The Walt Disney Company recently indicated that it is forming a committee to replace current CEO Bob Iger. Two years ago, Iger left retirement to revive the embattled company amid struggling financial performance under former chief executive Bob Chapek. However, reports indicate that Morgan Stanley Executive Chairman James Gorman will lead Disney’s efforts to find a successor for Iger.
Iger returned to Disney in 2022 after 15 years as its chief executive, retiring in 2020. Originally, Iger signed a two-year contract to lead Disney as it searched for a new CEO. However, in mid-2023, he signed an extension to his contract to keep him at the company until the end of 2026.
Now, Gorman, who has previous experience in succession planning at Morgan Stanley, is on the hunt for a new leader. “James is a highly respected leader, and we’ve asked him to serve as the new chair of the succession planning committee given his deep succession planning experience and long-term strategic mentality,” Disney Chairman Mark Parker recently said.
However, under Iger’s leadership, Disney has garnered a negative reputation among conservatives who criticize Disney for embracing a woke agenda in its entertainment and involving itself in politics. Regardless, Iger has defended the company, maintaining that the number one objective is to entertain audiences.
“I’ve been preaching this for a long time at the company before I left and since I came back that our No. 1 goal is to entertain. I think, like, the term woke is thrown around rather liberally, no pun intended in that regard. I think a lot of people don’t even understand really what it means,” Iger said. “The bottom line is that infusing messaging as a sort of No. 1 priority in our films and TV shows is not what we’re up to. They need to be entertaining.”
While admitting that having a social impact can be important, Iger’s outward statements seemed to suggest Disney is focused on entertainment first and foremost. “Where the Disney company can have a positive impact on the world, whether it’s fostering acceptance and understanding of people of all different types, great,” he said, adding that “generally speaking, we need to be an entertainment-first company. And I’ve worked really hard to do that.”
That being said, the chief executive maintained that “everybody’s aligned on what our priorities are,” in that one of Disney’s most important goals is to reach “a very, very diverse audience.” Furthermore, Iger suggests Disney is working to get back to the company’s “roots.”
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Iger claimed that Disney would have to tailor its content to these viewers to reach these “very” diverse audiences across various demographics and properly entertain them. “And on one hand, in order to do that, the stories you tell have to really reflect the audience that you’re trying to reach. But that audience, because they are so diverse, really first and foremost, they want to be entertained,” he said.
The American Tribune recently reported that Disney’s stock had tumbled 49% over the past three years while the broader stock market had increased approximately 15 percent. Many commentators have pointed to the woke content and major box office flops as being a contributing factor to the massive decline in market value.
Watch Megyn Kelly sound off on Disney for being woke below: