How the Palace Responded to King Charles Being Drawn into the Battle of Disney World

The British monarchy has collapsed after unexpected references to King Charles III. declined to comment in a contract at the center of a dispute between Ron DeSantis and Disney World.

Disney World’s 27,000-acre theme park near Orlando was formerly managed by the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which Disney controlled for 50 years.

That all changed in February, however, when DeSantis took control of appointing a new oversight body.

This comes after Disney criticized the Florida governor’s sex education bills, which critics have dubbed the “don’t say gay bill.”

Now Disney has attempted to sidestep the move with a legally binding contract, which members of the new board say bypasses them entirely and gives Disney total control.

The legal document in question says it will stand until “21 years after the death of the last surviving descendant of King Charles III, King of England.”

Buckingham Palace declined to comment when approached by him news weekin a move that may not come as a surprise to ardent royal family supporters.

The royals are famous for their “never complain, never explain” policy, even on matters that concern them directly, such as not making an official public response to the bombing allegations in Prince Harry’s book spare part.

They are also obliged to remain impartial on partisan issues, particularly when relating to the policies of other nations where there is a risk of a diplomatic incident should they interfere.

A culture war between DeSantis and Disney over LGBTQ+ rights and sex education in schools would therefore always be a no-go area for the palace, regardless of the context.

However, Charles’ involvement is just a legal mechanism to create a timeline to indicate how long the contract will last.

So the subject is far from reaching the threshold for comment on Buckingham Palace.

The story seems far from over for Disney, as Brian Aungst Jr., a member of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District’s board of supervisors, has indicated a backlash will follow.

Quoted by meetinghe said: “We have to deal with this and correct it. It’s a subversion of the will of the voters and the legislature and the governor. It completely bypasses the authority of this body to govern.”

The row came after Disney said in March 2022 that DeSantis’ bill banning discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in schools “should never have passed and should never have been made into law.”

In February, DeSantis announced the new board of directors, saying, “The corporate kingdom is finally coming to an end. There’s a new sheriff in town and accountability will be the order of the day.”

Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for news week, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and keep reading his stories news week‘S The Royals’ Facebook page.

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