Disney film boss steps down after losing €150m on sci-fi flop

Rich Ross, chairman of Walt Disney Co’s film unit, has resigned following the company’s $200m (€150m) loss on the science-fiction picture John Carter, possibly the biggest ever for a single movie.

The departure of Mr Ross, 50, who ran the division since Oct 2009 and had previously led the Disney Channel, was announced yesterday in a statement. A successor was not named.

Disney chief executive Robert Iger’s strategy of producing fewer films, built around marketable characters such as those from its Pixar and Marvel units, faltered with the failure of John Carter. The movie will lead to a quarterly loss of as much as $120m (€90m) for the studio, the first since Mr Ross succeeded Dick Cook as chairman.

“I don’t know that anybody is shocked,” said Martin Pyykkonen, an analyst with Wedge Partners in Greenwood Village, Colorado. “John Carter was a debacle and probably the last straw,” he said, citing past disappointments including Mars Needs Moms.

Disney, based in Burbank, California, gained 0.6% to $42.35 at the close in New York. The shares have risen 13% this year.

Mr Ross, a 15-year Disney veteran, had previously worked at and led the Disney Channel, creating shows including High School Musical and Hannah Montana.

“I appreciate his countless contributions throughout his entire career at Disney, and expect he will have tremendous success in whatever he chooses to do next,” Mr Iger said in a statement.

Disney ranks seventh among studios in 2012 domestic ticket sales with $186.7m, according to researcher Box Office Mojo. John Carter, made for about $250m, generated $269.4m in worldwide ticket sales, a sum shared with cinema operators. The film went over budget and was poorly marketed, Mr Pyykkonen said.

— Bloomberg