Imagine the “WandaVision -style alternate-reality version of the last year for Walt Disney Co.
Executives, filmed in 1950s sitcom black-and-white, shake hands by the pool to celebrate a massive 2020. They toast “Black Widow” grossing $1 billion, full queues for Rise of the Resistance at the theme parks and strong numbers for Disney+.
But wait . what’s that faint voice crackling through the transistor radio? Is that . Dr. Anthony Fauci?
Back to the real world.
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In many ways, the pandemic hit Disney harder than any other media and entertainment company.
The Burbank, Calif.-based entertainment giant lost $2.8 billion in fiscal 2020, furloughed more than 100,000 workers, laid off thousands, delayed the release of its biggest blockbusters, closed an animation studio (R.I.P. Blue Sky) and decided to shed 60 Disney Stores to focus on e-commerce.