With this being yet another underperformer from Disney, it’s obvious that the only lever Iger has left to pull is the nuclear option: all theatrical movies will not be available on Disney+ until a year after their premiere.
People would be upset about it to be sure, but the current situation is clearly not sustainable.
I do think a big statement and then Disney’s media department doing a big PR play about it to make sure the GP knows would help.
However, I also think it’s certainly not just a D+ issue, but a quality issue. Between Marvel, Disney Animation, Pixar, LucasFilm - every main brand Disney has is going through quality issues (ups and downs).
Audiences used to have little doubt that a WDAS or Pixar film would disappoint. There was a period there for about five years during the end of Phase 2 and all of Phase 3 where audiences went in knowing at worst it would be a fun time with some laughs and heart (think an Ant-Man). The Star Wars content on D+ has been a huge mixed bag and with the MCU D+ content that’s also hit or miss, it’s diluted the brand.
Simply put, audiences have lost faith in Disney and they have a right to. This was the year where Disney finally lost me from going to MCU films and other films of theirs in theaters because the quality has just been everywhere. Look at the RT critic scores for Disney's theatrical release calendar this year... there are some solid scores here, but the lack of anything that people HAD to rush out and see and the amount of mediocre to bad stuff Disney threw in theaters ultimately made this year a year full of underperforming films or straight up box office bombs. GotG 3 is the only real successful film they had this year financially.
1. Haunted Mansion - 37%
2. Next Goal Wins (Searchlight) - 41%
3. Ant-Man: Quantumania - 46%
4. Wish - 50%
5. The Boogeyman (20th) - 60%
6. The Marvels - 61%
7. The Creator (20th) - 66%
8. The Little Mermaid - 67%
9. Indiana Jones 5 - 69%
10. Elemental - 74%
11. A Haunting In Venice (20th) - 75%
12. Chevalier (Searchlight) - 77%
13. Guardians 3 - 82%
14. Theater Camp (Searchlight) - 85%