Over the past few years, DisneyDIS has received sharp criticism from fans and business leaders, while its content and theme parks have undergone drastic changes.
As Disney’s content has faced backlash from conservative consumers for its “woke” remakes of classic films and characters and Disney World and Disneyland theme parks battle waning consumer demand amid higher ticket prices, some critics have even anticipated Disney CEO Bob Iger will step down.
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Last year, billionaire investor Nelson Peltz even sought (and failed) to land several seats on Disney’s board of directors after his company, Trian Fund Management, claimed that Disney was "in crisis."
Related: Billionaire investor has a problem with ‘woke’ Disney movies
Peltz said in an interview earlier this year that Disney's movies have become too “woke” amid its push for diversity, equity and inclusion, which is deterring fans.
“People go to watch a movie or a show to be entertained,” he told the Financial Times in a recent interview. “They don’t go to get a message.”
Disney delays a crucial announcement
As Iger’s vision for Disney continues to face scrutiny, the company just revealed some bad news for critics who are eager to learn who will replace him as CEO once his contract ends in two years.
Disney said it would delay the announcement of Iger’s replacement to 2026. The announcement was originally expected to be unveiled in 2025.
More Disney:
- Disney World shuts down classic ride amidst controversy
- Disney flags startling shift in consumer behavior at theme parks
- Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions are getting more expensive
“A critical priority before us is to appoint a new CEO, which we now expect to announce in early 2026,” said James Gorman, chair of Disney Board’s Succession Planning Committee, in a press release. “This timing reflects the progress the Succession Planning Committee and the Board are making and will allow ample time for a successful transition before the conclusion of Bob Iger’s contract in December 2026.”
Iger was first appointed as CEO of Disney in 2005 and became executive chair of the company in 2020, heading the company’s “creative endeavors.” Iger retired from the company in 2021, but returned in 2022 after his successor Bob Chapek was ousted.
At the time, Iger claimed that he would only stay at Disney for two more years, but his contract was extended last year to December 2026.
In addition to delaying the timeline of the announcement of Iger’s successor, Disney also announced that Gorman will replace Mark Parker as chair of Disney’s board of directors, starting on Jan. 2, 2025.
“The Disney Board has benefited tremendously from James Gorman’s expertise and guidance, and we are lucky to have him as our next Chairman — particularly as the Board continues to move forward with the succession process,” said Iger in a press release.
Disney's future plans most likely will remain unchanged
Gavin Doyle, founder of MickeyVisit.com, highlighted that this is the first time Disney revealed a timeline for naming a successor and claimed that this could have been done for several reasons.
“The timeline announcement could help to calm any internal jockeying by candidates or their surrogates internally and in the media,” said Doyle. “It is also likely a factor of Disney swapping their board chairman. Mark Parker had been leading the succession process, and now James Gorman is leading it. They may just have different perspectives on the right way to roll out a new candidate.”
Related: Disney flags startling shift in consumer behavior at theme parks
Doyle also said that Iger's upcoming sucessor will “inevitably” impact the company’s content and theme park plans, and now that Iger’s successor will be announced a year later, most of Disney’s plans will probably remain unchanged, for now.
“Disney has already shared plans for new rides at Disney World and Disneyland that stretch out over the next five years as part of efforts to keep the crowds coming to Disney World,” said Doyle. “When those theme park plans were first announced, I wondered if a new CEO would end up shifting the plans before the new rides were built. Since the new CEO will now be appointed a year later than some anticipated, more of those plans will likely remain the same.”
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