It’s a sign of the consolidated times we live in that when investor presentations roll around, you’re as likely to find entertainment journalists hunkered down alongside their financial-focused colleagues, fingers poised over keyboards, hoping to glean project updates dropped in-between the numbers. Business operations and consumer-facing product are closer than ever before in the public consciousness.
This might explain why we now also have mega corporations forming fan clubs. Said bodies aren’t a mandated HR exercise for employees, but rather an invite to the everyman and woman on the street to share in the company’s success, and enjoy exclusive perks in return for their support. This invitation is accepted enthusiastically in the case of The Walt Disney Company and D23, the organisation’s official fan club.
It’s worth looking a bit closer at D23 because not only is it a fascinating reflection of the relationship between contemporary pop culture, society and big business, but every time its biennial expo – known as D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event – takes place, it’s more headline-grabbing. As an example, at this year’s event, which took place over the weekend of 9 to 11 August, primarily at the Anaheim Convention Center in greater Los Angeles, guests arrived to the sight of a giant version of Mickey Mouse’s hat from The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. It was made of 15,023 Swarovski crystals, indicating from the outset that Disney was absolutely going to deliver on its pre-event promise of the biggest D23 instalment to date, with 230 panels, presentations and experiences for the over 100,000 attendees.
Backtracking a little, the name D23 may be a little confusing to people on the peripheries of the Disney ecosystem; who don’t have easy access to the theme parks, official stores, and full range of brand experiences. Like South Africans, who still maintain a strong affinity for the Disney name, associating it from childhood with high-quality entertainment. Even those who don’t get a hit of warm, fuzzy nostalgia when they hear “The Mickey Mouse Club” dropped in conversation, can’t escape the knowledge that Disney today sits as an umbrella over the likes of Star Wars, Marvel Comics and its Cinematic Universe (the MCU), and every animated movie from the Pixar stable. And that’s just a fraction of its properties.
Used interchangeably for the fan club and fan celebration, D23 doesn’t reference the year 2023, but rather 1923, the date that Walt Disney started the company, with the “D” part of the name standing for Disney. The club has actually been around since 2009, with membership open to fans globally. On that note, there are two options available – a free General Plan, and a paid Gold Membership ($99.99 USD a year for one person, $129.99 for two). The primary difference is that Gold members receive a greater range of benefits, like access to all D23-linked discounts and offers, their own exclusive events, and a sought-after collectible as an annual gift.
Unsurprisingly, you have to be a D23 member (paid or complimentary) to get tickets for D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event. To access the 2024 experience, a General Member Day Pass would set you back $89. Meanwhile, to attend the expo’s star-studded evening showcases, you’d need an Ultimate Fan Pass, starting at $99 a day. VISA was very publicly “presenting” this year’s D23, out of interest.
It needs to be noted that D23 is not completely American-centric. While the mammoth Fan Events typically bounce between Disneyland in California and Disney World in Florida, at least three smaller expos have taken place in Japan over the years. This November, the first D23 Brazil gathering is also happening in São Paulo.
It’s arguable that D23’s three primary presentations – the Disney Entertainment Showcase on Friday, Disney Experiences Showcase on Saturday, and Sunday’s event-capping Disney Legends Ceremony – are the event’s primary draw. In-between Broadway-scale musical numbers, and various sequel updates, ticket-holders on the Friday night were treated to exclusive first looks at two of Marvel’s big 2025 releases, the Thunderbolts movie and the Disney+ Daredevil reboot. Neither of these clips have yet to officially appear online.
Viewed as a whole, D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event reflects the big picture perspective that has turned the Walt Disney Company into such a cross-sphere behemoth. Filmmaker James Cameron may have appeared on-stage to reveal the name of the third, currently filming Avatar film (Fire and Ash), but fans who didn’t secure seats for that specific showcase weren’t left out. On display in one part of the convention centre throughout the weekend were full-scale Na’vi with their tools and clothing, alongside creatures who share the world of Pandora. Walking through the experience gave attendees a taste of what to expect when a new animatronics-driven Avatar area comes to Disneyland in coming years.
It doesn’t end there either. During the Saturday showcase, Chairman of Disney Experiences Josh D’Amaro took fans through the company’s plan to inject $60 billion into its parks and cruises, while he also elaborated more on Disney’s $1.5 billion investment in video game maker and publisher Epic Games. Announced back in February, the collaboration between Disney and Epic will see an even stronger Disney presence in Fortnite, consistently one of the top three most played games in the world.
The Walt Disney Company continues to spread its white-gloved fingers of influence even further… and it’s loved for it. Despite the likes of Indiana Jones and Han Solo himself, Harrison Ford, being honoured during this year’s D23 event, some of the biggest cheers of the weekend were directed at Disney CEO Bob Iger, who returned to the role in November 2022, after previously steering the House of Mouse in the 15-year period up to 2020.
Over the past few years, Iger has had the challenge of commanding the Disney ship through troubled waters, including MCU fatigue, and disappointing box office results. Iger himself caused ripples of dissent with cost-cutting directives that led to content purges from Disney-owned streaming services. All that seemed forgotten, though, as the business head took to the stage fresh off the global success of two very different Disney films, Inside Out 2, and Deadpool and Wolverine. On top of that, there was the news that the (overseas) bundling of ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu was finally turning a profit.
Kicking off the Disney Entertainment Showcase, a jubilant Iger commented, “Our deep bond with fans, forged over a century of storytelling, is stronger today than ever before.”
Looking at the response to 2024’s sold-out D23: The Ultimate Disney Fan Event, he’s not wrong.
