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Disney replaces Bob Iger as CEO effective immediately
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Started by Bosco685,

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Bosco685

Bosco685

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Disney Picks Bob Chapek as Next CEO

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It's the end of an era at The Walt Disney Company.

 

The conglomerate said on Tuesday that it is naming Bob Chapek as its next CEO, succeeding Bob Iger immediately. Iger is assuming the role of executive chairman and will lead the board through his contract's end on Dec. 31, 2021.

 

Chapek, who has been with the company since 1993, has been chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products since 2018. His new contract began on Feb. 24 and ends on Feb. 28, 2023, with his annual base salary increasing to $2.5 million. Chapek, who will become Disney's seventh CEO, will report to Iger and the board of directors.

 

Iger, who joined Disney in 1996, added that he will spend time dealing with all of Disney's creative endeavors, including at Hulu and Disney+. "My goal is that when I leave here [Chapek] will be just as steeped with all matters creative at the company as I am today," Iger said.

 

"Bob, I feel very fortunate to be able to work closely with you during this transition, and I know I will be able to benefit greatly from your wisdom and expertise," Chapek said on the call, adding that he will "embrace the same strategic pillars" that Iger championed.

 

Amid competition from Netflix, Iger prioritized the conglomerate's efforts on its own direct-to-consumer platforms, leading to the acquisition of streaming tech provider BAMTech in 2017 and the launch of the Disney+ platform on Nov. 12 of last year. Since its U.S. debut, Disney+ has picked up 28.6 million paid subscribers. 

 

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Bosco685

Bosco685

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This latest CEO is just a firestorm of flawed approaches to managing a massive enterprise. Including upsetting talent with that Scarlett Johansson situation.

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Somewhere Bob Iger is having himself a nice long laugh.

 

With the tension between the former Disney CEO and his successor, Bob Chapek, well documented by now, it’s a safe bet Iger is positively brimming with schadenfreude at the seemingly endless mishaps emanating from his former office, culminating in last week’s unceremonious termination of Disney’s top TV executive, Peter Rice.

 

The world’s biggest pure-play media conglomerate has seen its stock plummet in 2022 (and the upcoming IPL rights negotiation could make that worse) amid a broader-based downturn that has just about all of corporate America in its grips. But there’s a more complicated truth at play for Disney, which is being bogged down by a series of unforced errors by Chapek.

 

Even when Scarlett Johansson sued Disney over her payment from “Black Widow,” allowing the kind of ugly standoff Iger would never have allowed to go public, I didn’t rush to judgment against Chapek. Rethinking profit participation for the streaming era would never go smoothly, as former WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar could tell you, and at least Chapek had the successful launch of Disney+ to support his hardline negotiation stance.


Yes, Chapek clearly didn’t have the kind of finesse and stature Iger had with the creative community, but he was a new kind of leader for a new era in which Hollywood couldn’t expect not to have some noses out of joint.

 

Disney_Stock.PNG.16fd21a5276a5a3012f81cd2d11f8da1.PNG

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media_junkie

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Yes the whole Scarlett Johannesen thing was an "unforced error", but maybe Chapek knows what he is doing.  The Disney board of directors just released a statement saying they backed Chapek (and this came out after his firing of Peter Rice).  I don't want to get political, but perhaps Chapek is trying to steer Disney back into a more "neutral" stance (as it should be) instead of far left/far right.

I guess the big tell will be early next year when his contract is up.

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Beastfeast

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On 6/12/2022 at 9:49 AM, media_junkie said:

Yes the whole Scarlett Johannesen thing was an "unforced error", but maybe Chapek knows what he is doing.  The Disney board of directors just released a statement saying they backed Chapek (and this came out after his firing of Peter Rice).  I don't want to get political, but perhaps Chapek is trying to steer Disney back into a more "neutral" stance (as it should be) instead of far left/far right.

I guess the big tell will be early next year when his contract is up.

Are there any examples of a "far left" corporation/conglomerate? 

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Bosco685

Bosco685

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On 6/12/2022 at 9:49 AM, media_junkie said:

Yes the whole Scarlett Johannesen thing was an "unforced error", but maybe Chapek knows what he is doing.  The Disney board of directors just released a statement saying they backed Chapek (and this came out after his firing of Peter Rice).  I don't want to get political, but perhaps Chapek is trying to steer Disney back into a more "neutral" stance (as it should be) instead of far left/far right.

I guess the big tell will be early next year when his contract is up.

No matter his intent, his actions towards Scarlett Johansson to embarrass her in the press led to even the Russo Brothers taking her side. And they have made Disney a few billion dollars.

Russo Brothers Say Disney’s Treatment Of Scarlett Johansson For ‘Black Widow’ Rollout Was ‘Disturbing To Us As Artists’

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In a new interview with Den of Geek, “Avengers: Endgame” directors Joe and Anthony Russo spoke about the dispute between Disney and Johansson, calling out the company for its treatment of artists.

 

“We’re certainly concerned with the trend in the market that’s moving away from artists,” Joe said. “There’s been a lot of value in tech companies getting involved in making content, but there’s also some downsides to that. And those downsides include tech companies like Netflix and Apple and Amazon having much deeper pockets than studios do, and they can pay more and that’s starting to scare the studios.

 

“So the studios are having a conservative reaction, and they’re trying to downplay their need for stars. They’re trying to force IP to be their star, and in accordance with that they’re also then trying to underpay and diminish the need for stars on their projects.”

I think this is where Iger's more behind-the-scenes method for working out differences kept strong creatives feeling comfortable engaging with the Disney leadership at that time.

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media_junkie

media_junkie

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On 6/12/2022 at 11:45 AM, Beastfeast said:

Are there any examples of a "far left" corporation/conglomerate? 

Not going to get into details because it could be claimed "political" and shut the thread down.  But as you will notice I posted far left/far right views in my initial post.

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media_junkie

media_junkie

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On 6/12/2022 at 11:59 AM, Bosco685 said:

I think this is where Iger's more behind-the-scenes method for working out differences kept strong creatives feeling comfortable engaging with the Disney leadership at that time.

I'd agree with you there.  Looking at Iger's history of work (starting at ABC in the 70s) he has always been behind the scenes.  Chapek on the other hand seems to have a completely different "up in your face style".  Which is so far removed from Iger's it makes you think why was he picked to be the successor. 

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Bosco685

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Disney’s board of directors announced the new three-year contract extension Tuesday, saying the decision was “unanimous.”

 

The CEO, who took over from the well-liked Bob Iger just a month before the novel coronavirus pandemic disrupted the world (and of course nearly every line of Disney’s business), has agreed to a new long-term contract to continue leading the entertainment giant.

 

Disney’s board of directors announced the new three-year contract extension Tuesday, saying the decision was “unanimous.” The new contract runs through 2025. The board had previously said that Chapek “and his leadership team have the support and confidence of the Board,” in the wake of Chapek’s decision to oust general entertainment chief Peter Rice and elevate Dana Walden to the top content role.

 

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