The Walt Disney Company is one of the largest media and entertainment companies in the world, built around theme parks, film studios (Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm), the ABC broadcast network, ESPN, Disney+, and consumer products.[1] Headquartered in Burbank, California, Disney employs roughly 230,000 people across more than 40 countries, and it trades publicly as DIS.[2] Bob Iger returned as chief executive in late 2022 after the brief Bob Chapek era, and his second tenure has coincided with the most politically eventful four years in the company's modern history.
- In 2024 Disney's corporate PAC gave nearly 90% of its candidate contributions to Democrats.
- Disney settled its two-year DeSantis fight in 2024 with a $17 billion development deal.
- ABC News paid $15 million to Trump's presidential library to settle a 2024 defamation case.
- Disney ended its Reimagine Tomorrow DEI program in February 2025 and dropped DEI language from its 10-K by November.
- Disney shareholders voted 99-to-1 in 2025 to stay in the Human Rights Campaign equality index.
Quick Take
Disney is a politically loud company that has spent the last twelve months actively trying to be quieter. Over the past four years it picked a high-profile fight with the governor of Florida and lost it, paid $15 million to the future Trump presidential library to settle a defamation case, ended its flagship corporate diversity program, took Jimmy Kimmel off the air under public pressure from the FCC chair, and scrubbed the words "diversity" and "DEI" from its annual SEC filing for the first time since 2019.[3][4][5][6][7][8] At the same time, the people who actually work for Disney have continued sending the large majority of their federal political donations to Democrats, nearly 90 percent of the 2024 federal-candidate money from Disney and its employees went to Democrats even though the company describes its PAC as evenly split, and Disney shareholders voted 99-to-1 in March 2025 to keep participating in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index over a right-leaning withdrawal proposal.[9][10] The retreat is real, the underlying institutional Disney has not noticeably moved.
Where the Money Actually Goes
Federal disclosures are the cleanest signal we have. In the 2024 cycle OpenSecrets recorded about $3.55 million in total contributions tied to Disney and its employees, plus $5.2 million in federal lobbying and no reported FEC outside spending.[9] Disney's corporate PAC itself raised $341,886 and gave $181,500 to federal candidates in 2024.[10]
There is a noticeable gap between how Disney describes its political giving and where the money actually lands. Disney's corporate disclosure describes its PAC as splitting contributions roughly evenly between candidates of the two major parties.[11] The recipient data points the other way. Counting all federal candidates backed by Disney and the people who work there, OpenSecrets recorded about 89.74 percent of the money going to Democrats and 10.26 percent to Republicans in 2024, $2,053,996 to Democratic candidates against $234,951 to Republicans.[10] Most of that came from individual employees rather than the corporate PAC itself: of the federal-candidate money, individuals accounted for $2,136,246 and the PAC for $181,500.[10] The tilt held among congressional candidates specifically, where Democrats took about 85.48 percent.[10] In the 2022 cycle the combined Disney PAC-and-employee total to federal candidates ran roughly 87 percent Democratic on more than $900,000 in contributions.[12]
A Different Story From the Right
One Disney-connected donor cuts so sharply against that pattern that it deserves its own moment. The late Isaac Perlmutter, who chaired Disney subsidiary Marvel Entertainment until his ouster in 2023, gave $10.5 million to the right-of-center America First Action super PAC in 2020 in support of Donald Trump, with his wife Laura contributing a separate $10.5 million to the same committee, for roughly $21 million combined.[13] Perlmutter, a longtime friend of Trump, was giving personally and not on behalf of Disney, but his donations sit inside the OpenSecrets affiliated totals and remain the largest single political contributions associated with anyone in Disney's executive ranks during the past decade.
A separate critique has come from the political left. In 2024 the Sustainable Investments Institute filed an SEC proxy statement accusing Disney and its employee PAC of giving roughly $2.5 million during the 2020 and 2022 cycles to politicians and committees the filers describe as working to restrict abortion access, including a figure of 70 percent of Disney's Florida-level political giving directed to anti-abortion politicians in the five years before the state's 2022 abortion ban.[14]
The Florida Fight, Start to Finish
For more than fifty years, Disney did not just operate a theme park in central Florida. It effectively self-governed the land around Walt Disney World through the Reedy Creek Improvement District, an unusual special-purpose government created in 1967 that gave the company powers similar to a county over zoning, utilities, fire services, and bond issuance for the property.[15]
In March 2022, under pressure from employees and LGBTQ+ advocacy groups, then-chief executive Bob Chapek issued a public statement opposing Florida's Parental Rights in Education Act, the bill its critics nicknamed "Don't Say Gay."[16] Governor Ron DeSantis treated the statement as a declaration of war. The Florida legislature dissolved the Reedy Creek District, replaced it with a new state-controlled Central Florida Tourism Oversight District whose board DeSantis appointed, and the two sides spent the next two years in state and federal court.[15]
The fight ended quietly and in DeSantis's favor. In January 2024 a federal judge dismissed Disney's First Amendment retaliation lawsuit.[15] In March 2024 Disney settled the state-court case and conceded that last-minute development agreements its old board had passed to lock in Disney-favorable terms were null and void.[3] In June 2024 Disney and the DeSantis-controlled district signed a new 15-year, $17 billion development agreement that includes a local-business hiring program and at least $10 million in attainable housing commitments.[4] Disney never returned to the federal courthouse on the underlying retaliation claim. DeSantis declared victory. Disney has not opposed a Florida state social-policy bill publicly since.
Settling With Trump
In December 2024, weeks after the presidential election, Disney-owned ABC News agreed to pay $15 million to a yet-to-be-built Trump presidential library and museum, plus $1 million in legal fees, to settle a defamation lawsuit Trump had filed against the network and anchor George Stephanopoulos.[5] Stephanopoulos had said on-air that Trump was found "liable for rape" in the E. Jean Carroll civil case; a jury had found Trump liable for sexual abuse but not rape under New York's narrow legal definition. Iger personally approved the settlement, and reporting at the time framed it as a strategic call to limit Disney's exposure during a Trump second term rather than a litigation judgment on the merits.[17]
The DEI Retreat
Inside the company, the cultural posture shifted hard. Disney's "Reimagine Tomorrow" initiative, launched in 2021, had paired diversity-focused storytelling with internal commitments that included a stated ABC programming goal that half of regular and recurring characters be drawn from underrepresented groups, plus tying executive compensation to diversity metrics.[18]
In February 2025 Disney terminated the Reimagine Tomorrow program, shut down its dedicated website, replaced the "Diversity & Inclusion" executive-compensation factor with a new "Talent Strategy" factor, and renamed its Business Employee Resource Groups as Belonging Employee Resource Groups.[6] America First Legal, the conservative organization that had pressured Disney on its DEI programs since 2022, publicly took credit for the changes.[19]
In March 2025 FCC Chair Brendan Carr opened a formal investigation into whether Disney and ABC had violated FCC equal employment opportunity regulations through what he called "invidious forms of DEI discrimination."[18] In Carr's letter to Iger, he wrote that even though Disney had walked back some programs, he wanted to ensure the changes had been "in substance, not just name." The FCC had sent nearly identical letters to Comcast and Verizon in the preceding weeks.
In November 2025, Disney's annual 10-K filing, the most heavily lawyered public document a company files, omitted the words "diversity," "DEI," and "D&I" entirely for the first time since 2019.[8]
The Kimmel Suspension
In September 2025, ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel devoted his monologue to the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, criticizing what he called the "MAGA gang" for trying to characterize the suspect as anyone other than one of their own.[20] Hours later, FCC Chair Brendan Carr told a conservative podcast that ABC could "do this the easy way or the hard way," suggested the FCC could revoke ABC affiliate licenses, and praised Trump for forcing what he called a "massive shift" in the media ecosystem.[20] Two of the largest ABC affiliate groups, Nexstar and Sinclair, both of which had business pending before the Trump administration, announced they would preempt the show.
That same evening, Disney announced "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" would be preempted "indefinitely."[7] Protesters gathered outside Disney's Burbank offices and Kimmel's Hollywood studio chanting "ABC bent the knee." Kimmel was reinstated the following week, with Disney saying it had suspended production to "avoid further inflaming a tense situation."[21]
Where Disney Has Not Moved
Two institutional signals run squarely against the retreat narrative. Disney has held a perfect 100 score on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation's Corporate Equality Index every year since 2007, for 18 consecutive years through the 2025-26 cycle.[22] At Disney's March 2025 annual meeting, shareholders rejected a right-leaning proposal to withdraw from the index by a 99-to-1 margin, with Disney's board recommending against the withdrawal.[23] The proposal had been filed by the National Center for Public Policy Research's Free Enterprise Project, the conservative shareholder activist group that bills itself as the leading opponent of corporate DEI.
The Iger Doctrine
Most of the 2024-2025 sequence has happened on Bob Iger's watch. Iger first ran Disney from 2005 to 2020, came back in November 2022 after the brief Chapek tenure, and is now in his second extended run. Iger is a longtime registered Democrat who has personally donated to Democratic candidates and committees, but in interviews and shareholder communications since his return, he has repeatedly described his goal as wanting Disney to "quiet the noise" and stop being a target in the culture war, framing Chapek's "Don't Say Gay" intervention as the kind of unforced political exposure he wants to avoid. The settlements with DeSantis and Trump, the DEI rollback, and the Kimmel suspension all fit that doctrine. Disney's Democratic giving patterns and HRC participation, both of which predate his return, do not.
Products & Services
Disney reaches consumers through theme parks (Walt Disney World, Disneyland, the Disney Cruise Line, and international parks), film studios (Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, 20th Century), the ABC and ESPN broadcast and digital networks, the Disney+ and Hulu streaming services, and a global merchandise and licensing business.[1][2]
Founding & Ownership
Disney was founded in 1923 in Los Angeles by brothers Walt and Roy O. Disney.[1] Bob Iger served as CEO from 2005 to 2020 and returned in November 2022 after the brief Bob Chapek era.[2]
Where to Find Them
The official corporate website is thewaltdisneycompany.com. Consumer-facing destinations include disney.com, disneyplus.com, hulu.com, abc.com, and espn.com.
Footnotes
[1] Walt Disney Company, SEC Form 10-K for Fiscal Year 2024, filed November 2024. https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001744489&type=10-K
[2] Walt Disney Company, "About The Walt Disney Company," accessed May 28, 2026. https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/about/
[3] Variety, "Disney Reaches Settlement in Florida Lawsuit Over Theme Park District," March 27, 2024. https://variety.com/2024/biz/news/disney-settlement-florida-dont-say-gay-reedy-creek-1235953399/
[4] Jim Turner, Orlando Weekly / News Service of Florida, "Disney ends legal battle with DeSantis, reaches $17 billion development deal," July 22, 2024. https://www.orlandoweekly.com/news/disney-ends-legal-battle-with-desantis-reaches-17-billion-development-deal-37103519/
[5] Michael R. Sisak, Associated Press, "ABC agrees to give $15 million to Donald Trump's presidential library to settle defamation lawsuit," December 14, 2024. https://apnews.com/article/abc-trump-defamation-lawsuit-settlement
[6] Fox Business, "Disney drops controversial 'Reimagine Tomorrow' program as company pares back DEI initiatives," February 12, 2025. https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/disney-drops-controversial-reimagine-tomorrow-program-company-pares-back-dei-initiatives
[7] Brian Stelter and Liam Reilly, CNN Business, "ABC yanks Jimmy Kimmel's show 'indefinitely' after threat from Trump's FCC chair Brendan Carr," September 17, 2025. https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/17/media/jimmy-kimmel-charlie-kirk-trump-fcc-brendan-carr
[8] That Park Place, "Disney Officially Drops DEI Programs and Shakes Up Executive Team After Disappointing Q4 Stock Results," November 14, 2025. https://thatparkplace.com/disney-officially-drops-dei-programs/
[9] OpenSecrets.org, "Walt Disney Co organization profile," accessed May 28, 2026. https://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/walt-disney-co/summary?id=D000000128
[10] OpenSecrets.org, "Walt Disney Co PAC profile, 2023-2024 cycle," accessed May 28, 2026. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/walt-disney-co/C00197749/summary/2024
[11] Walt Disney Company, "Political Giving and Participation in Public Policy," 2025 disclosure, accessed May 28, 2026. https://impact.disney.com/app/uploads/2024/11/Political-Giving-Participation-in-Public-Policy_2025-1.pdf
[12] That Park Place, "87% of Disney Donations Go to Democrats: CEO Calls Republicans Ahead of Election," analysis based on OpenSecrets 2022 cycle data, July 2025. https://thatparkplace.com/87-of-disney-donations-go-to-democrats-ceo-calls-republicans-ahead-of-election/
[13] Influence Watch, "The Walt Disney Company," accessed May 28, 2026. https://www.influencewatch.org/for-profit/the-walt-disney-company/
[14] Sustainable Investments Institute, SEC Form PX14A6G (Walt Disney Company shareholder solicitation), 2024. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0001744489/000121465924004690/j318241px14a6g.htm
[15] Wikipedia, "Disney v. DeSantis," accessed May 28, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney_v._DeSantis
[16] Wikipedia, "Disney and Florida's Parental Rights in Education Act," accessed May 28, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney_and_Florida%27s_Parental_Rights_in_Education_Act
[17] The Wrap, "Disney Settled With Trump Because They Feared President-Elect Might Take ABC News Battle to Supreme Court," December 18, 2024. https://www.thewrap.com/disney-defamation-settles-trump-lawsuit-abc-news-supreme-court/
[18] Brendan Carr, Federal Communications Commission, Letter to Robert A. Iger re: Investigation into Disney/ABC's DEI Programs, March 27, 2025. https://www.fcc.gov/sites/default/files/Carr-Letter-to-Disney-DEI-03252027.pdf
[19] America First Legal, "VICTORY: Disney Abandons DEI Initiatives Following America First Legal's Civil Rights Complaint," February 13, 2025. https://aflegal.org/press-release/victory-disney-abandons-dei-initiatives-following-afls-civil-rights-complaint-and-notices-to-ceo-and-board/
[20] NBC News, "Disney's ABC pulls 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' after FCC chair criticizes the host's Charlie Kirk comments," September 18, 2025. https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/tv/disneys-abc-pulls-jimmy-kimmel-live-fcc-chair-blasts-hosts-charlie-kir-rcna232033
[21] Fortune, "Jimmy Kimmel is reinstated but one of Disney's biggest ABC affiliates is still threatening to block his return," September 22, 2025. https://fortune.com/2025/09/22/disney-jimmy-kimmel-live-boycott-charlie-kirk-fcc-free-speech/
[22] Walt Disney Company, "Disney Earns Top Score in HRC Foundation Corporate Equality Index," December 8, 2025. https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/news/disney-earns-top-score-in-hrc-foundation-corporate-equality-index/
[23] Christopher Wiggins, Advocate, "Disney shareholders vote overwhelmingly to continue in Human Rights Campaign index," March 22, 2025. https://www.advocate.com/news/disney-supports-corporate-equality-index
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