Disney’s cruise line, streaming boost its earnings

The company posts weaker theatrical revenue in its fiscal fourth quarter.

- By SAMANTHA MasuNAGA

DISNEY'S experiences segment, which includes its cruise line, is a bright spot for the fourth quarter.

(LARS PENNING DPA/Picture Alliance)

Demand for Walt Disney Co.'s cruise line and its streaming services boosted the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter earnings, despite a dent from lukewarm theatrical box-office results that could not compare to blockbuster hits during the previous year.

The Burbank media and entertainment company reported $10.2 billion in revenue for its entertainment segment for the three-month period that ended Sept. 27, down 6% compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Entertainment operating income for the fourth quarter totaled $691 million, down 35%.

The softer box-office showing during the fourth quarter — which included superhero movie “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” comedy “The Roses” and millennial nostalgia film “Freakier Friday” — did not match the strong performance of the irreverent superhero flick “Deadpool & Wolverine” in the year-earlier period, as well as the tail end of the theatrical window for the animated juggernaut “Inside Out 2,” each of which would go on to gross more than $1 billion globally.

For the full year, however, Disney’s entertainment segment — which includes movies, TV, Disney+ and Hulu— posted revenue of $42.5 billion, up 3% compared with fiscal year 2024. Operating income totaled $4.7 billion, an increase of 19%. The company has now also surpassed $4 billion in worldwide box-office revenue this year after the strong opening weekend for “Predator: Badlands,” making Disney the second studio to reach the milestone after Warner Bros.