If it's a Tuesday afternoon in mid-May, you know what media colossus has a capacity audience for its Upfront Week presentation. The always memorable Walt Disney Company showcase was on memorable mode again May 14th for two hours-plus inside North Javits Center's main showroom, with nearly 4,000 attendees. Two reasons why: the first Upfront appearance in years at the top by Walt Disney Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger, and the first in-person appearance in three years by ABC late-night and Academy Awards host Jimmy Kimmel, wrapping things up with his always memorable monologue on TV industry foibles -- Upfront/NewFronts included.
The Big Message: Disney's assortment of TV ventures from Hulu and ABC to Disney+ and ESPN remain the leaders in content storytelling and technology innovation, a winning duo for advertiser participation. "We're not only meeting fan expectations of our storytelling, we're exceeding them," noted Disney Global Advertising Sales President Rita Ferro.
Hosts: Iger and Ferro headlined the Disney executives handling portions of the show. On-air talent did the majority of host work, from American Idol and new Wheel of Fortune host Ryan Seacrest for unscripted developments to World News Tonight anchorperson David Muir celebrating 20 years of Robin Roberts co-hosting Good Morning America with Roberts by his side.
What Worked: Having one presenter after another wax nostalgic about their experiences growing up on Disney-made TV or movies, or working/acting on their favorite ABC, Disney Channel or Disney+ series. The goal: demonstrate among attendees Disney's unique ability to inspire consumers across generations and connect audiences globally.
What Also Worked: Bringing more than 150 stars, on-air talent and sports laudables together throughout the presentation, starting off the bat with recent Oscar-winning actress Emma Stone (Poor Things) and ending with Kimmel. Another neat touch: Ferro showing up as a toon guest on Family Guy before her on-stage remarks.
What Can Work Here: A few minutes demonstrating how creative or innovative advertisers can get on Disney+, Hulu or ESPN+. Just run a quick campaign sizzle reel, then have someone from that sponsor appear on stage, on tape or virtually to share the results.
Data Points: One in two people across the globe connect with Disney content every single day. ESPN Monday Night Football had its most-watched season since 2000 last year. ESPN's weekday morning program First Take has increased its viewership every month for 21 consecutive months.
News: ABC will open the 2024-25 TV season this fall with two new drama series -- Ryan Murphy-produced Doctor Odyssey (starring Joshua Jackson and Don Johnson) and High Potential (starring Kaitlin Olson). ABC News' studios unit contributes Scamanda, based on the popular podcast about Amanda Riley, and unscripted 90-minute franchise spinoff The Golden Bachelorette will lead off Wednesday nights. Upcoming Hulu attractions include new political thriller drama Paradise, a Bruce Springsteen/E Street Band documentary (this October) and the launch of monthly stand-up special Hulu's Laughing Now (starts November 22 with Jim Gaffigan). Three new Marvel series are in Disney+'s launch pipeline: witches tale Agatha All Along (September 18), followed by superhero sagas Daredevil: Born Again (March 2025) and Ironheart (2025).
Bonus Points: Only Murders In The Building co-stars Selena Gomez, Steve Martin and Martin Short uniting on-stage, with Martin and Short taking Gomez to humorous task for not alerting them about her own new Disney accountability -- executive producing new Disney Channel series Wizards Beyond Waverly Place (continuing the Emmy-winning series featuring Gomez in her career breakout role). Then there's the hilarious video segment during Kimmel's monologue about…drumroll…the next Golden Bachelorfranchise series -- The Golden Retriever.
Parting Words: "I'm happy to show the incredible projects we're working on, and later Jimmy Kimmel will be out there to tear them all apart." -Bob Iger, Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney Company.
"Women both in front of and behind the camera are an extraordinary force, and the women at home watching our shows make up over half of Hulu's audience." -9-1-1 co-star and producer Angela Bassett.
"You always remember the adversity more than you remember the success." -New Monday Night Countdownco-analyst Jason Kelce.
And now…some choice sentences from Jimmy Kimmel's monologue:
"Let's have applause for all the stars who have to be here because of the clauses in their new (SAG-AFTRA) contract…I don't think Jesus connected with half the population every day…Bob Iger is so excited to be here for another season of Will (bleeping)Trent…The only person that can replace Bob Iger is Bob A-Iger. We uploaded him in the cloud so we can have him forever…Somewhere at CBS, someone with a white board with the title "Old Sheldon?" …You've seen our churn rates? It's not just churn. It's Churn-obyl…Here's what we understand about TV audiences. They want to watch Netflix…Dear God, please help Linda Yaccarino sell something other than Cheech & Chong giveaways on X."
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