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Changes that Disney made to a popular program that lets qualifying disabled people skip long lines at its California and Florida theme parks are too restrictive, disabled fans contend in a federal lawsuit and shareholder proposal that seek to expand eligibility.

The battle over who can skip long lines on popular rides because of their disabilities marks the latest struggle by Disney to accommodate disabled visitors while cracking down on past abuses. But some Disney fans say the company has gone too far and has no right to determine who is disabled.

“This isn’t right. This isn’t what Walt and Roy would have wanted,” said Shannon Bonadurer, referring to the Disney brothers who founded the entertainment empire. Despite being unable to wait for long periods of time in the heat because she uses an ileostomy bag, Bonadurer was denied a pass for the disability program.

In a statement, Disney said it was committed to providing a great experience to all visitors, particularly those with disabilities who may require special accommodations. read more

Hallmark Channel will film a holiday movie next year at locations across Walt Disney World, the companies have announced. The film, starring Lacey Chabert and titled “Holiday Ever After: A Disney World Wish Come True,” will air in late 2026.

The storyline features Chabert’s character taking a family vacation to Disney World during the holiday season. As fate would have it, they stay in a resort next door to a man (played by Travis Van Winkle from “You” and “FUBAR”) with whom she had a bad first date. Not many details have been revealed, but a wish made at the Cinderella fountain is involved.

The project was announced by Chabert during a broadcast of “The Hallmark Christmas Experience: A Hometown Holiday.”

“I love visiting here with my family, and I always thought it would make the absolute perfect setting for a Hallmark Christmas movie,” Chabert said, flanked by Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse at Magic Kingdom.

Chabert has appeared in more than 40 Hallmark productions. Other actors set to appear in the Disney-Hallmark film are Richard Kind (“Only Murders in the Building,” “Inside Out,” “A Bug’s Life”), Christy Carlson Romano (“Kim Possible,” “Even Stevens”) and Bryce Durfee (“General Hospital”). read more

By STAN CHOE, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks pulled away from their record heights on Monday.

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The S&P 500 slipped 0.3% for just its second loss in the last 11 days, but it remains within 0.6% of its all-time high set in October. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 215 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite edged down by 0.1%.

Berkshire Hathaway weighed on the market and fell 1.4% after announcing a shake-up of some of its top leadership. Todd Combs, who had been CEO of the company’s GEICO insurance business, is leaving for a job at JPMorgan Chase, while Chief Financial Officer Marc Hamburg will retire next year. read more

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Paramount on Monday launched a hostile takeover offer for Warner Bros. Discovery, initiating a potentially bruising battle with rival bidder Netflix to buy the company behind HBO, CNN and DC Studios, and the right to reshape much of the nation’s entertainment landscape.

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Emerging just days after top Warner managers agreed to Netflix’s $72 billion purchase, Paramount’s bid seeks to go over the heads of those leaders by appealing directly to Warner shareholders with more money — $74.4 billion — and a plan to buy all of Warner’s business, including the cable business that Netflix does not want. read more

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Sunday that a deal struck by Netflix to buy Warner Bros. Discovery “could be a problem” because of the size of the combined market share.

“There’s no question about it,” Trump said, answering questions about the deal and various other topics as he walked the red carpet at the Kennedy Center Honors.

The Republican president said he will be involved in the decision about whether the federal government should approve the $72 billion deal. If approved by regulators, the merger would put two of the world’s biggest streaming services under the same ownership and join Warner’s television and motion picture division, including DC Studios, with Netflix’s vast library and its production arm.

The deal, which could reshape the entertainment industry, has to “go through a process and we’ll see what happens,” Trump said.

“Netflix is a great company. They’ve done a phenomenal job. Ted is a fantastic man,” he said of Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, noting that they met in the Oval Office last week before the deal was announced Dec. 5. “I have a lot of respect for him but it’s a lot of market share, so we’ll have to see what happens.” read more