Sean Bailey, the longtime president of Walt Disney Studios Film Production, resigned on Monday amid a leadership shakeup at the Disney film division, which has come under fire from some investors for disappointing box office results. did.
“The time has come for a new chapter,” Bailey said in a statement.
Disney has named David Greenbaum, co-president of Searchlight Pictures, Disney’s art film division, to succeed Bailey. But Mr. Greenbaum has a bigger job overseeing both Mr. Bailey’s live-action remakes of animated classics and 20th Century Studios, the Disney film division that manages the “Avatar” and “Planet of the Apes” series. Given the.
Mr. Greenbaum joined Searchlight in 2010. He previously worked at Miramax, where he produced films such as There Will Be Blood and No Country for Old Men. He recently helped Disney acquire the streaming rights to “Taylor Swift: The Elus Tour.”
“David has an incredible sensibility and eye for film,” Alan Bergman, co-chairman of Disney Entertainment, said in a statement.
Matthew Greenfield, who was named co-president of Searchlight along with Greenbaum in 2021, is the division’s sole director, known for Oscar-winning classics such as “The Dawn” and “Nomadland.” was appointed. Searchlight’s current Oscar nominee “Poor Things” has collected nearly $100 million worldwide. It cost him $35 million, excluding marketing costs.
Mr. Bailey was Disney’s president of production for 14 years, an eternity in Hollywood, where film production executives are often fired every few years. During that time, Disney was plagued by executive layoffs, restructuring efforts, and changes in its film distribution strategy. The down-to-earth Mr. Bailey was popular with stars and their agents, and brought stability.
His hits include the live-action version of “Aladdin,” which grossed $1.1 billion at the box office. The photorealistic “Lion King” grossed $1.7 billion. The live-action version of “Beauty and the Beast” grossed $1.3 billion.
More recently, Mr. Bailey’s division, along with other Disney studios including Marvel, had struggled to find new blockbusters. His remake of “The Little Mermaid,” which cost an estimated $375 million to produce and sell, has raked in about $570 million worldwide after its release last spring. Disney was expecting close to $1 billion. (Ticket sales were almost 50-50 in theaters and studios.) “The Haunted Mansion,” directed by Mr. Bailey, underperformed in July.
Bailey has been a vocal supporter of diversity at Disney. In the live-action version of “Snow White,” which is scheduled to be released next year, Latin actress Rachel Zegler will play the role of the princess known as “the most beautiful.” Halle Bailey, who is black, played the title role in The Little Mermaid.
That worldview and business strategy has placed Disney and Mr. Bailey, a low-profile and unassuming executive, at the center of an increasingly loud and disrespectful cultural battle. I feel like for every person who praises Disney, there’s always someone who is dissatisfied with being forced to “awake.”
Mr. Bailey seemed restless. In recent weeks, he has spoken with Netflix leaders about senior film roles. Last year, he had a similar conversation with Amazon. When he last renewed his contract with Disney three years ago, he made it clear that it was likely his last contract.
“I know he’s going to continue to do a great job,” Bergman said of Bailey. Mr. Bailey is set to become a producer at Disney, at least for the foreseeable future.
He was set to produce Tron: Aries, a sequel to the 2010 film Tron: Legacy, which he also produced, and he caught the attention of Disney leaders, who hired him as an executive.
