‘FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCES’

Ex-Marvel Exec Says Disney Booted Him After Repeated Clashes With Leadership

Ike Perlmutter says he butted heads with Disney execs over the cost of Marvel’s superhero movies and the company’s feud with DeSantis.

Ike Perlmutter, the former executive of Marvel who lost his job during last week’s sweeping layoffs at Disney, told the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday that he was fired over a slew of clashes with leadership at the entertainment giant. Namely, Perlmutter says he butted heads with Disney execs over the cost of Marvel’s superhero movies, which he argued weren’t worth their cost of production despite massive turnout at the box office. “I have no doubt that my termination was based on fundamental differences in business between my thinking and Disney leadership, because I care about return on investment,” Perlmutter said. Also part of his rift with leadership was his disagreement with Disney openly opposing Florida’s Don’t Say Gay bill in 2021—something he says prompted him to call Gov. Ron DeSantis himself. “Ron, you’re right,” Perlmutter, 80, recalls saying. “Disney doesn’t have the right to get involved with politics.”