UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 FORM 10-K ☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the fiscal year ended October 3, 2020 or ☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 For the transition period from __________ to __________. Commission File Number 001-38842 Delaware 83-0940635 State or Other Jurisdiction of I.R.S. Employer Identification Incorporation or Organization 500 South Buena Vista Street Burbank, California 91521 Address of Principal Executive Offices and Zip Code (818) 560-1000 Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act: Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered Common Stock, $0.01 par value DIS New York Stock Exchange Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None. Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes x No o Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No x Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes x No o Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer”, “accelerated filer”, “smaller reporting company”, and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. Large accelerated filer x Accelerated filer ☐ Non-accelerated filer ☐ Smaller reporting company ☐ Emerging growth company ☐ If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨ Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒ Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No x The aggregate market value of common stock held by non-affiliates (based on the closing price on the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter as reported on the New York Stock Exchange-Composite Transactions) was $174.0 billion. All executive officers and directors of the registrant and all persons filing a Schedule 13D with the Securities and Exchange Commission in respect to registrant’s common stock have been deemed, solely for the purpose of the foregoing calculation, to be “affiliates” of the registrant. There were 1,810,485,037 shares of common stock outstanding as of November 18, 2020. Documents Incorporated by Reference Certain information required for Part III of this report is incorporated herein by reference to the proxy statement for the 2021 annual meeting of the Company’s shareholders. THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES TABLE OF CONTENTS Page PART I ITEM 1. Business 1 ITEM 1A. Risk Factors 20 ITEM 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments 29 ITEM 2. Properties 29 ITEM 3. Legal Proceedings 30 ITEM 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 30 Executive Officers of the Company 30 PART II ITEM 5. Market for the Company’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities 32 ITEM 6. Selected Financial Data 33 ITEM 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations 34 ITEM 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 61 ITEM 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 62 ITEM 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure 62 ITEM 9A. Controls and Procedures 62 ITEM 9B. Other Information 62 PART III ITEM 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 63 ITEM 11. Executive Compensation 63 ITEM 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters 63 ITEM 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence 63 ITEM 14. Principal Accounting Fees and Services 63 PART IV ITEM 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules 64 ITEM 16. Form 10-K Summary 68 SIGNATURES 69 Consolidated Financial Information — The Walt Disney Company 70 TABLE OF CONTENTS PART I ITEM 1. Business The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a diversified worldwide entertainment company with operations in the following business segments: Media Networks; Parks, Experiences and Products; Studio Entertainment; and Direct-to-Consumer & International (DTCI). In October 2020, the Company announced a strategic reorganization of our media and entertainment businesses to accelerate the growth of our direct-to-consumer (DTC) strategy. The operations of the Media Networks, Studio Entertainment and DTCI segments were reorganized into four groups: three content groups (Studios, General Entertainment and Sports), which are focused on developing and producing content that will be used across all of our traditional and DTC platforms and a distribution group, which is focused on distribution and commercialization activities across these platforms and which has full accountability for media and entertainment operating results globally. The terms “Company”, “we”, “our” and “us” are used in this report to refer collectively to the parent company and the subsidiaries through which businesses are conducted. COVID-19 Pandemic During fiscal 2020 and continuing into fiscal 2021, the world has been, and continues to be, impacted by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. COVID-19 and measures to prevent its spread impacted our segments in a number of ways, most significantly at Parks, Experiences and Products where our theme parks were closed or operating at significantly reduced capacity for a significant portion of the year, cruise ship sailings and guided tours were suspended since late in the second quarter and retail stores were closed for a significant portion of the year. We also had an adverse impact on our merchandise licensing business. Our Studio Entertainment segment has delayed, or in some cases, shortened or cancelled, theatrical releases, and stage play performances have been suspended since late in the second quarter. We also had adverse impacts on advertising sales at Media Networks and Direct-to-Consumer & International. Since March 2020, we have experienced significant disruptions in the production and availability of content, including the shift of key live sports programming from our third quarter to the fourth quarter and into fiscal 2021 as well as the suspension of production of most film and television content since late in the second quarter, although some film and television production resumed in the fourth quarter. The impact of these disruptions and the extent of their adverse impact on our financial and operating results will be dictated by the length of time that such disruptions continue, which will, in turn, depend on the currently unknowable duration and severity of the impacts of COVID-19, and among other things, the impact of governmental actions imposed in response to COVID-19 and individuals’ and companies’ risk tolerance regarding health matters going forward. As some of our businesses have reopened, we have incurred additional costs to address government regulations and the safety of our employees, talent and guests. The reopening or closure of our businesses is dependent on applicable government requirements, which vary by location, are subject to ongoing changes, which could result from increasing COVID-19 cases. Human Capital The Company’s key human capital management objectives are to attract, retain and develop the highest quality talent. To support these objectives, the Company’s human resources programs are designed to develop talent to prepare them for critical roles and leadership positions for the future; reward and support employees through competitive pay, benefit, and perquisite programs; enhance the Company’s culture through efforts aimed at making the workplace more engaging and inclusive; acquire talent and facilitate internal talent mobility to create a high-performing, diverse workforce; engage employees as brand ambassadors of the Company’s content, products and experiences; and evolve and invest in technology, tools, and resources to enable employees at work. The Company employed approximately 203,000 people as of October 3, 2020. Our global workforce is comprised of approximately 80% full time and 20% part time employees, with nearly 1% of the part time population being seasonal employees. Of the total population as of October 3, 2020, approximately 155,000 of our employees worked in the Parks, Experiences and Products segment. Some examples of key programs and initiatives that are focused to attract, develop and retain our diverse workforce include: • Diversity and inclusion (D&I). Our D&I objectives are to build teams that reflect the life experiences of our audiences, while employing and supporting a diverse array of voices in our creative and production content.