George Lucas has defended Disney’s board and CEO Bob Iger amid the proxy war, saying, “Magic isn’t for the enthusiasts.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Lucas—the creator of Star Wars and the largest individual shareholder in Disney—implores Disney’s shareholders to reject the offers made by two activist investor groups seeking board seats.
Lucas stated in a statement that he was happy to become a shareholder in Disney because of the company’s well-known brand and Bob Iger’s leadership, which he has long appreciated. He went on, “I felt comfort when Bob came back during a challenging time for the company. He is the one who knows Disney the best. Because I have total faith and confidence in Disney and Bob’s track record of growing long-term value, I am a big shareholder.” In addition, Lucas revealed that he had urged other shareholders to follow suit by voting all of his shares in support of Disney’s 12 directors.
In 2012, under Iger’s direction, Disney paid $4 billion to acquire Lucasfilm, awarding Lucas 37.1 million Disney shares. Disney’s largest individual shareholder is Lucas, who created the firm in 1971 and is estimated to be worth $7.9 billion overall, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Investors will vote on candidates for the board to replace the current directors at Disney’s annual shareholder meeting on April 3, 2024. The options include Disney’s own 12-member slate, two nominees from Trian Partners, which is led by Nelson Peltz (Peltz and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo), or three firms nominated by Blackwells Capital, an investment firm. Disney’s stock, according to Peltz, has underperformed the market. He also highlighted the necessity for the corporation to implement more crucial strategies in order to achieve profitable and long-term growth.
Lucas’s remark that “Magic isn’t for the enthusiasts” can allude to Peltz confessing that he has no prior experience in the media. The movie director made his remarks after Disney defeated other backers in the board game. Disney shareholders are advised to cast their votes for the company’s twelve director nominees in a report released on Monday by independent proxy voting counsel Glass Lewis.
In an open letter published last month, Walt Disney and his grandsons Roy O. Disney’s grandchildren criticized activist investor efforts, vowed to reorganize Disney’s board, and supported Iger and the current board.
Disney has previously declared that it will not support the candidates put up by Blackwells and Trian, citing insufficient “aptitude, skills, perspective, and/or expertise” and advising investors to support its own slate of twelve nominees. Disney this Friday released Peltz’s most forceful response to date in a video, calling Trian’s aggressive and destructive proxy struggle “divisive and destructive” and raising the question, “Why would they sell 500,000 Disney shares in the past six months amidst their secret fight?” Ike Perlmutter, the former chairman of Marvel Entertainment, owns 79% of the almost $3.5 billion worth of Disney stock held by Trian Partners, which Disney has long accused of having personal hostility against Iger.
