Disney Spends Millions on Super Bowl Commercial in Midst of Mass Layoffs

Disney/Jerod Harris/Getty Images for Vox Media
Disney/Jerod Harris/Getty Images for Vox Media

The Walt Disney Co. went big with a new Super Bowl commercial celebrating the company’s 100th anniversary just as executives are preparing to lay off 7,000 employees.

On Sunday, Disney aired the commercial that marked its “Disney100” campaign that will see the company hold special events at its theme parks and and kick off a new company fan club. It remains unclear how much Disney spent on the Super Bowl ad, but advertisers reportedly spent up to $7 million for thirty seconds of air time.

Disney’s full Super Bowl commercial runs for one minute and thirty seconds.  A Disney spokesperson told the New York Post the company used previous advertising credits to cover the commercial’s cost.

Watch below:

As Breitbart News reported, Disney is laying off 7,000 employees, or a little more than 3 percent of its global workforce as CEO Bob Iger prepares to cut $5.5 billion in spending in the face of weak profitability that sent the company’s stock tumbling 44 percent last year.

Iger announced the cuts last week during Disney’s first quarter earnings report, saying it was not an easy decision to make. “I have enormous respect and appreciation for the dedication of our employees worldwide,” he said. “While this is necessary to address the challenges we face today, I do not make this decision lightly.”

Most of the layoffs are expected to come from the so-called “DMED” division, or Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution, which encompasses Disney’s streaming initiatives, including the Disney+ streaming service. Iger announced a major restructuring of the unit shortly after he returned to Disney in November.

Disney has come under fire for injecting woke identity politics in its entertainment for children.

As Breitbart News reported, the Disney+ streaming channel series  The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder is pushing reparations for slavery, claiming in its latest episode that America was founded on “white supremacy” and “still has not atoned” for its racism.

Disney+ recently featured a transgender “man” who menstruates in its animated Baymax series for kids. The streamer has also cast a drag queen and a “trans-masculine” actress in the upcoming Marvel superhero series Ironheart.

Follow David Ng on Twitter @HeyItsDavidNg. Have a tip? Contact me at dng@breitbart.com

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