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Credit: Inside the MagicIn the ongoing Disney DeSantis battle, the House of Mouse just earned a point.
Despite a judge calling for the lawsuit to be thrown out, The Walt Disney Company continues to stand firm against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. As the pairs’ lawyers wrestle over trial dates, the Republican Governor unintentionally spoke out in favor of his opponent.
The Disney DeSantis Battle
It began in 2022 when former Disney CEO Bob Chapek condemned DeSantis’s Parental Rights in Education Act (“Don’t Say Gay”). Fans and Cast Members protested the company’s silence after previous donations to legislators that supported the anti-LGBTQIA+ law came to light, inciting Chapek to pause further political contributions.
DeSantis was furious and almost immediately passed legislation to dissolve the Reedy Creek Improvement District. Walt Disney World Resort controlled the municipal area since 1967, a privilege given to various companies and organizations across Florida. Still, DeSantis centered on Disney, appointing his own board to manage a new district he called the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD).
Disney tried to make its Reedy Creek board powerless ahead of transferring control to DeSantis’s appointees in February of 2023, but the new board pressed forward. As they altered municipal guidelines and threatened to change the Disney Parks, the company largely remained silent. But not for long.
In April, The Walt Disney Company filed a lawsuit against Ron DeSantis and the state of Florida for retaliating against free speech protected by the First Amendment. The CFTOD sued them back for trying to limit their power preemptively.
Nevertheless, DeSantis continued threatening the company, quipping that he could build a state prison steps from Walt Disney World Resort or increase hotel taxes and road tolls. In response, Disney CEO Bob Iger threatened to disinvest in Florida.
DeSantis Slips Up
In a recent filing, The Walt Disney Company used DeSantis’s words against him. After the CFTOD board accused Disney of trying to “Imagineer” the law, the company quoted DeSantis’s motion to dismiss their lawsuit.
“The newly appointed CFTOD Board announced that it would not comply with Disney’s contracts because they were void under Florida law,” representatives for DeSantis wrote. “For good measure, the State also enacted a law barring CFTOD from complying with the agreements in any event.”
Disney argued that the Florida Senate already gave them what they wanted by forbidding the CFTOD board from complying with any of Disney’s former policies.
“Put simply: Senate Bill 1604 has already given CFTOD the result it seeks here, and that is the end of all matters before the Court.”
Inside the Magic will continue reporting updates about the battle between Gov. DeSantis and The Walt Disney Company.
Who will reign victorious in the Disney DeSantis battle? Share your thoughts with Inside the Magic in the comments.