Disney CEO Bob Iger said the company remains committed to finding a successor before he retires in 2026 after a failed search for a replacement for the previous CEO.
Iger said on Kelly Ripa's podcast earlier this month that he is “obsessed” with the search for talent after he returns as chief executive in 2022.
“I, [CEO succession] everytime” he told Ripa“To say we're obsessed is an understatement. In fact, when I returned, the board and I were convinced that this was our biggest, no, biggest, [priorities].”
Iger picked Bob Chapek as his successor in 2020, but the former Disney theme parks chief was fired two years later after a series of missteps, including political infighting, firings of top talent and a controversial reorganization.
Iger returns to a Mouse House devastated by the pandemic and accelerating cord-cutting, serving an initial two-year term that was later extended by the Disney board until December 2026.
Iger has been trying to stabilize Disney and his top priority is finding a capable successor after a bitter, months-long proxy battle with activist investor Nelson Peltz, who has criticized the succession plan and argued that Disney's performance has fallen short of expectations in the streaming-TV era.
Disney said last week that board member and former Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman would become chairman of the company's succession planning committee.
Help Disney find its next leader. Getty Images for 20th Century Studios
Gorman joined Disney's board of directors this year and oversaw Morgan Stanley's recent succession search. He served as CEO of the Wall Street bank from 2010 to 2023 and is due to step down as chairman of the board in December.
For Iger, the search for a successor risks being a blemish on the media mogul's legendary career if it fails again.
Chapek's disastrous tenure was marked by a bitter battle with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over a “don't say gay” bill and the “Black Widow” contract breach, which saw Scarlett Johansson suing Disney over pay for starring in the superhero movie.
Iger, who served as CEO from 2005 to 2020 before returning, told Ripa that he came back as CEO because Disney was in trouble.
“I had no intention of being drawn back again,” Iger said. “I owed it to a company that meant so much to me and that had been so kind to me to answer the call.”
Disney currently faces a host of challenges, including a shift away from traditional television, creative problems at its cash cow Marvel, a radical overhaul of ESPN, antitrust obstacles to its upcoming sports joint venture Venu, and a slowdown in its theme park business.
As the CEO search looms, Iger is struggling to find a successor who has experience in all areas of Disney's complex business.
Internal candidates being nominated to succeed Iger include Disney Entertainment co-chairmen Dana Walden and Alan Bergman, Disney Parks and Experiences chief Josh D'Amaro and ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro.
But Hollywood sources told The Washington Post in April that it was unlikely any of the front-runners would be ready by 2026, raising some doubts about whether Iger would stay in the role for much longer.
“It wouldn't be a surprise if he stayed,” a Disney source said of Iger at the time. “He's of unknown age and there aren't many ready-made successors within the company.”
Other contenders include Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, two former executives who serve as strategic advisers to Iger, but they have both been overlooked in the past as potential replacements for Iger and are unlikely to join the ranks, the people said.
