Disney plans to increase its content spending in 2026 to $24 billion, a $1 billion increase from the $23 billion spent in 2025, according to CFO Hugh Johnston.
Johnston detailed the company’s plans while speaking at the Wells Fargo Technology, Media, and Telecom Summit held in Rancho Palos Verdes, California.
The company’s $24 billion budget is divided approximately equally between sports, primarily through ESPN, and entertainment programming. Johnston believes this balance will likely remain consistent, although he anticipates entertainment spending might increase at a slightly higher rate than sports spending.
He also pointed out that Disney is working to create content specifically for certain local markets. While they have strong rights to their existing Disney content, they recognize the need to add locally produced shows and movies to be successful. Their plan centers around doing just that.
Disney still plans to invest heavily in creating shows and movies, but it won’t spend as much as it did in recent years. That’s because streaming services aren’t trying to attract subscribers as aggressively as they used to.
Johnston remembered that Disney had originally budgeted $33 billion for 2022. He explained that many were making too much content, and the company was dissatisfied with the quality of some of what was being released.
Disney is increasing its spending while still expecting strong financial growth. The company recently reported it anticipates earnings per share will increase by a double-digit percentage over the next two years.
Disney anticipates its streaming services, Disney+ and Hulu, will achieve a 10% operating margin in 2026, thanks to subscriber growth and recent price adjustments. Overall, the company expects its entertainment business to see a significant increase in operating income – with the strongest gains coming in the latter half of the year.
Disney’s streaming services performed well in the last three months. Disney+ gained 3.8 million new subscribers, and Hulu added 8.6 million. This growth in Hulu was helped by discounted pricing for a package that includes ESPN+, Disney+, and Hulu, as well as a new agreement with Charter to offer Hulu to Spectrum TV Select customers.
Disney’s streaming revenue increased by 8%, reaching $6.25 billion, and profits from streaming services rose significantly by 39% to $352 million. Similar to Netflix, this will be the final quarter Disney shares the number of its subscribers publicly.
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2025-11-20 00:14