Bob Iger sheds light on Disney's response to upcoming Universal Epic Universe in Orlando

Apr 03, 2024 in "The Walt Disney Company"

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Bob Iger

Posted: Wednesday April 3, 2024 2:22pm ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

At today's Walt Disney Co. Annual Shareholders meeting, Disney CEO Bob Iger was asked about Universal's 2025 opening of Epic Universe in Orlando and how Disney has responded to the competition for theme park guests.

Bob Iger at Walt Disney World

Iger said, "We've been aware of Universal's plans for a new park for more than a decade. And we have a sophisticated approach to analyzing the needs of all of our businesses and strategically deploying capital."

He went on to list recent openings at Walt Disney World, including Star Wars Galaxy's Edge, the EPCOT transformation, and TRON Lightcycle Run at Magic Kingdom.

Nova Corps Starblaster with Spaceship Earth and Monorail passing by Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind

Iger continued, "By staggering these major launches, we've been able to commercially and operationally optimize our new offerings over time, rather than having to do it all at once. And based on the guest experience that we've heard all about, from all of these items that I just mentioned, we know that they're extremely popular and they're serving our guests extremely well."

Universal Epic Universe – Bird’s-Eye View map

According to Universal, "Epic Universe will present a level of theme park immersion that is unmatched – transporting guests to expansive worlds featuring more than 50 awe-inspiring attraction, entertainment, dining and shopping experiences that come together to create an unforgettable adventure that is nothing short of epic. The addition of Universal Orlando's fourth theme park will also transform the award-winning resort into a weeklong vacation destination filled with even more compelling experiences. "

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SirwalterraleighAug 28, 2025

That and they are never and will never be under any obligation to spend it. Important point What they will spend will be to serve many needs and tops on the list won’t be “what fans want”…it will be more shafts in the coal mine

MR.DisAug 28, 2025

With inflation, money devalues quarterly (not yearly as was once the standard of review). So saying you are going to spend 60 billion in next 10 years means nothing-- in just 2 years from now 60B may not be worth 30B (I know an exaggeration but trying to make a point) in todays dollars. What is the saying...Liars figure and figures lie.

HauntedPirateAug 28, 2025

And I think Disney CFO Hugh G Johnston also may have said something about expanding that timeline out even further than a decade. But he can’t lie or anything, so it has to be only 10 years as originally announced.

Disstevefan1Aug 28, 2025

Translation. Carslsnd and villains land at the MK is gonna get scope cut to cr@p 🙁

AylaAug 28, 2025

Oh, the irony.

MisterPenguinAug 28, 2025

The Walt Disney Company is not the parks division. The parks division is not WDW. The $60B is for all the parks world wide. WDW gets $17B.

SirwalterraleighAug 27, 2025

You’re gonna start trouble with this one…

BrianLoAug 27, 2025

Fiscal Year 2024 - Fiscal Year 2034 Oct 1, 2023 - Sept 30 2033 With emphasis that it would expand in the back half. We seem to have almost the entire DCL outlay. But based on their projected 20B spend on DCL, I assume there’s an option for a 2032 unbooked ship. We only really have parks plans through fiscal 2029 (Sept 30, 2029). “Disneyland Forward” would be a pathway to accelerating the out West Spend. I’m quite dubious if Florida hits the doubled investment benchmark. Before I’m reminded there’s no real obligation to meet the full dollar amount. Such long capital plans rarely hold.

ManicMillennialAug 27, 2025

I don’t remember off the top of my head where I read this so it could be wrong but I do remember reading somewhere that the $60 billion investment decade was for the fiscal years of 2025 to 2035.

JMcMahonEsqAug 27, 2025

I will be honest that I don’t care at all about overall capacity of a park, or WDW in general, so I am slightly biased, but i certainly think it has nothing to do with if something can be considered new. The “newness” of something is related to the thing itself. Any attempt to relate newness to capacity means the thing you are describings “newness” is related to other things, not itself. If someone is new isn’t related to how many seats it has or not. I mean so your saying a ride is “new” if it is build on an expansion pad, but the same ride is not new if it’s build on land that has something before it? To cosmic ray analogy, if the restaurant stays the same but changes the menu, the restaurant isn’t new, but the menu certainly is. To follow your reasoning it would mean the menu isn’t “new” unless it has more offerings than the old one? Or let’s say they build a new bathroom? If they don’t knock down other bathrooms in the park that bathroom is new? But if they do then the newly built bathroom isn’t “new” anymore? I mean if buy a new car but go from a mini van to a Ferrari, does it mean I don’t have a new car because i went from a 7 passenger capacity to 2? The amount of people something can service is unrealated to how old/new it is

Disstevefan1Aug 27, 2025

After thinking about it, I needed to reply to my own post. Its not like a 10 year clock. They said they would spend the money over 10 years... Think about stuff for a couple of years. Spend some money for a year and a half on some stuff. Think about stuff for another couple of years. Spend some money for a couple of years on stuff. And so on...

Disstevefan1Aug 27, 2025

Wow, I looked at the first post and it was Sept 2023, so we are coming up on two years into the “over the next 10 years”. Time flys.

Chi84Aug 27, 2025

Something is new even if replaces something old that you like better. If there’s no significant change then it’s not new. It’s the same thing with minor alterations.