Things continue to look grim for the theme park industry in general and Disneyland, in particular, as the global coronavirus pandemic continues to be a roadblock to their reopening. Just recently, it was announced that Disneyland would remain closed until the end of the year.
Deadline reports that Disney CFO Christine McCarthy made the announcement during an earnings call conducted by the company. This will mean that the theme park would have been closed for close to 10 months since the global coronavirus pandemic brought about closures back in March.
According to the publication, Disney CEO Bob Chapek is disappointed that California's state is still refusing to allow large theme parks like Disneyland to reopen despite health and safety measures being put in place to avoid the spread of the coronavirus.
Chapek says that Disney theme parks that have reopened elsewhere in the world have not become COVID-19 hotspots, proving that the company can safely reopen. He points to Disney World in Florida as an example. The theme park reopened back in July and has been able to increase capacity to 35 percent while also maintaining social distancing.
Chapek’s criticism of the government of California echoes that of Disneyland Resort president Ken Potrock, who had earlier called the state’s path to reopening as “unworkable.” Just like Chapek, Potrock insisted that the company can responsibly reopen their theme parks,
Potrock was also backed by seven Disneyland employee unions who insisted that the theme parks can be reopened safely. The unions maintain that the theme park has a testing program in place that is approved by the unions, as well as social distancing measures, theme park ventilation, and PPE that can keep both guests and employees safe.
Variety says that reopening their theme parks as soon as possible is important to Disney’s bottom line, as the current closure has already cost the entertainment giant operating losses amounting to $1 billion.
In fact, the company’s theme park division only managed to earn $2.6 billion during the fourth quarter, which is a 61 percent drop from the previous quarter. By Disney’s own estimates, the global coronavirus pandemic's impact on their theme park division amounts to $2.4 billion.
Disneyland’s reopening will depend on the global coronavirus pandemic state in the United States, and present figures do not paint a happy picture for the theme park. According to the Nov. 12 update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are now 10,314,254 confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country. Deaths caused by COVID-19 are now at 241,069 people.