, once Woodrow Wilson and FDR got a hold of us and they started advertising, it became stuff instead of freedom. It became stuff. And, you know, when there's a new report out. Let me see if I have that.

There's a new report out now that shows, first time home buyers made up just 21 percent of the home purchases. That's the lowest on record.

The typical age of repeat buyers hit an all-time high of '62. The median downtowns, reaching 23 percent.

The highest since 2023.

And also, where is it?

The last one is -- the median age for first time home buyers, in 1981, it was 29 years old.

I'm sorry. Yeah. Twenty-nine years old. In 2021, it was 33 years old.

What is it this year?

Median age, first time homeowner, forty.

You're 40 before you can buy any kind of home. That puts these things that people want, dream about, out of reach, until you're 40?

You know, 29 is one thing. But if you're not seeing -- you're not seeing your life really kind of settling down until you're 40, I -- I can understand why you're like, you know what, this system doesn't work.

Because you've never seen it work. It's betrayed you.

Or so you've been sold. It's betrayed you.

And everything is being pushed out of your reach. And when you're young, the one thing you're not is patient.

And at 40, I can see why people are not, you know, yeah. Well, socialism is neat because capitalism isn't working. How would you respond to that?

STU: I mean, it's more lengthy than we have time for. But I would say that the response to, you know, you thinking that you want a home is not to embrace an ideology that murders 100 million people.

That's not -- that's not a good answer to the problem that you think you have.

GLENN: But they're not learning that anywhere.

They're not -- that is our responsibility! To teach those things. Because they're not learning it anywhere.

Glenn Beck Warns of 3 Economic Outcomes That Could Change EVERYTHING | Ep 467

Socialism is spreading fast among America’s youth, and the shocking election of Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani for mayor in New York City marks a major cultural and economic shift. Glenn exposes how runaway debt, record home prices, AI job disruption, and the collapsing stake in capitalism have led many Millennials and members of Gen Z to embrace socialism and communism. He reveals the three possible economic futures for 2026: two that are disastrous and one that could change everything if the Trump administration’s global financial overhaul succeeds. Plus, Justin Haskins, president of the Heartland Institute, joins to reveal some terrifying truths about why young Americans are embracing socialism from a poll he conducted with Rasmussen Reports.

The world is about to realize the DEADLY enemy we face

"The world doesn't understand yet. We're already in World War III," Glenn Beck warns. "That foe is not China. That foe is militant Islam." Glenn explains the battle we're currently facing and what's to come if we don't wake up soon...

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: From New Jersey, it's Brian. Hello, Brian.

CALLER: Hello!

GLENN: Hey.

CALLER: Yeah. Thanks for taking the calls today.

GLENN: Sure.

CALLER: Yeah. I'm worried that we are headed towards another French Revolution-style because we have entire generations. Or actually people just not being heard by their representatives.

GLENN: Hmm.

CALLER: And it's not just here. It's around the world.

GLENN: Uh-huh.

I -- actually, I had scheduled for this time, I'll just do it some other time. Talking about what's happening in -- in England.

I think England is headed for a Civil War. And -- and it's very close.

I mean, you can't put 4,000 people. 4,000 people, in jail, or try them for hate crimes. And speech crimes.

You can't -- you can't do it. In England!

You can't do that in one year. And expect people to just put up with it!

You can't -- you know, we're -- we're -- America doesn't understand yet.

The world doesn't understand.

We're in World War III. We're already in World War III.

I don't know when it becomes a hot war. Or even a war that we on our side recognize. But we are in World War III. And that -- that foe is not China.

That foe is militant Islam, period. And, you know, when we have a situation to where people are -- when the government is just like, no. It's not a problem.

It's not a problem. You know. You've got illegals all over.

It's not a problem.

It's not a problem.

It is a problem. Don't tell me what -- what the problems are not!

Because we're the ones living it!

You're the experts, who keep telling us, no. It's going to work out fine.

And it doesn't work out fine. And it just gets worse and worse.

Oh. We can spend this money. No. It looks like we can't spend this money. Oh, we can afford this. No. It looks like we can't afford this.

You know, if we do this with Ukraine, it will work out fine. No, it didn't, did it? These endless wars, all of this stuff, don't tell me what the problem is. Listen to the people and start talking to the people. Honestly, this is the reason why I'm doing this today. I -- I need to hear from you.

I need to know what's on your mind, so I stay focused and -- and clear on what America is saying.

Because I don't think -- look, you know, me taking phone calls is -- is not a true representation of anything, but it does give me a sense of -- of where you are, as an audience. Maybe not as America, but as an audience. And there are lots of things that concern me. But I want to hear it from you.
But I think you're right! We're headed for real, real trouble. All you need is real economic trouble.

You start getting real, true economic trouble. 1930s kind of depression stuff. And we're in Civil War.

Dan, Oregon. Welcome!

CALLER: Hello, Glenn. How are you?

GLENN: I'm great!

CALLER: Yeah. Good. It's been a long time.

I guess it's been over ten years, since I've had a chance to talk with you. I was one of your first insiders. I was listening to you, since you were in Florida.

GLENN: Wow. Wow.

CALLER: So it's been a long -- yeah. It has been. And I can't say I've enjoyed all of it.
(laughter)

GLENN: Neither have I!

STU: I can't say that either, I'll be honest with you.

CALLER: You know, you were talking on yesterday's show, reminiscing with Stu about how you guys started. And I remember those old shows. And, you know, at the end of the -- the fusion of entertainment and enlightenment.

STU: Hmm.

GLENN: Right.

CALLER: And there was a lot more entertainment. I remember I laughed a lot.

GLENN: Oh, yeah. I know. I know. Those days are long dead.
(laughter)

STU: There's nothing to laugh about now.

CALLER: Yeah. I -- I'm 78. I still work 40 hours a week. I love my job.

GLENN: Good for you.

CALLER: Been married for 55 years. I have seven kids.

GLENN: Good for you.

CALLER: I've got a daughter -- I've got a daughter who is in her 40s. And she has severe TDS. She -- we don't -- I mean, we're not cutting each other off. She hasn't done that at all. We're still very close as a family. But she was down visiting the other day, and got into a conversation with my wife. And I wasn't in the room. But Kathy said it was just like listening to one of those young people out on the street that was being interviewed by the news media. And she was -- and she was in tears about it. My wife and my daughter both.

And, I mean, I love her, and I continue to support her. She's a single woman, not by choice. She just never found the right guy.

GLENN: Yeah.

CALLER: And I really think that's part of the problem. Because she started reading -- back when Trump was first running, she started reading all of this stuff about him being misogynistic and all of this stuff.

GLENN: Yeah. Yeah.

CALLER: And it's just gotten worse. I -- I'm at a loss. I really am. Because I -- like, I see the country doing better. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop. But I still feel like that at least right now, we're doing better as a whole. But what do we do about -- what do we do about our kids about -- she went to Portland State University for the last two --

GLENN: Oh, jeez, for the love of --

CALLER: Well, yeah. For the last two years, she went to -- she went to a little college in Idaho called Ricks for the first two years, and Utah State.

GLENN: Oh, yeah.

CALLER: And then she served a mission for our church in Brazil and came home, but then she went to Portland State University. And it just seems to have gone downhill from there.

GLENN: Yeah. Yeah. So, Dan, I think you are suffering from the same thing that almost all parents are suffering from. If you're not suffering from this, then, I mean, God bless you. You know, get on your knees and thank God. Because you are a lucky, lucky family. Everybody has in their family. I have it in my family.

And you have to ask yourself, what is your goal?

My -- what is your goal with your daughter? Your real goal?

CALLER: My real goal is for us to be united eternally. That's my goal. That's my goal as a father and has been to teach her --

GLENN: And how -- and how is that going to happen with politics?

CALLER: We just stay together as a family regardless of what politics does.

GLENN: That's exactly right. Exactly right.

I think we're in a place now where as parents, you can ask your kids, but it has to be honest. It cannot be trying to win. It has to be honest. How did you get there?

I mean, I remember. You know, we've talked about this before. And you didn't believe that before. What has changed?

Can you help me with that?

I would like to see what you're reading, or what that was.

And just ask questions. But they have to be honest. They can't be, you know, because I'm setting you up. Because I want to change your mind.

But keep a dialogue open with them. And just love them!

Just love them!

Because if you do anything else, you're going to drive them away. And then they're really lost. So just love them.

CALLER: Oh, I know that. Glenn, when she was young -- when she was young, I considered her one of the elect. And the Scripture says, that in the last days, even the elect are going to be deceived. And that's what I'm seeing. But everything you've said, I -- I am doing. I'm doing it that way. Because I know --

GLENN: Okay. Good. Then you didn't need to -- I appreciate it. I'm so glad you called me. But you didn't need to -- my advice, you already have it down. You're a very wise man.