Mickey Mouse provided the opening act of Disney’s 2025-2026 upfront presentation, held in Manhattan’s Javits Center on Tuesday. But the G-rated character wisely didn’t stick around for the R-rated finale.
Jimmy Kimmel once again served as the event’s closer… and he brought the verbal fireworks. During the course of his roughly 15-minute set—an opening video followed by a monologue—the late-night host merrily roasted the Mouse House (not to mention its competitors) until they were crispier than one of Jack-Jack’s cookie num nums.
Nothing and no one was safe from Kimmel’s comic arrows. The future of ESPN+ now that the direct-to-consumer ESPN service exists? “The plus is now, in many ways, a minus.” NBCUniversal’s new spin-off company, Versant? “It sounds like something you subscribed to by accident.”
And how about ABC’s fall lineup, which notably includes only one new scripted dramatic series (911: Nashville) that also happens to be a spin-off? “[It] really begs the question—what are we doing here?”
(Read our full recap of Kimmel’s blistering monologue below.)
The ribbing was all in good fun, but Kimmel knowingly spoke to some of the realities that people flock to Disney’s wide array of entertainment properties, from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Star Wars to Moana and The Bear, specifically to avoid.
“No one knows what the future holds,” he acknowledged. “But I will leave you with this: We are the number one multi-platform network.”
“What does that mean?” he added after a well-timed beat. “We don’t know. And we’re hoping you don’t either.”
Advengers: Endgame
Actually, Jimmy, Disney ad sales head Rita Ferro knows exactly what being the number one multi-platform network means. And she used her opening remarks to outline what makes Mickey Mouse’s domain a clubhouse advertisers want to join, regardless of the uncertain headwinds facing the industry at large.
“You deserve real partnership, transparency, and innovation that drives results,” she noted to the crowd. “Disney is committed to being that strategic partner you can count on.”
“Our portfolio spans sports, streaming, and stories that connect content, technology, and culture in ways that no one else can,” Ferro added. “While [also] building meaningful connections at scale.”
Ferro went on to sing the praises of the company’s two key adtech offerings for the brands in the room. The first is Disney Experience Composer, a tool that’s specifically optimized for streaming. “Advertisers can test and refine their creative using real-time insights, maximizing the value of every impression,” Ferro said, calling Composer a “true game changer.”
Also rewriting the playbook is Disney Compass ad platform, a way for agencies to access first party data for a fuller picture of the reach and measurement of their spots. “It allows us to act faster, understand more, and continuously evolve with our brand partners, keeping up with the new pace of change,” Ferro said.
Speaking of rapid changes, Ferro made sure to call out the updated streaming numbers for Disney’s various digital platforms. Those outlets now reach 164 million monthly active users, rising from the 157 million the company reported five short months ago in January.
“We set the gold standard counting only viewers who are actually engaging with our content,” Ferro emphasized. “We look forward to an industry-wide third-party AVOD measurement solution, with consistent metrics across all publishers.”
From l to r, Timothy Olyphant, Sydney Chandler, and Babou Ceesay star in Alien: Earth Courtesy Disney/Jennifer Pottheiser
Content strikes back
Not surprisingly, the content presentation portion of the event leaned heavily on Disney’s many and varied streaming services.
In a preview of a New York Comic Con to come, Disney+ embraced its inner fan by calling on Diego Luna and Hayden Christensen to spotlight the Star Wars franchise’s Force-ful presence on the streamer.
Later, Charlie “Daredevil” Cox revealed that Krysten Ritter would be bringing Jessica Jones into the MCU during the Marvel Television show’s currently-shooting second season. Sir Ben Kingsley then shared an early look at Wonder Man, as well as future Marvel shows like Ironheart, Eyes of Wakanda, and Marvel Zombies.
Hulu, meanwhile, may need to be renamed Ryan Murphy+ after the prolific producer. The streamer debuted a pair of trailers for the latest Murphy joints, The Beauty and All’s Fair, the latter of which stars Kim Kardashian. Not for nothing, but both series appear to be injected with big-time Nip/Tuck energy—a Murphy-verse staple that’s also streaming on Hulu… or for free on Tubi.
In the Javits Center, everyone can hear you scream. But FX on Hulu didn’t let a little cacophony get in the way of hyping Alien: Earth, Fargo creator Noah Hawley’s much-anticipated take on the much-loved sci-fi franchise. A first-look trailer established the show’s stakes—a ship crash-lands on terra firma carrying not just one, but five deep space monsters—while the assembled audience was treated to a close encounter of the facehugging kind with a visiting Xenomorph.
Sports for the win
But the content that received the biggest platform at the presentation by far was live sports. Star athletes past and present abounded on the stage, including Eli and Peyton Manning, Patrick Mahomes, Saquon Barkley, and Jason Kelce. Star sports commentators were also in the mix, from Joe Buck and Troy Aikman to Stephen A. Smith and the trio of Elle Duncan, Chiney Ogwumike, and Andraya Carter.
While NBCUniversal may have live sports bragging rights for 2026 with the combo of the Super Bowl, the World Cup, and the Winter Olympics, Disney promised a super-sized 2027 with its own Big Game broadcast as well as the College Football Playoff championship game. Before then, viewers will be able to sample new sports-adjacent programming like Vibe Check, a women-led sportscast on ESPN+, and The Kingdom, ESPN’s six-episode Kansas City Chiefs docuseries.
And if you can’t decide which version of ESPN your home needs the most, just remember Kimmel’s sage advice: “It’s all part of our plan to confuse you until you hand us the debit card of everyone in your family.”