I too found it curious how much Iger has supposedly been emphasizing the creative side of the business. Creativity and Iger are not two words I'd usually list side-by-side. He spent his entire tenure acquiring outside properties while seeming shocked at the success of Disney hits like Frozen and Moana. Iger, to me, always seemed sort of ashamed of Disney's legacy. He needed to supplant it with something new, whether that be Pixar, Lucasfilm, Marvel or Fox.
I think his talent isn't so much that he is creative (I really don't think he was/is) but that he is able to manage people who are.
The thing is, people who have an actual passion for the "creative stuff", aren't moved entirely by money. This is something that often confuses the hell out of people who
do see money as their primary motivator.
There is ego, legacy, as well as personal desire to create and to have the resources to do so. There is also usually a hint of insecurity there, too. Money obviously plays a role but feeling like you are appreciated and like you have the freedom to do what inspires you often matters just as much - sometimes even more.
A savvy executive who knows how to play up to the things these kinds of people want (even if they don't always deliver on their promises) and the willingness to feed the ego, provide reassurance for the fears and generally
act like someone that can be trusted goes a
long ways.
These are all skills Iger has in spades and something that Chapek seems to have absolutely zero mastery of.
The ScarJo dust-up is the perfect example. There was a chance to fix it before it became an issue and they allowed their talent to feel used and ignored so she responded. Then they basically doubled-down by publicly saying "We left cash on the dresser. I'm not sure what more she expected." and then acted surprised when a sizable portion of Hollywood lost their minds.
In light of everything, is it shocking that lifer Joe Rohde departed? Look at the timing. We thought maybe he was forced out or that he fell on his sword to protect people under him but now? I mean, I'm sure he knew very well the kind of boss Chapek was going to be and I cannot fathom those two ever having a constructive conversation, I mean,
ever.
I'd certainly feel sorry for the person between the two he'd have been reporting to.
No way, if Disney were being run by Chapek would he have been able to convince Steve Jobs to sell or Lucas* to sell.
Marvel was kind of in trouble so maybe he could have taken them and Fox was a more traditional business deal but it's unlikely Cahpek would have been able to retain the talent needed to make the MCU the runaway success it's been and without the prior growth from all of this that came before, I doubt the Fox deal would have been possible.
I'm not an Iger fan by any stretch but I can see where his strength was.
Creative? No but being able to stand in front of, next to and behind creatives? Absolutely.
I think he did it and loved it.
I get the impression Chapek has little patience for the carrots needed to get the best work out of the best of those kinds of people, though, and the last year has reflected that.
If you told me Chapek ran the biggest cardboard manufacturing company in the world, I'd believe you. If you said he was CEO of the country's biggest meat packing company, I wouldn't think twice. Heck, even if you told me he was running Pepsi, I wouldn't be shocked but I can't fathom why anyone thought this was the guy to head Disney.
*Lucas may have ended up regretting his decisionafter seeing what Disney did with the franchise after they had their hand's on it while under Iger's control but that's not the point - Iger was able to make him comfortable signing away his life's work to begin with which is the thing.
