Ike Perlmutter, billionaire who sold Marvel to Disney, laid off by Disney
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Ike has been spiked at Disney.
Disney on Wednesday laid off Isaac "Ike" Perlmutter, the chair of Marvel Entertainment, according to The New York Times and The Hollywood Reporter.
The billionaire was informed over the phone that Marvel Entertainment, which is separate from the film studio Marvel Studios and deals with consumer products, is redundant and will "be folded into larger Disney business units," the Times reported. Disney also reportedly laid off Marvel Entertainment co-president Rob Steffens and chief counsel John Turitzin.
Perlmutter sold Marvel to Disney in 2009, though he has not had a role in its movies in recent years. In 2015, a reorganization led Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige to report to Disney studio chief Alan Horn instead of the "infamously micromanaging" Perlmutter, a move that came after "several years of frustration" on Feige's part, The Hollywood Reporter reported at the time. Disney CEO Bob Iger has confirmed that Perlmutter wanted to fire Feige, who is considered to be one of the most successful producers in Hollywood history. "I thought that was a mistake and stepped in to prevent that from happening," Iger told CNBC. By 2019, Perlmutter was also no longer in control of Marvel's shows.
Perlmutter has an estimated net worth of around $4 billion, and he's a friend of former President Donald Trump. Last year, he tried, and failed, to get his friend Nelson Peltz added to the Disney board.
The shock ouster comes after Disney confirmed this week it is starting to eliminate 7,000 jobs. It also comes just one week after Victoria Alonso, a veteran Marvel Studios executive, was fired by Disney, allegedly after she violated an agreement in her contract barring employees from working for rival studios. She is threatening legal action.
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