Disney Consumer Products Ushers in a New Era of Collaboration and Culture at Licensing Expo with 'Icons Unleashed'

Disney Consumer Products Ushers in a New Era of Collaboration and Culture at Licensing Expo with 'Icons Unleashed'

At this year's Licensing Expo, held May 19-21, 2026, in Las Vegas, Disney Consumer Products (DCP) arrived with unmistakable momentum. Drawing on its unmatched ecosystem - where content, consumer products and experiences are designed to fuel one another at global scale - Disney demonstrated how storytelling evolves into enduring franchises and lifestyle businesses. As the global marketplace gathered to preview what's next in intellectual property, partnerships, and culture, Disney used the moment to underscore its strength as the industry's leading global licensor and a lifestyle-driven growth engine - one powered by storytelling, creative ambition, and collaboration.

Anchored by the theme "Icons Unleashed," Disney's presence showcased how its most enduring brands - and next-generation stories - are being activated across fashion, wellness, film, sports, and music, offering licensees and retailers a clear roadmap through holiday 2027 and beyond.

"Licensing is a central way Disney storytelling shows up in consumers' everyday lives," said Paul Gitter, EVP, Global Brand Commercialization, Disney Consumer Products. "By expanding our iconic characters and stories across product categories and lifestyle collaborations, we deliver year-round engagement and unlock new opportunities for our licensing partners to engage with consumers globally."

"Icons Unleashed"

DCP's showcase theme "Icons Unleashed" framed Disney's portfolio as living cultural forces. Whether it be across fashion, streetwear, trading cards, or video games, these iconic characters can be reinterpreted or remixed across generations and markets to meet the modern consumer where they are. From beloved and timeless characters like Mickey Mouse to modern storytelling powerhouses across Marvel, Disney Princess, Disney Frozen, Pixar, and Star Wars, the message was clear: Disney's icons are designed to move, evolve, and surprise.

All In, Across Disney

Licensing Expo brought together senior leaders and talent from across The Walt Disney Company's entire ecosystem - reflecting a unified, company-wide approach to franchise-building:

• Asad Ayaz, Chief Marketing and Brand Officer, The Walt Disney Company

• Thomas Mazloum, Chairman, Disney Experiences

• Lisa Baldzicki, President, Disney Consumer Products

• Paul Gitter, EVP, Global Brand Commercialization, Disney Consumer Products

• Ayo Davis, President, Disney Branded Television

• Kevin Feige, President, Marvel Studios and Chief Creative Officer, Marvel

• Dave Filoni, President and Chief Creative Officer, Lucasfilm

• Trent Correy, Director, Frozen 3

The showcase also featured cultural and creative voices, including rising talent Liamani Segura and Hudson Stone from the upcoming Disney Channel Original Movie, Camp Rock 3, alongside West End performers from Disney's Frozen: The Hit BroadwayMusical - reinforcing how Disney bridges entertainment, performance, and products to create multi-dimensional fan experiences.

Building on Blockbuster Season

Disney Consumer Products extended the momentum of Blockbuster Season, first introduced at last year's Licensing Expo. Designed to align consumer products with a sweeping theatrical and franchise slate, Blockbuster Season reflects a coordinated effort to bring major cultural moments to retail - before, during, and long after films premiere.

Disney Consumer Products views this period as a defining chapter for the company, with an expansive film slate ahead and an ambitious product strategy designed to match. With upcoming releases spanning Disney Princess, Pixar, Star Wars, and Marvel, the summer slate - from Lucasfilm's Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu, Disney and Pixar's Toy Story 5, and Disney's live-action Moana, to Sony Pictures Entertainment's and Marvel Studios' Spider-Man: Brand New Day - sets the tone for how stories move fluidly across categories, regions, and audiences worldwide.

Across more than 180 countries and over 100 product categories, Disney Consumer Products is working with global licensees and retailers to translate cinematic storytelling into lifestyle brands that shape retail trends, influence culture, and create year-round relevance.

The Future in Five Pillars

At the core of Disney Consumer Products' approach is a licensing framework anchored around meeting the consumer where they are to drive brand and cultural relevance across five lifestyle pillars.

• Fashion - Establishing characters as global fashion icons by unlocking deeper designer access and premium collaborations, informed by recent initiatives like its multi-year partnership with Vogue, which invited creatives into the Disney archives to reinterpret Mickey Mouse through a modern lens ahead of his 100th anniversary.

• Food - Bringing characters into everyday life through food-centered experiences, like the STAR WARS™ Grogu Café and La La Land Kind Café's Mickey & Friends collaboration, highlighting how food, design, and local community can come together to create shared spaces that extend storytelling beyond traditional retail.

• Music - Deepening Disney's presence in music-led culture by pairing iconic characters with global talent and performance, building on culturally resonant moments like the Complex x BLACKPINK capsule that connected fashion, fandom and sound to new audiences.

• Sports - Scaling sports-driven storytelling into year-round global platforms and collaborations like Formula 1®'s "Fuel the Magic," which blends competition, culture, content, and immersive fan experiences.

• Wellness - Embedding brands more authentically into wellness and performance-led lifestyles, building from momentum established through collaborations with brands like lululemon and adidas that show how fandom can translate seamlessly into activewear and everyday fitness.

These pillars guide how Disney partners, innovates, and brings its brands into new spaces - often where fans least expect them.

The Next Chapter

Licensing Expo also offered a forward look at some of Disney's most anticipated brand milestones. Early teasers pointed toward plans for Mickey Mouse's 100th anniversary and the continued global expansion of Frozen, underscoring the long-range planning and global mobilization underway to support these moments as cultural events. Additional momentum was signaled across major franchises including Winnie the Pooh and Lilo & Stitch.

"As we build toward major brand milestones like Mickey Mouse's 100th anniversary, early planning and global mobilization from our partners are essential - these moments are designed to unlock new collaborations, new creative expressions and new discovery of our IP," said Gitter.

Throughout Licensing Expo programming, Disney Consumer Products outlined a future focused on early alignment, creative flexibility, and an expanded brand management system, unlocking new opportunities across categories, retailers, and collaborative models aimed at scaling fandom worldwide.