Disney Lands Taylor Swift Concert Film, Nick Saban Joins ESPN, 'Moana 2' Heads To Theaters In November: Key Announcements From Bob Iger

The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) reported first-quarter financial results Wednesday, beating analyst estimates for earnings and missing on revenue.

CEO Bob Iger shared several company announcements during an appearance on CNBC and Disney’s conference call.

Taylor Swift Exclusive: One of the biggest stars of the last two years is Taylor Swift. The musician released a record-breaking "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour" concert film in theaters in 2023 through a partnership with AMC Entertainment Holdings (NYSE:AMC).

Iger announced the concert film will stream exclusively on Disney+ on March 15. The film will be the "Taylor's Version" of the concert film with the inclusion of the song "Cardigan" and four other songs that were not part of the original theatrical or digital releases.

The movie grossed over $180 million domestically and more than $260 million worldwide during its theatrical run. The movie broke records both domestically and globally for concert films.

Nick Saban Joins ESPN: Disney announced Wednesday that former Alabama football coach Nick Saban will join ESPN as an on-air commentator. Saban retired from Alabama at the conclusion of the 2023 NCAA Football season and is one of the top ranked college football coaches of all time.

Saban will work as an ESPN analyst providing coverage for the NFL Draft and SEC Media Days. Saban will also be included in ESPN's "College GameDay" coverage.

‘Moana 2′ in Theaters: Originally planned as a series for Disney+, a follow-up to the hit film "Moana" is now being turned into a sequel film set for theatrical release on Nov. 27.

The sequel follows the 2016 hit that grossed $248.8 million domestically and $687.2 million worldwide.

"Moana remains an incredibly popular franchise, and we can't wait to give you more of Moana and Maui when ‘Moana 2' comes to theaters this November," Iger said.

The sequel is said to provide a new voyage for Moana and Maui, along with other characters.

Disney said "Moana" had over 1 billion hours streamed on Disney+ last year and is the most-streamed movie of 2023 across all streaming platforms.

Iger said a live-action movie for Moana remains in development.

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Epic Games Investment: Disney announced a $1.5-billion investment in Fortnite owner Epic Games. The media giant will work with the Fortnite studio on new games and an entertainment universe that will include content, characters and stories from Disney franchises.

Iger said the partnership will see the creation of a "huge Disney universe" for gaming, play, watching and shopping during an interview with CNBC.

"This represents probably our biggest foray into the game space ever," Iger said.

Other Disney Highlights: Iger highlighted the Disney+ content lineup, which includes hit children's licensed show "Bluey" and the recently released "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" series, which was renewed for a second season.

Upcoming movie releases from Disney include "Frozen 3," a new Star Wars movie, a new Toy Story movie and "Zootopia 2."

Disney said Wednesday it is raising its semi-annual dividend and announced a $3-billion share buyback for the fiscal year. This is the first share buyback undertaken by Disney since 2018, Iger said. The Disney CEO said the company will prioritize dividends and share buybacks going forward.

Speaking on CNBC, Iger highlighted news of a Disney joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ:WBD) and Fox Corporation (NASDAQ:FOX) (NASDAQ:FOXA) that was announced Tuesday.

If you're a sports fan or sports league, it's important to engage with ESPN, Iger said.

"They serve the sports fan so well."

Iger was asked about cannibalization concerns and the success of the joint venture in the streaming and cord-cutting environment.

"I'd rather be a disruptor, than be disrupted,” he said.

DIS Price Action: Disney shares are trading 7% higher to $105.96 after-hours trading Wednesday versus a 52-week trading range of $78.73 to $118.18.

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