Hackers holding a Disney film for ransom

Mr. Iger made the revelation during a town hall meeting with ABC employees New York City on Monday, according to Hollywood Reporter based on information from multiple sources. The company is now reportedly working with federal investigators and is waiting to see if the hackers makes good on the threat and release the film.

Disney's upcoming Johnny Depp film Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales has been hijacked by hackers seeking payment from the studio as a ransom.

In a report from The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline, Iger confirmed that an upcoming movie from Disney has been stolen by hackers who are seeking a huge payout to not release the movie.

Later this year, Disney is releasing next instalment of Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor: Ragnarok, and next episode of Skywalker Saga, Star Wars: The Last Jedi.

Netflix recently had the same issue with a hacker released 10 episodes of Orange Is The New Black after their demands weren't met.

"And like all movies, Pirates would appear on torrent sites regardless practically the day of its release, so the hackers seem to be really over-estimating their impact here".

It's unclear whether the two incidents are connected.

Disney did not immediately respond to a Guardian query seeking confirmation. Ransom-style computer attacks have grown in popularity in the last few years as banks and other institutions make it harder for hackers to infiltrate their systems.

According to industry publication Deadline.com, the hackers are demanding "an enormous amount of money to be paid in Bitcoin".