Posted in: Comics, Marvel Comics | Tagged: dana walden, Josh D’Amaro
What will new bosses Josh D’Amaro and Dana Walden mean for Marvel Comics going forward into 2026? Time to start speculating…
Article Summary
Josh D’Amaro’s CEO role could mean deeper integration of Marvel comics into Disney’s digital strategy.
Dana Walden may push Marvel Comics as an IP farm for new Disney+ series, focusing on cross-media adaptations.
Webtoon partnership hints at Marvel comics embracing more digital-first, data-driven publishing and engagement.
Expect Marvel stories to be shaped by streaming metrics and franchise synergy under Disney’s new leadership.
Josh D’Amaro, Chairman of Disney Experiences, is to be the new CEO of Disney. And Dana Walden, Co-Chairman of Disney Entertainment, will be promoted to President and CCCO and will report to D’Amaro. Of course, the big question at Bleeding Cool Towers is, what the hell will that mean for Marvel Comics? Well, we don’t know. But we can make some educated guesses.
Josh D’Amaro, new CEO of Disney, will also be controlling Marvel Comics, somewhere far, far, beneath him. Or maybe not too far beneath him, as he does have strands of comic book DNA in him. And while D’Amaro does not have a documented personal history as a creator, collector, or direct participant in the comic book industry, in September 2025, as Chairman of Disney Experiences, D’Amaro was prominently involved in announcing an expanded partnership with Webtoon Entertainment to develop a new all-in-one digital comics platform, building on and expanding Marvel Unlimited, includingaterial from across Disney’s portfolio, including Marvel, Star Wars, Disney, Pixar, and 20th Century Studios as well as Webtoon Original stories. He publicly expressed enthusiasm for the project, stating it would unite Disney’s “unparalleled collection of comics” into a single platform to give fans broader access and deepen engagement, while opening doors to new audiences via Webtoon’s expertise in digital comics.
As head of Fox Television Group, Dana Walden was involved in discussions and development around Marvel properties during a period when Fox held film and TV rights to certain Marvel characters, and confirmed Fox was in negotiations with Marvel for a live-action X-Men TV series back in 2015, expressing optimism about a potential deal and noting the comic book’s suitability for TV. The project did not ultimately move forward as described, but she did air DC Comics-related shows like Gotham and Lucifer under her oversight. After the Disney/Fox deal, that then includes Marvel-related TV and streaming content as part of Disney’s broader entertainment portfolio such as Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur and Spidey and His Amazing Friends.
But what might all this mean? Well, D’Amaro has already driven Marvel IP integration into theme parks, such as Avengers Campus and Guardians of the Galaxy attractions. As CEO, he might prioritise comics as a storytelling pipeline for such expansions, treating them less as standalone products and more as blueprints for immersive worlds. Might we see more investment in AR/VR tie-ins, as some indie comics have of late?
While Walden’s might see her proactively use comics development more as IP farms, seeding stories for Disney+ shows, especially for family content but also shows more akin to Shōgun or The Bear. However, Walden has been criticised for “diluting” franchises like Star Wars and Marvel through overly commercial TV adaptations. What if she applied streaming metrics to the comic books? Combined with D’Amaro’s operations focus using Webtoon, will Marvel’s print comics face the same kind of data-driven input that streaming TV is currently facing, courtesy of the new app?
More, much more to come.
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