After Robert Iger, the Chief Executive of the Walt Disney Company, forced out Rich Ross, who headed Disney’s movie unit, last week some industry analysts speculated that Marvel’s Kevin Feige might get the job, though that now appears increasingly unlikely in spite of the likely success of The Avengers, which was produced under Feige’s supervision by Disney’s Marvel Studios unit. Deadline reports that Feige considers himself a “creative” and might not be interested in a position that was more of a straight desk job.
Feige might be wise to avoid what has to be one of the world’s most thankless jobs. Few jobs come with the built-in frustrations of being the head of the Disney Studio, which is basically a set of fiefdoms including Pixar, Marvel Studios, and Dreamworks that basically operate independently except for distribution and marketing. For example the departed Ross oversaw just a handful of films during his two-and-one-half year tenure, movies like Peter Hedge’s The Odd Life of Timothy Green, Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, Sam Raimi’s Oz The Great and Powerful, Gore Verbinski’s The Lone Ranger, and the live-action Snow White drama Maleficent—none of which have actually been released yet. So Feige is already overseeing almost as many movies, and in his current position as head of the Marvel unit, he doesn’t have to take any grief from the other Disney units about how their movies are being marketed.
Deadline placed some of the blame for Ross’ ouster on the shoulders of Ike Perlmutter, who it characterized as "not just a notoriously tough customer but a budget-obsessed megalomaniac besides a recluse" (see “Marvel CEO Helped Push Out Ross”). Perlmutter, who rescued Marvel from bankruptcy, became a major Disney shareholder when the Mouse House acquired Marvel. To say that there has been a “culture clash” between the penny-pinching Perlmutter and the free-spending Hollywood crowd would be to belabor the obvious with a two-by-four. Ike did not take kindly to the $200 million write-off on John Carter, which was backed by Disney’s Pixar unit where John Carter director Andrew Stanton had flourished. As for Pixar, reports indicate dissatisfaction with the way the movie was marketed—and Dreamworks reportedly didn’t like the way the studio handled Spielberg’s War Horse.
If Joss Whedon’s The Avengers does as well as it has been tracking (see "'The Avengers' Opens Strong--Overseas"), the position as head of the Disney Studio might regain some of its luster, but right now the idea of being sandwiched between the imperious Iger and a potent group of battling barons each representing the sometimes competing interests of their various units and major stockholders might not be everyone’s idea of what a Hollywood mogul’s life should be. So do be surprised if takes those Tinseltown headhunters some time to fill the position.
