Last week, a story from Business Insider detailed Bob Iger’s exit from Disney as the company’s CEO. According to author Claire Atkinson, the transition wasn’t exactly smooth. Iger wasn’t exactly ready to leave the job.
An anonymous executive told Atkinson that the Disney board had been pressuring Iger to name a successor and make plans to step down. The executive said that Iger was “tired of being harangued” when he decided to leave the job in February of 2020 and instantly came to regret it once the Covid-19 pandemic entered the equation.
Many in the company were “confused” when Iger named Bob Chapek his successor. Iger had planned for Chapek to report to both him and the board. Their relationship quickly deteriorated with the two butting heads on several key matters and Iger privately telling others that Chapek was “arrogant and uninterested in others’ opinions.”
Each man created his own advisory board. Atkinson reports those advisors were regularly working against each other.
Several people associated with Disney were critical of Chapek over the company’s lack of response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill. That included Iger, who tweeted about his opposition to the legislation. That reportedly upset Chapek, who took the public commentary as a slight.
Bob Iger may consider Bob Chapek a “novice” when it comes to dealing with talent and with hot button issues, but Disney has shown that it does have some faith in its new leader and his plan to emphasize streaming in the company’s new business model.
While many people speculated that the public missteps and private tensions could lead to Chapek being ousted from the CEO role, it turned out to be much ado about nothing. He was awarded a three-year contract extension and $20 million bonus in June.
