News Chapek FIRED, Iger New CEO

[captainbuzzy]

Also seen some speculation that the board are not happy with the early results of the Fox acquisition. Not sure how much that would play into todays announcement though.

We had Iger in a month or so ago for a corporate thing. He made it really clear that the board bought into the Disney+ and Fox acquisition being a long term play and there would be a dip in earnings for a few years. If anything early Disney+ results have been above target so the board should be happy the plan is a bit ahead of schedule.

 

[Rodan75]

so this thread is as apocalyptic as I expected. sounds like this was a calculated move to avoid the ‘bake off’ or COO chaos that happened with the other Disney succession plans.

also makes the post-GE Iger against Chapek Insider info look extra silly and planted by anti-Iger factions.

 

[General Mayhem]

Oh boy folks, looks like we're gonna have a nightmarish time now. The dark ages have certainly begun...

 

[Darkprime]

We had Iger in a month or so ago for a corporate thing. He made it really clear that the board bought into the Disney+ and Fox acquisition being a long term play and there would be a dip in earnings for a few years. If anything early Disney+ results have been above target so the board should be happy the plan is a bit ahead of schedule.

To be fair what else would he say? Its not like hed publicly confirm any distaste the board had towards to Fox deal a deal which could have made or break his legacy quite easily had it fallen through.

 

[waltography]

Heard about it in the middle of a meeting and just... god.

 

[rreading]

Publicly traded?

I can see the angle for Iger...but it also commits him to Disney for the long term and he has never given any hint that was a desire for him.

I think it’s more likely this is actually PR and Iger leaves this new “role” on year early as is the pattern...so 12.31.20

IIRC, I'm pretty sure that he said that Iger was going to maintain this role until the date that he was intending to step down as CEO (or until he becomes POTUS).

 

[rreading]

I just listened to the analyst call.... I think the timing of this announcement is related to the Coronoviris and the time the outbreak was going to take away from Iger and what he really wants to do.... Chapek is the guy to manage the efforts around mitigating the impact of the virus. Iger is 70 years old and doesn’t want to manage the issue.... With shanghai and Hong Kong closed for 2 months and maybe another month, there is work to do, and Iger doesn’t want it to get in the way or distract his attention from what he sees as his last task, and that is to set a long term strategy on the creative side of the house.... To your point, this gives Chapek 22 months to fish or cut bait..... And his first decision is to announce who will be his replacement, and who to bring in to help him with the Creative after Iger retires..... It will be interesting to see if Meyer or other Senior leaders move on.... the key leaders are knee deep in Creative and still working with Iger...... Also, will Chapek be able to attract big name talent to his team.....This is going to be interesting to watch as usual....

I agree with this completely

 

[el_super]

1. Eisner was right. Iger is not creative. Never has been. He’s a “facilitator”

But the company is better off now than it was 15 years ago. Eisner was absolutely wrong about Iger.

2. There’s a first time for anything. Chapek is not qualified to be a modern Fortune 500, Dow 30 CEO. There’s nothing on the resume to justify that.

I would mostly agree on the basis of experience and certainly interview skills but here we are. Iger convinced the board that a parks guy would be the best for the job, otherwise Chapek wouldn't be there. It might take awhile for us to see what the board sees.

 

[monothingie]

I agree with this completely

Let the poaching begin.

Apple and Netflix are prime with cash to buy a lot of executive talent from Disney.

 

[Phil12]

Well, Iger knew that building that Skyliner was a big risk, so now he's getting out before he has to pay the price.

 

[donaldtoo]

 

[Figments Friend]

So I have to wonder.....

Where in the world is @realBobChapek ....?
You would think he would be here on the Forum bursting with pride at his new promotion.
But he is strangely silent.

Perhaps he is just a bit busy.
Perhaps he is just preparing his statement.

Perhaps he is sweating bullets....and worried about not being entirely ready to handle this position.

-

 

[rreading]

On reflection: my impression is that WDW Pro's take is absolutely accurate:

1) The coronavirus pandemic is shutting down huge sources of revenue for Disney and can potentially increase exponentially. This is one of the most dangerous times for the company, certainly the most dangerous since 9/11 and could end up being worse.
2) Lucasfilm is moving into dangerous territory for profitability and Chapek does not have the acumen or the gravitas to remove Kathleen Kennedy... Iger did.
3) Fox movies inherited into the Disney company have been almost universally losses and look to continue damaging the company's bottom line. And given that these properties are generating losses, that indicates systemic issues in those studios.
4) Chapek is simply not viewed as anywhere near competent to run a company of this scale. Chapek couldn't run the Parks division and has a shoddy track record. With this sudden announcement out of nowhere in the most volatile time period the company has faced in decades, the stock price could take a huge hit tomorrow morning.
5) There is fear Iger wanted to "lock in" now, suddenly and abruptly.
6) Marvel's future is not as strong as it was leading up to Endgame. The future slate of movies is not viewed within the company and the industry as being strong, and there is significant push to get X-Men up and running... but so far that's not moving as quickly as many would like. Iger was able to form a great partnership with Feige in making Marvel a huge success - Chapek does not have that relationship, and will likely get run over.

Iger is 69 years old, and probably doesn't want any of this hassle.

The other company that I watch as closely as Disney is AAPL, and I see a real similarity between Iger and Jobs (big moves and maybe tick some people off along the way) and I wonder if Chapek is Iger's Tim Cook. Good at numbers and making a profit, but not a big-picture guy.

So Iger stays attached to help Chapek keep his eye on the ball and watch out for trouble while Chapek keeps the company afloat. Perhaps it's not pretty but there may be rough seas ahead and we may a bean-counter for a couple of years. I expect that the parks' expansion to halt after this slate of expansion, but that may have been expected anyway.

I expect DIS to take a hit, and I'll probably buy back if it drops to $110, but I expect things to be in a lull for now. We'll see what happens over the next few years but I expect that this move is honestly the right one at this point for TWDC.

My $.02

 

[flynnibus]

Some people are thinking that the reason theyre not giving Chapek keys to the creative side of the company is because there still not 100% in on Chapek. And it kinda makes sense. The fact theyre not giving Chapek the creative keys (i.e. the lifeblood of the company) until he proves to Iger/the Board he can oversee that effectively.

Then you don't make that guy CEO! Promote him internally - not make him the head honcho...

CEO in training is not the kind of role you setup for a company the size and scope of Disney.

 

[WEDway Inc & Company LLC]

The word “immediately” terrifies me...

 

[captainbuzzy]

And y’all said I was crazy when I said there was a political slant to this.

Timing is a bit off for him to decide to be a candidate but if he pulled this ripcord he must see a path

To be fair what else would he say? Its not like hed publicly confirm any distaste the board had towards to Fox deal a deal which could have made or break his legacy quite easily had it fallen through.

This was all said in front of one of the board members who echoed what he said. If the board wants to oust a CEO its because they want to send a message to Wall Street. this isn't that. The market did not have an averse reaction to either the 1Q20 earnings call and the FY2019 call resulted in a roughly 10% bump over the month that followed. Iger has investor confidence and by all accounts the confidence of the board.

 

[orky8]

On reflection: my impression is that WDW Pro's take is absolutely accurate:



Iger is 69 years old, and probably doesn't want any of this hassle.

The other company that I watch as closely as Disney is AAPL, and I see a real similarity between Iger and Jobs (big moves and maybe tick some people off along the way) and I wonder if Chapek is Iger's Tim Cook. Good at numbers and making a profit, but not a big-picture guy.

So Iger stays attached to help Chapek keep his eye on the ball and watch out for trouble while Chapek keeps the company afloat. Perhaps it's not pretty but there may be rough seas ahead and we may a bean-counter for a couple of years. I expect that the parks' expansion to halt after this slate of expansion, but that may have been expected anyway.

I expect DIS to take a hit, and I'll probably buy back if it drops to $110, but I expect things to be in a lull for now. We'll see what happens over the next few years but I expect that this move is honestly the right one at this point for TWDC.

My $.02

Iger is nothing like Jobs. If anything, Iger was Eisner’s Tim Cook.

 

[brb1006]

Chapek has been updated to God mode for the Disney Company.

 

[peng]

Let the downward spiral begin.

 

[rreading]

Iger is nothing like Jobs. If anything, Iger was Eisner’s Tim Cook.

Meh. Iger took Disney as it was, and added Pixar, Lucasfilm, Marvel and (fwiw) Fox to its portfolio.

In the parks, he supported: the rebirth of DCA before they started monkeying with it again; repurchasing and starting expansion/renovation of DL Paris; creating Disneyland Shanghai (which ultimately should be great); and has greenlit quite a few WDW projects.

Be as skeptical as you want about stock price, but it does reflect the value of the company. It had been ~$26 for years and recently $150 in a <10 year period. He took a floundering company with a remarkable history and turned it into the entertainment powerhouse in the world. Without hyperbole. Give the man some credit. Jobs was a true once in a lifetime visionary, but Iger has done an amazing job for the company as CEO. Objectively speaking