News Bob Iger is back! Chapek is out!!

[Movielover]

Yay, we've gone from the Block Of Wood back to The Damp Noodle. At least The Damp Noodle invested in the parks for better or worse...

 

[Captain Culpepper Cline]

Thank God! Welcome back Iger Chapek is/was the worst CEO to the detriment of Disney.

 

[TP2000]

Why exactly is bringing in the same CEO yet again exciting? It screams of poor Board leadership. I'm happy Chapek is leaving but Iger coming back is "meh" news.

Agreed. But I think what this shows is that the Board knows they made a mistake by approving the Chapek promotion in the first place (obvious), and there's NO ONE who isn't too attached to Chapek who can take over on short notice (less obvious, but truth).

Since Bob Iger now realizes he can't get into politics (wrong race/gender for Diane Feinstein's Senate seat, and Gavin Newsom already has hotel reservations to attend the 2023 Iowa State Fair against his will), I am sure Bob Iger was lured back with a very lucrative 2 year contract.

If Iger does his fix-it job correctly in the next 12 months and finds a new leadership team, he can be out in half the time and get the two year mega-contract paid out to him with his executive cred even stronger. Bob Iger's ego is happy, Willow Bay is happy, the Board is happy, and for comic relief Gavin Newsom still has to pretend to be interested in butter molds at the Iowa State Fair. A Disney Fairytale Ending!

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

Why exactly is bringing in the same CEO yet again exciting? It screams of poor Board leadership. I'm happy Chapek is leaving but Iger coming back is "meh" news. This is more to try and stave off further losses than for Iger to come in and reverse any poorly received decisions the company has made recently. Who honestly believes fast pass is coming back? C'mon.

It's not intended to be exciting for us. It's supposed to calm down the executives and shareholders. From their perspective, Iger is good because they made money while he was CEO. And they made less money while Chapek was in charge, so he's bad. Now they're all flailing around like headless chicken trying to figure out what to do. Iger is the only answer they can come up with.

For those who care more about the company other than its finances, there's a very significant chance that hings remain the same as they did under Chapek, very possibly getting even worse. For this to be good news from a fan's perspective, Iger would have to run the company entirely differently from how he did before. And I don't see that happening. The statement also says that his term will be short while he helps search for a replacement. Iger fired all the other people intended to be his replacement because of his massive ego and god complex.

I'm doubtful anyone involved really know what they're doing. Iger will keep on doing what he's always done budget-wise (which is largely the same as what Chapek tried to do), perhaps even more aggressively slicing budgets apart and hiking prices. And remain there for as long as the board lets him and he feels it's safe to be there (strategically fleeing again if another crisis brews).

 

[Adz_h]

Not sure we will see why real change in the parks due to this unfortunately, genie and park reservations won't go imo

 

[MrPromey]

It was the intention of Marvel TV to connect Netflix Marvel to the MCU. The tv division of Marvel certainly tried to make it happen and would continually update their world to match the MCU.

But since movies and tv were separated departments, neither could definitively say they definitely were or were not part of the MCU. Attempts to do crossovers generally failed (with the exception of appearances of Fury and Sif) with the excuse that movies and tv were on different production schedules.

With the cancellation of Netlix Marvel shows and the consolidation of all things Marvel under Feige (except for Sony Marvel Spider-Man and friends), then it was up to Feige to say if Netflix Marvel was in the MCU or not. And he remained silent on that for a long time.

Until.. the multiverse was introduce into the MCU. And then, Feige can have it both ways: The Netflix Marvel is a separate universe from the main MCU making it canon multiversally, but not canon to the main MCU.

It's been now establish that the Daredevil and Kingpin of the MCU (in Hawkeye, No Way Home, and She-Hulk) are not of the same universe as their Netflix Marvel counterparts.

Very simple, really.

 

[addacollier]

So how do we think this news will affect our experience at WDW? I can’t see Genie + being scrapped. Might we be able to book our individual Lighting Lane selections weeks in advance instead of having a 7am bun fight?

 

[TP2000]

Many a year lurker and reader of this place but my first post.

In terms of the parks what are your opinions on what will change short and medium term with Bob’s return.

Does Iger need or have the power to implement “quick wins” for the parks? And if so what would you want to see first?

Absolutely nothing will change short-term. There could be changes mid-term, but this is happening because there are divisions in Burbank that are hemorrhaging red ink, namely the flagship animation studios and the live action studios. Only Marvel seems to make money at the box office now.

The Parks are a cash cow, even during economic tough times. Burbank knows that, and puts them on auto pilot for awhile in times like these. There will be no changes seen or felt in the parks because of Iger's return until a year from now at the earliest.

Short term, Bob Iger and the Board will be happy to let the amusement parks and cruise ships (that Burbank senior executives don't even like to visit, especially with all those middle class folks) keep providing monthly cash flow while they focus on the real problems at hand:

Bob Iger's Real Problems For 2023

• Studio entertainment's bloated budgets and/or box office flops
• Streaming is a bottomless money pit (see above)
• Complete lack of talent development in the senior executive ranks
• No showmen are leading a showman's company (see above)

 

[mergatroid]

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

So how do we think this news will affect our experience at WDW? I can’t see Genie + being scrapped. Might we be able to book our individual Lighting Lane selections weeks in advance instead of having a 7am bun fight?

I don't think they'll scrap Genie+. They make money off of that. And as far as I can tell, it unfortunately doesn't seem like attendance has been negatively impacted by their swindling schemes.

I assume the leadership swap has more to do with the movie/tv/streaming financial situation than the parks. If anything, I expect them to continue the way the parks are being handled, and very likely push the limits even farther to help cover losses elsewhere in the company. That's how Iger covered costs of his acquisitions, FP+ and Shanghai's out of control budget.

 

[MrPromey]

It is a 75 year old movie with noncurrent ip relevancy that features a slave…

Nobody outside Japan has seen it in 40 years

You do the math

Hey now! He was a sharecropper!

_

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Absolutely nothing will change short-term. There could be changes mid-term, but this is happening because there are divisions in Burbank that are hemorrhaging red ink, namely the flagship animation studios and the live action studios. Only Marvel seems to make money at the box office now.

The Parks are a cash cow, even during economic tough times. Burbank knows that, and taps into it in times like these. There will be no changes seen or felt in the parks because of Iger's return until a year from now at the earliest.

Short term, Bob Iger and the Board will be happy to let the amusement parks and cruise ships (that Burbank senior executives don't even like to visit, especially with all those middle class folks) keep providing monthly cash flow while they focus on the real problems at hand; studio entertainment, streaming money pit, and a complete lack of talent development in the senior executive ranks.

The rumor of the activist investor is the only scenario that makes sense to me, if someone wasn’t threatening a boardroom takeover I think the board would have been happy to continue on the same path with Chapek.

I don’t think guest satisfaction, financials, or any of the other possible reasons justify a surprise weekend change at the top level but the board fighting off a boardroom takeover and trying to save their own jobs sure does.

That said I doubt we’ll see major changes in the parks, probably better maintenance, cleanliness, staffing, etc. Nothing substantial, just a better product.

 

[FutureCEO]

The construction of Tron outlasted Chapek

 

[MerlinTheGoat]

The most filthy and dilapidated i've ever seen the Florida parks was right smack in the Iger era between 2010-2012. That even includes the soon-to-be-gone Splash Mountain (the current condition is also quite bad but still nowhere near as bad as 2012). The parks might have been that way or worse for even longer beforehand, but I didn't visit from 1998 to 2009. So 2010-2012 are just my own personal lowest standard for how bad things can get.

So I would advise people who are hoping the condition of the parks might improve with Iger's return to put expectations very firmly in check. Things can get a lot worse. Especially if they're looking for ways to improve finances wherever they can.

 

[CaptinEO]

Wow! Imo, Chapek got to much hate for the poor financial decisions Iger made that became worse once the pandemic hit. However, dude was just a nasty jerk. You need some type of decent people skills and personality to run a company like Disney and he had 0. I don’t feel bad for him. I’m sure he’s got and will get millions. I’m interested in what Iger can do since all of this is his fault anyway.

This describes my thoughts exactly. A lot of the issues with Disney people have now are a result of Iger's decisions. But Chapek's personality was definitely not right for this role.

I mean Iger's last major role as CEO was hiring a successor, the same successor the board now deemed unfit for the job. No idea why they chose Iger again.

 

[MrPromey]

The construction of Tron outlasted Chapek

I'm pretty sure there are burnt out light bulbs on the exterior outlines of Grand Floridian that outlasted him.

 

[MrPromey]

... I mean Iger's last major role as CEO was hiring a successor, the same successor the board now deemed unfit for the job. No idea why they chose Iger again.

Who else could they get to agree on half a day's notice who would have the first clue about what they're doing?

This time, it's supposed to be a planned exit rather than whatever the hell him yelling "What's that behind you?!" before running like a madman was supposed to pass as at the onset of the pandemic.

We'll see how it plays out but this reads like a specific agreed upon goal of his return is finding and grooming a suitable replacement.

 

[matt9112]

I‘m with @MrPromey in thinking that Iger is coming back in legacy mode thinking about the big picture and what he wants to be remembered for. I’m hoping he’ll try to cast himself as a creative genius by bringing WDI back from wherever they were banished to, greenlighting some creative stuff on Disney+, and maybe doing a Walt Disney Presents…-style streaming show.

I want 10 billion dollars of capx into Epcot alone. Not a big ask.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

Remember, he expected to help guide and train the new CEO over the next couple of years before Bob C told him to pound dirt.

I really think that was a first sign that Chapek had a fragile ego. I understand why having your old boss looking over your shoulder was not ideal, but on the other hand he was taking on a big responsibility during a turbulent period so some humility wouldn't have gone astray.... particularly as he started annoying people very quickly.

This is not good. Chapek was bad. Iger is worse - he basically created every problem Disney is having right now. Is there anything that can be solely blamed on Chapek?

Eh, Iger at least had some good points when you look at the company overall. Chapek had almost none. I get the cautioning that Iger has never been fantastic for the parks so not to expect for some reason everything to go back to the early-1990s heyday. I also get that a lot of what has happened recently continues the legacy set by Iger, so, again, manage expectations. Still, Chapek turbocharged everything people didn't like at the parks in bulldozer fashion and seemed completely aloof to what the customers had to say. Iger at least seems to have some sensibility for people to the point that he won't needlessly antagonise them.

People are acting like Eisner is back.

The parks got a lot better when Eisner left and Iger came in as CEO. They were in a bit of a death spiral with low-quality additions, giant hats and wands, cheap new parks no-one wanted to visit, attractions flying off the tracks, etc. The one thing I will give Iger credit for in the parks is that he did seem to have a greater conviction than Eisner 2.0 (and Chapek as CEO) that the parks should at least be high quality. That gives me some hope that at least the nosedive in maintenance and upkeep will be corrected.

 

[todd23]

So when do we get the juicy stuff…

I want another Disney War published.