Mickey Mouse goes to the middle -east.
In a new test for his particularly American brand, the Walt Disney company said on Wednesday that it had reached an agreement with the Miral groupAn arm from the government of Abu Dhabi, to build a theme carting on the Persian Gulf. The building, the seventh in Disney’s Global Portfolio, will have a castle and modernized versions of some classic Disney rides, together with new attractions tailored to the climate and local culture.
“It’s not just about” if you build it, they will come, “said Robert A. Iger, Chief Executive of Disney, in a short telephone interview by Abu Dhabi. “You have to build it well. And quality not only means scale, but also quality and ambition. We are planning to be very ambitious with this.”
Disney and Miral refused to give area, budget or construction time line details for what they call Disneyland Abu Dhabi, except to say that it will be a full ownership on an equal footing with Disney’s other ‘castleParks. Miral pays the entire bill for building the park (new theme parks on this scale usually cost $ 5 billion or more.)
Arab leaders have long made the court of Disney, who in 1983, France in 1992, Hong Kong in 2005 and the Chinese mainland In 2016. During a council on foreign relations in 2018, Mr. Iger said the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin SalmanHad made a “passionate plea” for Disney to build a theme park in his kingdom.
“I explained when we make such decisions, we consider cultural issues, economic issues and political issues,” Said Mr. Iger thenRefusing to give further details about their “very frank” discussion. The region, he added at the time: “Not at the top of our list in terms of markets in which we would open ourselves.”
What has changed?
To begin with, the United Arab Emirates have grown into a tourist destination. According to the government figures, Abu Dhabi, the capital, attracted around 24 million visitors in 2023. Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the president of the country, has set the goal of attracting 39 million visitors to Abu Dhabi annually. The Louvre Abu Dhabiwhich was opened in 2017, has been a hit. Warner Bros. Discovery opened a modest indoor theme park in the city and Seaworld Abu Dhabi arrived in 2023 in 2018.
The Miral Group, Die Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi and Seaworld Abu Dhabi built, Disney made a hard -to -process financial offer: In addition to paying for construction, Miral Disney will pay to design the journeys, shops, restaurants and associated hotels. As soon as the park is open, Disney receives royalties for the use of his characters as a percentage of income, according to a securities application. Disney also receives other costs.
At the same time, Disney came under pressure to find new growth areas to compensate in the cable television and at the cash register. By opening a theme park in Abu Dhabi, Disney hopes to create a motorcycle that stimulates the demand among the 500 million inhabitants of the East for other Disney products -Princess Dolls, Disney+ subscriptions, holidays of cruise ships, Marvel films, Touring Producties.
“After having carefully studied the region, to have been attracted to potential partners three times in the last nine months and to visit three times,” Mr. Eger said, “it became increasingly clear that the region was not only good and ready for us, but the place to build was Abu Dhabi.”
Disneyland Abu Dhabi could allow Disney to tap into the growing middle class of India. A direct flight from Mumbai to Abu Dhabi takes 17 hours 17 minutes. Currently, the nearest Disney-Buitenpost to Mumbai Hong Kong Disneyland, a six-hour flight is removed.
“When looking at some research we have recently done, we found that, for every person who visits one of our parks, there are 10 people in the world who have the desire to visit,” said Mr. Iger. “One of the biggest reasons why they don’t do that – everyone always thinks it is affordability. It is not. It is accessibility. It is a long journey to come where we are for many people.”
There will be obstacles. The climate is one. Disney will have to design a park that makes visits in the desert heat possible.
Disney could also be confronted with criticism of his partnership with the Emirates, which is ruled as an autocracy with limits to freedom of expression, speech and the press, and that offers weapons to hunters accused of atrocities in a Destructive civil war in Sudan. In November, Human Rights Watch beaten The National Basketball Association, which has made Abu Dhabi to the Middle East Hub to help distract the country from its human rights record.
To attract more tourists and foreign investors, the Emirates in 2020 Improved protection for womenReleased instructions for alcohol consumption and reduced the role of Islamic legal codes in its legal system. However, criticism of the government or its leaders remains illegal and can lead to long prison sentences. Migrating employees are often subject to inhumane conditions, according to human rights groups and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Homosexuality is illegal.
In 2022, the Emirates joined other Persian golf countries exile ‘Lightyear’, an important film by Disney’s Pixar, because of a wink-and-you-missed-it kiss between a lesbian couple. “Lightyear”, together with some other content with LGBTQ signs, Does not appear On Disney+ in the region.
In a statement, a Disney spokeswoman said: “We are respectful for the countries and cultures where we do business, while we always adhere to our own norms and values.”
Disney was confronted with a similar situation when it collaborated with the Chinese government to build Shanghai Disneyland. In addition to uncomfortable optics, the construction of that park required the controversial relocation of thousands of Shanghai residents in the suburbs. (Disneyland Abu Dhabi will not have that headache; It will rise on humans made yas Island.)
However, Wall Street is likely to applaud – especially in view of the troubled state of other Disney companies, including cable television.
“Are theme parks now the best company in the media?” Craig Moffett, a founder of the research agency of Moffettnathanson, wrote in a report last year. “The answer is almost certainly” yes. “
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