The Walt Disney Company today launched "Make the Holidays Magic", a global holiday campaign that places its theme parks and cruises, its streaming services, its television networks and its consumer products business under a single seasonal banner, alongside a giving program run with Make-A-Wish, Blue Star Families and Toys for Tots. The campaign opens with A Disney Holiday Short: The Invisible Horse, an original film directed by Dougal Wilson that is available from today on Disney+ and online. It is the first holiday season since Disney created a company-wide marketing organization in January 2026 under Asad Ayaz, its Chief Marketing and Brand Officer, who is quoted in the announcement. Disney did not disclose a budget, a creative agency, a media plan, a list of markets or any fundraising target.

In Short

Disney has started its holiday marketing for 2026 with one campaign that covers its parks, Disney+ and Hulu, ABC and Freeform, and the toys and gifts sold under its brands, opened by a new short film about a boy and an invisible horse. For marketers and advertisers, it shows one of the largest media owners using its own channels, shows and shelves to carry a single seasonal message during the busiest stretch of the retail calendar. The announcement lists a great deal of programming but leaves out the commercial details: no spend, no agency, no ad packages and no targets for the charity drives.

A short film as the opening move

The centerpiece is a story about Jack, according to Disney, "a boy who believes he has outgrown the magic of the season." When an invisible creature arrives in his life at Christmas, he is drawn into an adventure that, in the company's words, "rekindles his imagination and brings him closer to his family." Disney describes it as "a story about finding wonder when you least expect it." The release does not give a running time, a cast list, a music credit or the name of a production company. Disney's announcement page embeds a YouTube version of the film alongside a link to Disney+.

Wilson's previous work includes British Christmas advertising. He directed John Lewis's 2016 Christmas advert, Buster the Boxer, according to It's Nice That, and LBB reported his selection to direct the third Paddington feature film. The 2026 release calls him "acclaimed director Dougal Wilson" but credits no advertising agency for the work.

That absence is notable because the previous campaign named one. Disney's 2025 holiday campaign, called "Make Someone's Holiday Magic" and launched on November 10, 2025, was built around A Disney Holiday Short: Best Christmas Ever, directed by Taika Waititi, with production involving Untold Studios, the producer hungryman and the creative agency adam&eveDDB, according to Disney's release at the time. Waititi also directed the 2024 short, The Boy & The Octopus, according to Laughing Place, which described this year's film as a continuation of what it called Disney's recent tradition of original holiday shorts. Before that, Disney ran a three-part Christmas advert series from 2020 to 2022 under the title "From Our Family to Yours", according to Disney UK.

One campaign, four lines of business

What distinguishes the 2026 announcement is its scope. The campaign, according to Disney, "unites holiday celebrations across Disney's parks and experiences, streaming, television, and consumer products, alongside giving initiatives that bring joy and wonder to children and families around the world." That is four businesses and a philanthropic program sold under one line.

The organizational backdrop matters here. On January 14, 2026, Disney established a new enterprise marketing and brand organization and named Ayaz to lead it as Chief Marketing and Brand Officer, according to Disney's announcement. The stated purpose was to align the company's marketing teams more closely across its businesses. Ayaz had spent eight years as President of Marketing for The Walt Disney Studios, had led marketing for Disney+ and had been Chief Brand Officer since 2023, according to the same release. A holiday campaign that spans parks, streaming, television and merchandise is the kind of cross-business effort that structure was designed to produce, although Disney does not draw that connection itself.

Ayaz framed the campaign in terms of what families buy and do during the season. "Disney has long been part of the traditions, memories, and moments that make the holiday season so special for families around the world," he said. "This season, we're bringing the best of Disney together to give families more ways to make the holidays magic: a trip they'll talk about for years, a new favorite to watch together, the perfect gift under the tree and, for the children and families who need it most, a wish come true."

The four items in that sentence map directly onto the parts of the campaign: a trip (parks and cruises), something to watch (Disney+, Hulu, ABC, Freeform), a gift (consumer products) and a wish (the charity partners). Read that way, the quote doubles as a list of the purchase and engagement occasions the campaign is built to serve.

Giving that runs through Disney's own programs

The philanthropic strand is broader than in 2025. Last year's release named a single partner, Marine Toys for Tots, and a "Disney Ultimate Toy Drive" accepting online donations until December 24, 2025, according to Disney. This year, Disney says it will work "alongside Make-A-Wish, Blue Star Families, Toys for Tots, and other nonprofits" to grant holiday wishes, create moments for military families and deliver toys to children.

Make-A-Wish has a history with Disney's seasonal advertising. Disney UK's 2022 release for The Gift, the final part of the trilogy, said Disney would match qualifying donations to Make-A-Wish up to $100,000, and put Disney's support since 2020 at more than $4 million in financial donations, media value and gifts in kind. The 2026 release gives no matching commitment and no target.

According to Disney, the activity will take the form of "activations, events, performances, talent appearances, wishes, toy drives, Disney Store shopping sprees, and more across the company," including at Disney Parks, Disney on Broadway and Disney On Ice. Fans can donate to Make-A-Wish, or donate a toy to Toys for Tots through Disney Store, via Disney.com/HolidayMagic.

What is striking from a media perspective is where these moments will be shown. Disney says the giving stories will appear in "a special Dancing with the Stars holiday broadcast" and across Good Morning America, The View, Tamron Hall, Live with Kelly and Mark, The Wonderful World of Disney: Holiday Spectacular and the Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade. The charity program, in other words, becomes content for Disney-produced daytime and primetime programming - owned media that requires no outside media buy.

Parks, cruises and a presenting sponsor

The Experiences section of the release lists seasonal events across six operations:

  • Walt Disney World Resort: Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays presented by AdventHealth, and Disney Jollywood Nights.
  • Disneyland Resort: "A Christmas Fantasy Parade" and "it's a small world" Holiday return to Disneyland Park, with "World of Color - Season of Light" and Disney Festival of Holidays at Disney California Adventure Park.
  • Disneyland Paris: Disney Enchanted Christmas comes for the first time to World of Frozen in Disney Adventure World.
  • Shanghai Disney Resort: its 10th anniversary celebration continues, along with the return of Disney Winter Frostival.
  • Tokyo Disney Resort: seasonal entertainment including "Toys Wondrous Christmas!"
  • Disney Cruise Line: Very Merrytime Cruises on select sailings.

Only one sponsor appears anywhere in the announcement: AdventHealth, as presenting sponsor of the EPCOT holiday festival. No other sponsors, ticket prices or attendance figures are given. Parks matter to the company's finances. In the quarter Disney reported on May 6, 2026, Experiences revenue rose 7% to $9.487 billion and operating income rose 5% to $2.615 billion.

Streaming and television: the season's inventory

The streaming portion of the release reads partly as a programming schedule and partly as a list of advertising-adjacent placements. On Disney+ and Hulu, catalog titles such as Home Alone, A Christmas Story, Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation sit beside new holiday specials: Mickey's Home Alone, A Proud Family Wizmas, Dasher and Diary of a Wimpy Kid Christmas: The Getaway. New holiday episodes are promised for Phineas and Ferb, Sofia the First: Royal Magic, Big City Greens and Marvel's Spidey and his Amazing Friends, and Hulu will carry Hulu-exclusive holiday offerings from Bob's Burgers and Family Guy. No premiere dates are given for any of them.

Two subscriber-facing mechanics are named. Disney+ Perks, a subscriber-only scheme of discounts, sweepstakes and deals that Disney made always-on for US subscribers in 2025, will run a "Holiday Challenge with special surprises" for "eligible subscribers". Disney does not define eligibility, list the markets or describe the prizes. The release also says Explore Disney+ "will be updated throughout the holidays to spotlight it all", with a link to a holidays page on the Disney+ website.

For advertisers, the relevant figure is the size of the audience behind those placements. Disney's streaming services counted 122 million subscribers on their ad-supported tiers in figures reported in February 2026, and streaming advertising revenue grew 12% to $821 million in the quarter reported in May. Disney has spent 2026 adding formats to sell against that audience: Pause Ads, Pause+, Ad Selector and Gateway Go, built on an internal tool called Disney eXperience Composer, were described by Disney in June, and a closed beta of an AI video ad tool, Disney Ad Creative Studio, opened inside Disney Campaign Manager on July 23. The holiday release itself, however, says nothing about advertising packages, sponsorships of the new specials or ad-free versions.

On ABC, the linear schedule includes Dancing with the Holidays, CMA Country Christmas from Nashville, The Wonderful World of Disney: Holiday Spectacular and the Disney Parks Magical Christmas Day Parade, plus holiday episodes of Abbott Elementary and Scrubs. Abbott Elementary returned for its sixth season on October 7, 2026, reaching 100 episodes. Freeform's 25 Days of Christmas runs from December 1 through Christmas, with titles including A Very Jonas Christmas, The Santa Clause, Mickey's Twice Upon a Christmas and Ice Age: A Mammoth Christmas.

Distribution on YouTube carries its own compliance history for Disney. In September 2025, the Federal Trade Commission announced a proposed $10 million civil penalty over allegations that Disney labeled child-directed YouTube videos as not made for kids, enabling targeted advertising to children under 13, along with a 10-year Audience Designation Program. The holiday release does not say how the YouTube version of The Invisible Horse is designated.

Gifts, retailers and a December release

The consumer products section ties the campaign to the company's film and franchise calendar. Disney cites Marvel Studios' Avengers: Doomsday arriving in cinemas, Disney and Pixar's Toy Story 5 streaming on Disney+, the 100th anniversary of Winnie the Pooh and 20th Century Studios' Home Alone. Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled for December 18, a week before Christmas. Toy Story 5, which opened in cinemas on June 19, 2026, arrived on Disney+ on September 23 and drew 20 million views in its first five days, according to Disney.

Products are sold through Disney Store and through retailers that the release names: Amazon, Walmart and Target. Each of those retailers runs its own retail media network, which means seasonal demand for licensed toys and gifts is also contested through sponsored listings and other on-site advertising. Walmart said in August that its advertising business grew 38%, with Walmart Connect up 43%. The release names two licensees, Mattel and Jazwares, and says Disney Store and Disney Publishing will join licensees and retailers to create special in-store experiences. No details of those experiences, their dates or their locations are provided.

In 2025, Disney Consumer Products ran a separate holiday campaign, "Unleash the Holidays", featuring Stitch, according to the company's 2025 release. The 2026 announcement folds consumer products into the main campaign rather than presenting a parallel effort.

What the release does not say

Measured against what an advertiser would want to know, the gaps are substantial:

  • No budget. Disney gives no figure for media spend or production.
  • No agency. The 2025 campaign credited adam&eveDDB; the 2026 release credits no agency, production company or producer.
  • No market list. The campaign is described as global, but the release does not say in how many countries the short or the campaign will run, or in which languages.
  • No running time for The Invisible Horse and no cast credits.
  • No dates for most of the new specials, the Perks Holiday Challenge or the in-store experiences. Freeform's December 1 start is the only firm programming date in the release.
  • No fundraising targets or matching. The 2022 campaign included a $100,000 donation match; the 2026 release includes none.
  • One sponsor. AdventHealth's presenting role at the EPCOT festival is the only commercial partnership named.

The release also leaves unanswered whether the campaign is supported by paid media outside Disney's own platforms, or whether it relies mainly on the company's networks, streaming services, parks and shops to carry it.

Why this matters for the marketing community

The campaign arrives in a season when consumers are under pressure. Adobe has forecast US online spending of $275.1 billion between November 1 and December 31, up 6.7%. Other surveys are more cautious: US households plan to cut holiday budgets by 5.5%, according to Simon-Kucher, and 43.8% of Walmart shoppers named affording the holidays as their top stressor. Against that backdrop, Disney's pitch blends emotional storytelling with four distinct occasions to spend - a holiday trip, a subscription, a gift and a donation.

There is a structural point for media buyers too. Disney is both a large advertiser and a large seller of advertising. A campaign that runs its own short film on its own streaming service, folds charity stories into its own talk shows and promotes gifts through its own shops is, in effect, using inventory it controls. How much of that inventory is reserved for house promotion during the season, and how much remains for outside brands, is not something the release addresses. For brands buying holiday placements on Disney+, Hulu or ABC, the answer would be useful to know.

The campaign also coincides with other Disney marketing news on the same day. Adobe today described a multi-year alliance naming it an Official AI Innovation Partner of Disney, with marketing activations at Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, Disney Cruise Line, ESPN Edge and StudioLAB, according to an Adobe for Business blog post. The two announcements are separate, and neither refers to the other.

What will the campaign be measured against? Disney has not said. The 2025 campaign promised a Holiday Magic Tour to more than 20 cities and Disney Store shopping sprees in all 50 US states, according to Disney. The 2026 release offers no comparable scale figures. Without them, outside observers will have to rely on viewing data for the specials, attendance at the parks and the company's next quarterly results.

Timeline

Summary

Who: The Walt Disney Company, its Chief Marketing and Brand Officer Asad Ayaz, director Dougal Wilson, and nonprofit partners Make-A-Wish, Blue Star Families and Toys for Tots. Retailers Amazon, Walmart and Target, licensees Mattel and Jazwares, and EPCOT festival presenting sponsor AdventHealth are also named.

What: A global holiday campaign, "Make the Holidays Magic", that groups seasonal activity across Disney's parks and cruises, Disney+ and Hulu, ABC and Freeform, and consumer products, together with a charity program. It opens with the short film A Disney Holiday Short: The Invisible Horse. No budget, agency, market list or fundraising target was disclosed.

When: Launched today, November 9, 2026, with programming running through the season. Freeform's 25 Days of Christmas runs from December 1 to Christmas, and Avengers: Doomsday is scheduled for December 18.

Where: Globally, according to Disney, with named activity at Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, Disneyland Paris, Shanghai Disney Resort, Tokyo Disney Resort and Disney Cruise Line, on Disney+, Hulu, ABC, Freeform and YouTube, and at Disney Store and US retailers. Donations are collected through Disney.com/HolidayMagic.

Why: It is the first holiday season since Disney created a company-wide marketing organization in January 2026 to align marketing across its businesses. For advertisers, it shows a major media owner using its own streaming, television, parks and retail channels to carry a single seasonal message, while leaving open how much of that inventory goes to house promotion during the holiday season.