The Disney CEO Curse
Josh D’Amaro became Disney CEO on March 18, 2026. Bob Iger finally left after pushing his retirement date five
Josh D’Amaro became Disney CEO on March 18, 2026. Bob Iger finally left after pushing his retirement date five times over 15 years.
For the first time in three decades, a Disney CEO transition happened without public warfare, activist investors screaming, or executives fleeing the company.
James Gorman, former Morgan Stanley CEO turned Disney board chairman, orchestrated the smoothest succession in Disney history. He learned from watching Bob Chapek’s catastrophic 2020-2022 tenure destroy nearly $100 billion in market value.
Iger Couldn’t Let Go
Bob Iger announced his retirement in 2015. Then delayed it to 2016. Then 2018. Then 2020. Then 2021. Each time, he found reasons to stay.
The 2020 departure finally happened. Bob Chapek, head of Disney Parks, took over in February 2020. COVID shut everything down weeks later.
Chapek lasted 33 months. He fought with Scarlett Johansson over streaming payments. He bungled Florida politics. He alienated creative executives. The stock collapsed 40%.
The board fired Chapek in November 2022 and brought Iger back. Again. Iger agreed to stay two years and actually find a successor this time.
Two years became 2026. Iger delayed again. But Gorman, who became board chairman in January 2025, refused to let Iger control the timeline anymore.
The Chapek Disaster
Chapek came from parks – the division that runs theme parks, resorts, cruises. Financially successful but creatively irrelevant. Parks generate revenue. They don’t make movies or shows.
Disney’s creative executives hated reporting to someone from parks. They saw Chapek as a bean counter who didn’t understand storytelling.
Chapek proved them right immediately. He reorganized the company to prioritize streaming subscriber growth over everything. Creative decisions got made by financial analysts instead of filmmakers.
The Scarlett Johansson lawsuit exposed the problem. Disney released “Black Widow” simultaneously in theaters and on Disney+ without renegotiating Johansson’s contract. She sued. Disney attacked her publicly. They settled but the damage was done.
Florida was worse. Disney opposed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill after initially staying quiet. Governor Ron DeSantis retaliated by stripping Disney’s special governing status. Chapek handled it terribly – too slow to respond initially, then too aggressive afterward.
Creative executives quit or got pushed out. Iger lieutenants left. The company culture collapsed. The stock followed.
The board fired Chapek in November 2022. Iger returned as “interim” CEO while the board supposedly searched for permanent replacement.
Nobody believed the search was real. Iger wanted back. The board let him return. He spent 2023-2024 fixing Chapek’s mistakes and delaying his own exit again.
Gorman Changed Everything
James Gorman ran Morgan Stanley for 14 years. He successfully transitioned CEO power twice – once when he became CEO, once when he left. Both transitions went smoothly.
Disney brought Gorman onto the board specifically for succession planning expertise. When he became chairman in January 2025, he took control of the CEO search from Iger.
Gorman interviewed candidates without Iger in the room. He ran a structured process with clear timelines. He refused to let Iger delay further.
The difference showed immediately. Previous Disney succession attempts let Iger dominate. Gorman didn’t care what Iger wanted. He answered to shareholders tired of succession drama destroying value.
D’Amaro’s Path
Josh D’Amaro runs Disney Parks. Same division Chapek came from. This worried people initially.
But D’Amaro is different. He started at Disneyland parking lots and worked up through operations. Chapek was always finance and strategy. D’Amaro knows parks operationally.
More importantly, D’Amaro maintained relationships with creative executives during the Chapek disaster. He didn’t burn bridges. He stayed neutral during internal politics.
Parks also performed well under D’Amaro. Revenue grew. New attractions opened. Customer satisfaction stayed high despite price increases. He delivered results without destroying culture.
Iger reportedly preferred an external candidate. Gorman overruled him. The board wanted someone who understood Disney, performed well operationally, and wouldn’t trigger another culture war.
D’Amaro checked all boxes. The board announced him on March 1, 2026. He took over March 18.
No Exodus This Time
Previous Disney CEO transitions triggered executive departures. When Iger first became CEO in 2005, candidates who lost left immediately. Jeffrey Katzenberg quit in 1994 over succession. Tom Staggs left in 2016. Kevin Mayer left in 2020.
D’Amaro’s promotion triggered zero high-profile departures. Dana Walden stays running entertainment. Alan Bergman stays running studios. Jimmy Pitaro stays running ESPN.
Disney historically loses talent during CEO transitions because internal candidates who don’t get the job quit rather than report to the winner.
Gorman prevented this by managing expectations early. He met with internal candidates before the announcement. He explained the decision. He offered clear paths forward for those who stayed.
Professional succession planning instead of Iger playing favorites.
Iger Still Shadows
Iger didn’t fully leave. He’s “senior advisor” through December 2026. Officially helping D’Amaro transition. Realistically staying involved because he can’t help himself.
D’Amaro reports to the board, not Iger. But Iger has an office. He attends meetings. He’s there.
Some see this as helpful transition support. Others see Iger unable to actually let go even now. D’Amaro can’t fully be CEO while Iger shadows him.
The board set December 2026 as final date. After that, Iger has no formal role. Whether he actually leaves remains to be seen. He’s pushed retirement five times already.
Peltz Lost But Won
Nelson Peltz ran an activist campaign against Disney in 2024. His main complaint: succession planning failure. Disney wasted years and billions on CEO transitions.
Disney fought Peltz and won the proxy vote. But Peltz was right. The board admitted it by bringing in Gorman specifically to fix succession.
Gorman delivered what Peltz demanded – structured process, clear timeline, smooth transition, no drama. Peltz lost the vote but got the outcome he wanted.
Disney’s stock is up 15% since D’Amaro’s announcement. Markets like certainty. Smooth succession provides certainty. Years of Iger retirement delays provided chaos.
Thirty Years of Volatility
Disney CEO transitions have been messy for decades. Michael Eisner’s departure in 2005 involved years of public fighting with Roy Disney and Stanley Gold.
Iger’s succession attempts from 2015-2020 failed repeatedly. Tom Staggs left when he didn’t get the job. Kevin Mayer left when Chapek got it instead.
Chapek’s firing and Iger’s return in 2022 was emergency crisis management, not planned transition.
D’Amaro’s appointment is the first Disney CEO change since 1984 that happened on schedule without executives fleeing or boards panicking.
D’Amaro’s Challenges
D’Amaro inherits problems. Disney+ still loses money. Linear TV revenue declines. Florida politics remain messy. Movie budgets are out of control.
Parks are doing great but parks can’t carry the whole company. D’Amaro needs to fix streaming economics and restore creative output quality.
He also needs to actually be CEO instead of Iger’s puppet. As long as Iger shadows him through 2026, people will question who really runs Disney.
The board’s job now is making sure Iger actually leaves in December. No extensions. No delays. No coming back again in 2028 when D’Amaro hits a rough patch.
Gorman’s Success
Gorman fixed Disney’s succession problem in 14 months. He took over as chairman in January 2025. D’Amaro took over as CEO March 2026. Clean, professional, drama-free.
The Disney board should have brought in someone like Gorman years earlier. Instead they let Iger control succession planning while being unable to actually leave.
Gorman proved external expertise matters. Morgan Stanley CEO succession is simpler than Disney CEO succession, but the principles are identical. Set timeline, run process, execute plan.
Disney finally has a CEO who got the job through structured process instead of crisis management or Iger’s personal preference. Whether D’Amaro succeeds depends on his decisions. But at least he got a clean start.
Bob Iger is gone. Probably. Check back in December.
Sources:
CNN Business – Disney names Josh D’Amaro as new CEO
CNBC – Disney’s Josh D’Amaro becomes CEO
The Walt Disney Company – Josh D’Amaro Named Next CEOVariety – Bob Chapek’s Early Blunders
NBC News – Why Disney brought back Bob Iger
