>>213879107 (OP)Frankly I don't think Disney has ever understood the "young male" audience.
I say this as a Walt Disney enjoyer. I don't think he could have made something that really appealed to young/young adult males. That just wasn't in his makeup.
Not in the way that something like Star Wars did. Walt couldn't have done that.
I think Walt was brilliant, and as an artist myself I respect him very much but...
Disney has an approach, that must stem from their core philosophy, which, in the 60's, 70's, and later in the 90's and 00's was great for making movies for young girls and families.
I think they've kind of successfully grown their appeal to include modern women of all ages - by that I mean Disney stuff seems to somewhat successfully appeal to young women who are college age or entering their 30's - mostly because they were girls who grew up with Disney movies and are under the magical spell of Disney nostalgia.
It's not about owning the brands.
Also I'm at a point in my life where I'm starting to think I should be paid for giving any more of this kind of advice.
I don't ask for much, my beliefs are adjacent to Buddhism - pay me at least minimum wage and I'll do a little consulting for you.