Dana Walden Speaks on Why "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Hasn't Yet Been Renewed Yet and Much More

Today, Dana Walden (President and Chief Creative Officer of The Walt Disney Company) sat down with Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw at Bloomberg Screentime 2026 in Los Angeles. And while Walden hit on several topics we've heard about before from her, Josh D'Amaro, Hugh Johnston, and others, she did offer a few interesting soundbites on a variety of topics.

Here are some of the things that caught our ears:

On Bluey and Joe Brumm:

It's no secret that Bluey is not only the biggest hit on Disney+ but also regularly tops all of streaming, period. Asked about the show, Walden first pointed out how excited Disney is to be releasing a feature film based on the property.

She also had high praise for creator Joe Brumm, noting that Brumm is working on the new series Deano Disney+ and Hulu. She added that she "won't let him get further off the Disney lot than he is currently."

On Moana Live Action:

One question talked about some of the box office disappointments Disney saw this year. While Walden pointed out that box-office performance isn’t the entire story,

she did go on to suggest that having Moana 2 and the live-action Moana open within about 18 months of each other may have done the latter a disservice. Although she also pointed out that Moana 2 came about via "unusual circumstances."

As you'll recall, Moana 2 was built from what was meant to be a Disney+ series.

On Jimmy Kimmel Live!

Even though Jimmy Kimmel's contract with ABC isn't up until next May, a lot of ink has been spilled on what the future might hold for the late night host. Addressing this, Walden said, " It’s a very challenging daypart, late night. His ratings are up, but they’re up relative to a smaller audience." Walden went on to note that she loves Kimmel and that the host is close with many people at Disney.

Still, she says, "We're trying to make sense of the business while also honoring a deep partnership."

On Chapek's Book:

Earlier this week, former Disney CEO Bob Chapek released his memoir Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth. Asked by the moderator if she'd read the book, Walden simply responded, "No." Then, asked if she had any plans to read the book, she repeated her answer.

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You can watch the full interview below: