Rumor Hollywood insiders say there's growing tension at Disney as CEO Bob Chapek chafes at Bob Iger's 'long goodbye'

[pdude81]

None of this talk about them dumping Chapek makes sense to me. I don't see this lawsuit moving the board in any meaningful way, as it's a blip on the radar. Their major focus has to be the financial stability and growth of the company, and whether you like him or not, the stock is still up 15% or so from where it was pre-pandemic with DLR and movie theaters shut down for a year.

Also given Disney's reach into China, I don't believe there is any way that Iger suddenly stepping down at the time was a coincidence. The virus was raging in China at the time but had already spread to other continents.

Whether Chapek is set up to be the fall guy, a willing and well-paid participant in a cost cutting scheme, or making these choices of his own free will, I just don't see anything thus far as particularly damaging. People just readily assume they are going to get ripped off these days and just prepare to pay whatever upcharge Disney has to offer. They might even make jokes about the CEO, but most keep paying the ransom.

Sometimes it seems like a few of these "insider" stories are planted to damage the guy, but I have no reason to suspect that other than they seem to come in waves rather than a steady drip. I don't want to go too "tin foil hat" there, but I'm surprised this contract business takes off (compared to all the things to hit the guy on)

 

[jpinkc]

None of this talk about them dumping Chapek makes sense to me. I don't see this lawsuit moving the board in any meaningful way, as it's a blip on the radar. Their major focus has to be the financial stability and growth of the company, and whether you like him or not, the stock is still up 15% or so from where it was pre-pandemic with DLR and movie theaters shut down for a year.

Also given Disney's reach into China, I don't believe there is any way that Iger suddenly stepping down at the time was a coincidence. The virus was raging in China at the time but had already spread to other continents.

Whether Chapek is set up to be the fall guy, a willing and well-paid participant in a cost cutting scheme, or making these choices of his own free will, I just don't see anything thus far as particularly damaging. People just readily assume they are going to get ripped off these days and just prepare to pay whatever upcharge Disney has to offer. They might even make jokes about the CEO, but most keep paying the ransom.

Sometimes it seems like a few of these "insider" stories are planted to damage the guy, but I have no reason to suspect that other than they seem to come in waves rather than a steady drip. I don't want to go too "tin foil hat" there, but I'm surprised this contract business takes of (compared to all the things to hit the guy on)

I dont think the contract thing will cost Chapek anything, just a Hollywood road bump in a time where all of the studios are hitting them.

 

[Lilofan]

I don't think Chapek is going to last very long. I suspect the board will fire him within a year.

I think the Board doesnt care (I honestly feel they dont care about TWDC) whats going on so long as the Disney checks keep clearing and there Wall Street cronies keep cheering them on.

Chapek will speak during the upcoming company earnings call w/ Wall Street on August 12.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Chapek will speak during the upcoming company earnings call w/ Wall Street on August 12.

I hope someone asks about this.

 

[HauntedPirate]

Chapek will speak during the upcoming company earnings call w/ Wall Street on August 12.

Will it be Bob himself or his AA? It’s difficult to tell them apart, they’ve made great advances with his AA!

 

[jpinkc]

you mean the sock puppet of Chapek....

 

[Sir_Cliff]

None of this talk about them dumping Chapek makes sense to me. I don't see this lawsuit moving the board in any meaningful way, as it's a blip on the radar. Their major focus has to be the financial stability and growth of the company, and whether you like him or not, the stock is still up 15% or so from where it was pre-pandemic with DLR and movie theaters shut down for a year.

Also given Disney's reach into China, I don't believe there is any way that Iger suddenly stepping down at the time was a coincidence. The virus was raging in China at the time but had already spread to other continents.

Whether Chapek is set up to be the fall guy, a willing and well-paid participant in a cost cutting scheme, or making these choices of his own free will, I just don't see anything thus far as particularly damaging. People just readily assume they are going to get ripped off these days and just prepare to pay whatever upcharge Disney has to offer. They might even make jokes about the CEO, but most keep paying the ransom.

Sometimes it seems like a few of these "insider" stories are planted to damage the guy, but I have no reason to suspect that other than they seem to come in waves rather than a steady drip. I don't want to go too "tin foil hat" there, but I'm surprised this contract business takes of (compared to all the things to hit the guy on)

I 100% agree with you here.

Keeping Scarlett Johansson happy is nowhere near the top of the Board's priorities and the lawsuit won't exactly sink the company. It's a bad look for Disney, but honestly a lower magnitude PR problem in the context of the many the company has faced throughout its history.

Also very much get the impression someone is feeding these "insider" stories to certain outlets (I don't know how reputable thewrap.com is, to be honest) to damage Chapek. The question really is why and who. Could be as simple as company politics or people who really dislike him for whatever reason seeing an opportunity with this lawsuit gaining some traction. Or he could genuinely be screwing things up and annoying a lot of people, I don't know.

To be honest, the notion of Iger coming back like a knight in shining armour to rescue Disney doesn't make much sense to me. We've had years of talk about succession plans and endless contract extensions. Would he really be planning to come back and start that cycle all over again after finally leaving? Maybe, but it would just seem like such an odd turn of events to me.

 

[jpinkc]

I 100% agree with you here.

Keeping Scarlett Johansson happy is nowhere near the top of the Board's priorities and the lawsuit won't exactly sink the company. It's a bad look for Disney, but honestly a lower magnitude PR problem in the context of the many the company has faced throughout its history.

Also very much get the impression someone is feeding these "insider" stories to certain outlets (I don't know how reputable thewrap.com is, to be honest) to damage Chapek. The question really is why and who. Could be as simple as company politics or people who really dislike him for whatever reason seeing an opportunity with this lawsuit gaining some traction. Or he could genuinely be screwing things up and annoying a lot of people, I don't know.

To be honest, the notion of Iger coming back like a knight in shining armour to rescue Disney doesn't make much sense to me. We've had years of talk about succession plans and endless contract extensions. Would he really be planning to come back and start that cycle all over again after finally leaving? Maybe, but it would just seem like such an odd turn of events to me.

I would say it depends on the Depth of Iger's ego. I dont disbelieve the idea that he could see himself running for President. Do I think he could win....... I dont think so.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

I would say it depends on the Depth of Iger's ego. I dont disbelieve the idea that he could see himself running for President. Do I think he could win....... I dont think so.

I wouldn't underestimate his ego, either, but surely by now he must have realised that is off the cards? I guess if Oprah keeps telling you to run it must be hard to shake the temptation!

 

[Robbiem]

I wouldn't underestimate his ego, either, but surely by now he must have realised that is off the cards? I guess if Oprah keeps telling you to run it must be hard to shake the temptation!

I would never be surprised by the size of those egos!

Well now Bob I didn’t get to be president, in the cabinet or an ambassador (in order of his preference I suspect) and 2024 will be either Biden or Harris as the Democrats candidate maybe he thinks he jumped ship too soon and wants back in at Disney.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

I would never be surprised by the size of those egos!

Well now Bob I didn’t get to be president, in the cabinet or an ambassador (in order of his preference I suspect) and 2024 will be either Biden or Harris as the Democrats candidate maybe he thinks he jumped ship too soon and wants back in at Disney.

Honestly, if he put it to a vote among investors over whether he should come back for another 5 years or Chapek should stay as CEO I'm sure Iger would win handily.

He could also be finding the Democratic Party is more welcoming of Iger's donations than of Iger himself. I could see that being the case as putting up Iger as a senate candidate or appointing him to a public position straight out of his position as CEO of a company employing a lot of low-wage workers would undercut a lot of the party's recent messaging.

Who knows, it may be dawning on him that his future is either to go into retirement, muddle along with new ventures like Eisner proclaiming that Bazooka Joe is his new Mickey Mouse, or find a way to go back to his old job.

All pure speculation, though! I'm not getting the sense from this threat there's any real insider info about. Iger could also be happy to finally be out of there to sail around the world and set up a charitable organization rather than dealing with more questions about when Dreamfinder is coming back.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Keeping Scarlett Johansson happy is nowhere near the top of the Board's priorities and the lawsuit won't exactly sink the company. It's a bad look for Disney, but honestly a lower magnitude PR problem in the context of the many the company has faced throughout its history.

Well... it hurts the brand. Disney's popularity is what gives it a foot in the door and benefit of the doubt and willingness to pay extra. Iger and the BoD went out of their way to protect the brand. The public response to SJ was not good at all.

And... it hurts Disney's ability to attract big name talent. Up until now, they have been falling over themselves to work for Disney, even it it means doing TV (for D+). This could hurt that.

Every day this goes on without a mutually publicized, "we're good now," is an open wound that's bleeding.

 

[Sir_Cliff]

Well... it hurts the brand. Disney's popularity is what gives it a foot in the door and benefit of the doubt and willingness to pay extra. Iger and the BoD went out of their way to protect the brand. The public response to SJ was not good at all.

And... it hurts Disney's ability to attract big name talent. Up until now, they have been falling over themselves to work for Disney, even it it means doing TV (for D+). This could hurt that.

Every day this goes on without a mutually publicized, "we're good now," is an open wound that's bleeding.

All true. I was surprised by Disney's response to the lawsuit, which seemed unnecessarily aggressive and nasty in accusing SJ of callous disregard for the suffering caused by COVID-19. That was a really weird and bad move on Disney's part that seemed to elevate it from simply a contract dispute.

 

[denyuntilcaught]

Josh becoming CEO would probably be a best case scenario for the company though. I've seen him parrot a lot of the nonesense that is no doubt the result of Chapek's decisions, but I think that's just playing the politics. I've seen Josh down in the parks and in Disney Springs, talking directly to guests and taking their opinions into consideration. In a time when the Disney leadership treats its cast members like dirt, I heard that in his brief role of President of Walt Disney World, he made major gains in adding new Cast Member break spaces. As President of Disneyland Resort, he also made large strides in diplomatically repairing some of the relations between the company and the city of Anaheim. I disagree with what he often parrots, but I again also think that it's a diplomatic play. He can only be a huge improvement for the company should he find himself as CEO.

Spot on. I get a sense of intelligence and self-awareness from Josh that I haven't seen in many other execs in his role, and certainly not Chapek. He's playing the game, and knows how to play it well, while also working to move the needle forward in the right direction.

 

[Lilofan]

Spot on. I get a sense of intelligence and self-awareness from Josh that I haven't seen in many other execs in his role, and certainly not Chapek. He's playing the game, and knows how to play it well, while also working to move the needle forward in the right direction.

I've heard that when the layoffs started happening last year under Josh's watch, he met with some of the cast who were crying and very much affected by the restructuring.

 

[HauntedPirate]

As long as Chappie keeps the money train a’rollin, all will be forgiven. Once the train derails, though… he’ll have his golden parachute strapped on well in advance of the board shoving him out the window.

 

[pdude81]

I 100% agree with you here.

Keeping Scarlett Johansson happy is nowhere near the top of the Board's priorities and the lawsuit won't exactly sink the company. It's a bad look for Disney, but honestly a lower magnitude PR problem in the context of the many the company has faced throughout its history.

Also very much get the impression someone is feeding these "insider" stories to certain outlets (I don't know how reputable thewrap.com is, to be honest) to damage Chapek. The question really is why and who. Could be as simple as company politics or people who really dislike him for whatever reason seeing an opportunity with this lawsuit gaining some traction. Or he could genuinely be screwing things up and annoying a lot of people, I don't know.

To be honest, the notion of Iger coming back like a knight in shining armour to rescue Disney doesn't make much sense to me. We've had years of talk about succession plans and endless contract extensions. Would he really be planning to come back and start that cycle all over again after finally leaving? Maybe, but it would just seem like such an odd turn of events to me.

I also don't see Iger coming back at this point. He's getting paid handsomely to hang out but isn't really in charge. At this point it's a no lose situation as long as he continues riding off into the sunset. And if they were to get rid of Chapek and reinstall Iger as CEO, what kind of message would that send to other senior executives in the company?

 

[jpinkc]

Spot on. I get a sense of intelligence and self-awareness from Josh that I haven't seen in many other execs in his role, and certainly not Chapek. He's playing the game, and knows how to play it well, while also working to move the needle forward in the right direction.

I dont know much about Josh, I have read he is a bit two faced when dealing with Park level employees. How true that is I have no knowledge on it. Unfortunately until there is a Disney CEO who can prove he walks the walk and talks the talk, like Walt did, I will find them suspect. I know Walt was a business man and I know about the animators strike, I know he had to make business decisions. But I think on balance he did way better than those that came after.

 

[pdude81]

I dont know much about Josh, I have read he is a bit two faced when dealing with Park level employees. How true that is I have no knowledge on it. Unfortunately until there is a Disney CEO who can prove he walks the walk and talks the talk, like Walt did, I will find them suspect. I know Walt was a business man and I know about the animators strike, I know he had to make business decisions. But I think on balance he did way better than those that came after.

I met him briefly at our hotel on a trip in April. I can't speak to his day to day operation with park employees, but he seemed cordial and interested in talking with guests who came up to him that day. We never felt like he was uninterested or wanted to be somewhere else. This is consistent with most all other accounts I've read from people who've talked to him. Just my two (anecdotal) cents.

 

[jpinkc]

I met him briefly at our hotel on a trip in April. I can't speak to his day to day operation with park employees, but he seemed cordial and interested in talking with guests who came up to him that day. We never felt like he was uninterested or wanted to be somewhere else. This is consistent with most all other accounts I've read from people who've talked to him. Just my two (anecdotal) cents.

Hey its nice to hear he can be a decent human being. The one person I have talked with that met Chapek said you could tell he was done talking to you in 5 mins