Disney Parks announces Lion King ride for Disneyland Paris

The weekend’s flurry of announcements come after a rollercoaster ride behind the scenes at Disney in recent years.

Chief executive Bob Iger dramatically returned to lead the company less than a year after retiring following a series of perceived missteps by his successor.

Soon after his return Mr Iger announced a reorganisation and thousands of job cuts in a bid to improve the company’s profits.

Earlier this year, Disney won a boardroom battle against critics who accused the media giant of “losing its creative spark”.

Activist investors, including Nelson Peltz of Trian Management, had sought seats on the company’s board of directors, which they said was too close to Disney’s leadership.

“All we want is for Disney to get back to making great content and delighting consumers and for Disney to create sustainable long-term value for shareholders,” Mr Peltz said at a shareholder meeting.

Just 31% of votes cast supported Mr Peltz for a seat, according to a source familiar with the results.

But the battle raised questions about struggles at Disney.

Last year, the company announced it was scrapping plans to build a new office campus in central Florida following a year-long dispute with Governor Ron DeSantis.

Mr DeSantis attacked the company after it opposed a state law banning classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early years.

Disney filed a First Amendment lawsuit against Mr DeSantis and other officials.

The company had planned to build the campus around 20 miles (30km) from the giant Walt Disney World theme park resort and relocate 2,000 employees from Southern California.

Mr D’Amaro said in a memo to employees that “new leadership and changing business conditions” prompted the company to abandon those plans.