Disney is slowing down when it comes to making movies and TV series for its Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm franchises, CEO Bob Iger said on CNBC Thursday.
The move comes as the company is looking to cut costs during a time when its recent films, from Marvel to animation, have underwhelmed at the box office.
"You pull back not just to focus, but also as part of our cost containment initiative. Spending less on what we make, and making less," Iger said Thursday.
Earlier this year, Disney rolled out a broad reorganization of the business that included $5.5 billion in cutting close, of which $3 billion would be slashed from content excluding sports.
Iger said Thursday that a lot of decisions were made to prop up the company's flagship streaming service, Disney+, and beckon more customers.
While also noting that Disney had some Pixar animation misses in recent months, he called out Marvel as being a particular example of the company's "zeal" to pump up its original content on streaming.
"Marvel is a great example of that. It had not been in the television business at any significant level, and not only did they increase their movie output, but they ended up making a number of TV series," said Iger. "Frankly, it diluted focus and attention."
Disney acquired Marvel for more than $4 billion in 2009, and the franchise has since grossed billions of dollars at the global box office for the company.