Comedian Nate Bargatze is well-known for his clean humor and family-friendly style. Bargatze, however, recently came out against another formerly child-friendly entertainer- media juggernaut Disney. Speaking with Esquire, Bargatze stands out as “the most successful stand-up comedian working today.” As he reflected on his success, he discussed what his plans might be like after he leaves stand-up behind, which according to Bargatze, could be sooner than most people think. “Two more tours. I got this tour I’m about to go out on, and I want to do one more,” he said. Bargatze plans to continue to entertain, but his plans now include the big screen. He will begin filming for his first on-screen role this year, in a movie he co-wrote.

When speaking of his influences, Bargatze cited Jerry Seinfeld and Adam Sandler. He also included Walt Disney. But he’s not sure on the House of Mouse’s current management. “Now Disney is run by a guy that’s just a businessman. Well, that guy doesn’t care about the audience.” Bargatze, however, stated he owed his career to his audience. “None of this happens without them.” Bargatze shared he hoped to emulate Walt Disney by being the next Disney and Mickey Mouse- the brains and the face. His plans include make movies, TV shows, merchandise, books, and beyond. He also hopes to help comedians like him, who spent years being overlooked due to their “mundane” nature. He even has his sights set on a new amusement park on the grounds of the old Opryland site in Nashville, where he and his family reside.

Bargatze has also started his own business, Nateland Productions, which has about 12 employees. The company’s CEO, Felix Verdigets, said the company is different becaust of its authenticity. “Entertainment seems to me in this mode of heartland, a word that’s been overused a bazillion times. Everyone is capitalizing on it right now, and some of it is going to feel inorganic. What’s going to separate our content is that this is how we’ve always done it. It’s very authentic, it’s very organic,” he said. “What Disney has is Mickey Mouse. What Nateland has is Nate.”

Bargatze’s hope is to return to entertainment that is made for everyone, not just niche shows like Succession, which he cited was the greatest show ever that nobody watched. “Everybody has lives, everybody has kids, everybody has stuff to go do. They don’t want to sit and worship your art. There’s got to be a balance of appreciating Succession and appreciating King of Queens. Those worlds have to exist together. Now you have too many Successions. There’s nothing that’s a palate cleanser,” he said. It’s an ambitious plan. But given the years of rejection he plowed through to selling out stadiums, Bargatze may just be the one to do it. “The hard part is trying to land in the middle,” he said. “To go, I need to be doing this for the right reasons.”