Shares in Walt Disney (DIS) continued to drift today as investors and executives at the media group steeled themselves for the opening of under-fire new movie Snow White.
Disney stock was down 2% at the close of trading last night and flat in pre-market trading today as cinema doors get set to welcome movie-goers for the $300 million remake of the 1937 classic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.
Woke White
Instead of looking forward to bumper box-office takings however, Disney chief executive Bob Iger is unlikely to be “Heigh-Ho-Heigh-Hoing” off to work today as he gets embroiled once again in U.S. woke culture wars.
It’s not just the lack of dwarfs in the movie title, but the use of computer generated vertically challenged folk rather than human ones, a lead actress Rachel Zegler who said the original film was outdated because of its “antiquated views of women in power” and a clash of views between Zegler and Evil Queen Israeli actress Gal Gadot on the Gaza crisis. Zegler has also been less than complimentary about President Trump opening up much online criticism over her woke opinions and even Colombian heritage.
Disney has tried to soften the chatter around the movie by restricting media access to its stars at the recent Hollywood premiere.
Box Office Bash
But there is every chance that this could be another poisoned apple for Iger who has sought to row back on the “social messaging” in Disney’s production in recent years. That’s down to the return to prominence of President Donald Trump and other non-woke warriors such as Florida governor Ron DeSantis.
The culture wars are back for Disney and it will take more than a few magic mirrors to avoid the cost.
According to the Financial Times, box office takings for Snow White are expected to come in at between $45 million to $50 million for the opening weekend in the U.S. and around $100 million globally. That compares with around $300 million for other family-favorite style films in previous years such as The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast.
Is DIS a Good Stock to Buy Now?
On TipRanks, DIS has a Strong Buy consensus based on 16 Buy and 5 Hold ratings. Its highest price target is $147. DIS stock’s consensus price target is $129.68 implying an 31.18% upside.
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