Bob Chapek: Last News

News Corp today announced that veteran communications executive Arthur Bochner is set to become chief communications officer and EVP at News Corp. when Jim Kennedy retires later this year.

The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District Board, the group that now oversees a swathe of central Florida where Walt Disney World sits, slammed the Bob Iger-led media giant for almost three hours straight over what its experts called decades of self-dealing outlined in an audit. Members, not surprisingly, voted to approve the report. 

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Bob Iger, just over one year after returning as Disney‘s CEO following the company’s board firing of previous chief Bob Chapek, said publicly that he was dismayed at the Mouse House’s performance under Chapek’s tenure. Iger, who had selected Chapek, formerly head of Disney’s parks division, to succeed him in February 2020, made the comments Wednesday at the New York Times’ DealBook Summit in New York.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Disney CEO Bob Iger focused on instilling employees with renewed optimism about the Mouse House’s “blessed” and “fortunate” state during a virtual company-wide town hall Tuesday, rather than making any proclamations about the company’s future. The event, moderated by ABC News’ David Muir, was held just over a week after the one-year anniversary of Iger’s return to the helm at Disney (Iger hosted a similar town hall exactly a year ago to the day, upon resuming his post last November) following the surprise ousting of Bob Chapek, and on the heels of Disney reporting its most recent quarterly and full-fiscal-year earnings and taking a stumble at the Thanksgiving holiday box office with new animated film “Wish.” When asked by Muir if coming back to the position of CEO has been more challenging than he had anticipated, Iger, who originally ran Disney for 15 years from 2005-2020, said yes. “I knew that there were myriad challenges that I would face coming back,” Iger said.

Activist investor Nelson Peltz, who dropped a long battle with Disney early this year, has amassed a large stake in the media giant and is said to be seeking board seats.

William Earl Activist investor Nelson Peltz has amassed a $2.5 billion stake in Walt Disney Co. and is preparing to make a second run at pressuring the company to grant him with board seats, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. Peltz’s Trian Fund Management is responding to the steady slide in Disney shares, which are down about 16% for the year to date.

Disney has been hit again with another lawsuit from investors over the alleged sleight of hand accounting the company used to hide streaming losses.

Gene Maddaus Senior Media Writer TSG Entertainment, which has invested more than $3 billion in 140 Fox films including “Avatar: The Way of Water” and “The Shape of Water,” accused Disney in a lawsuit on Tuesday of using Hollywood accounting tricks to cheat it out of hundreds of millions of dollars. The slate financier alleged that Disney had engaged in “self-dealing” by diverting Fox films from a lucrative HBO license to its own Disney+ and Hulu platforms. The lawsuit also alleges that Fox engaged in “sweetheart” deals when it licensed its films to the FX cable channel.

Talk about respecting a theatrical window: Disney has set a Disney+ global premiere date for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 of Aug. 2, that’s 90 days after the pic’s theatrical release of May 5.

Bob Iger will remain at the helm of Walt Disney Co. through 2026, fulfilling a prediction from many in the industry that he would not step down as CEO at the end of next year as originally planned. Disney shocked the entertainment business in November 2022 when it opted to bring Iger back as CEO, less than a year after he stepped down after a storied run 15-year run. At that time Disney emphasized that Iger’s top priority would be finding a suitable successor. In February 2020, Disney veteran Bob Chapek took the reins from Iger as CEO, while Iger remained chairman. Chapek had a famously rocky run in the job, which led to the Disney board’s decision to re-recruit Iger.

Sun Valley, a sleepy ski resort nestled between Idaho’s mountain peaks, is about to see an invasion of Gulfstreams ferrying an embattled species of mogul. These media and tech CEOs are facing threats on several fronts — from labor strikes to plunging share prices to a possible recession. So they’re likely in need of some R&R when they hit Allen & Co.’s annual conference this week. The cloistered event is an off-the-record affair, with reporters cordoned off from the captains of industry. But it remains closely watched, having been the setting for major mergers and acquisitions over the years, from Comcast’s purchase of NBCUniversal to Disney’s deal for ABC. Here’s what’s on the minds of the C-suite set as they embark on their high-altitude retreat.  

A judge in Delaware Chancery Court has ruled against a shareholder who sued Disney for documents regarding its opposition to Florida’s so-called Don’t Say Gay law. The decision came as a separate, more sweeping lawsuit moves forward in the state, where Disney has sued Gov. Ron DeSantis for retaliation after the company spoke out against the legislation.

Latondra Newton, who has served as Disney’s chief diversity officer since 2017, is leaving the company. An internal memo from Disney chief human resources officer Sonia Coleman announcing Newton’s departure was circulated to staff Tuesday.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor In another shocker for the Walt Disney Co., Christine McCarthy is stepping down from her role as executive VP and chief financial officer and will take a family medical leave, Disney said Thursday. Kevin Lansberry has been named interim CFO for the media giant as of July 1. “Christine McCarthy is one of the most admired financial executives in America, and her impact on The Walt Disney Company during 23 years of dedicated service cannot be overstated,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said. “Christine has served as a key strategic anchor during a period of great transformation, and she and I have discussed her desire to ensure an orderly and successful CFO succession in advance of the company’s transition to its next chief executive officer. She is stepping down from her CFO role as she takes family medical leave, but has graciously offered to move into an advisory position to assist her successor in assuming the duties she has so expertly handled these many years.”

Jordan Moreau Nearly a year after he was fired from Disney by former CEO Bob Chapek, Peter Rice has set a film and TV production deal with A24, Variety has confirmed. It’s his first major move after he was ousted. A24, hot off a leading nine Oscar wins with “Everything Everywhere All at Once” and “The Whale” this year, will co-finance film and TV projects with Rice. The deal is non-exclusive, and projects under the agreement will be backed by Rice via A24’s banking relationships. The projects will be for global distribution theatrically and on major streaming platforms. “I am incredibly excited to be an independent producer and could not be more thrilled to begin that journey in partnership with A24,” Rice said in a statement. “They have built Hollywood’s most vibrant, fearless, and creative studio. The fact that they made it out of whole cloth in a decade is a testament to their exquisite taste, razor-sharp business acumen, and infectious enthusiasm for creativity and artists. I have been blessed to work with so many amazing creators as an executive and cannot wait to start producing provocative, meaningful, and entertaining movies and TV shows with creators I admire and respect.”

Nearly a year after his Disney ouster, Peter Rice has reemerged.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Disney reached its 7,000 layoffs goal, handing out notices to the remaining employees impacted in its third round of job cuts last Friday ahead of the Memorial Day holiday weekend, Variety has confirmed. The Mouse House’s target was to conclude these companywide layoffs, which focused most heavily on the media divisions and left the parks largely untouched, ahead of the summer. The company still has plans to eliminate more roles internationally over a period of time, according to a source close to the situation, but Disney has now concluded the benchmark it set in February, soon after Iger’s return as CEO upon the ousting of Bob Chapek.

If the feud between Disney and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was going to be escalated yet again, parks chief Josh D’Amaro didn’t seem like he would be the one to do it.

If you figured the war between Disney and Gov. Ron DeSantis was going to take a breather for the weekend, think again.

Just over a week ago, Bob Iger rhetorically asked the adversarial  Gov. Ron DeSantis if Florida really wanted Disney’s considerable business and tax revenue, or not. Now, without mentioning the would-be presidential contender nor his attacks on the company, the Mouse House has pulled some of that business and taxes revenues from the Sunshine State.

Bob Chapek, Former CEO 2022 Chapek compensation: $24.2M/ -25.5% Bob Iger, CEO 2022Iger compensation: $15M/ -67.3% Median employee compensation: $54,256 Chapek pay ratio to median employee: 446 So long, Mr. Chapek! It was a rocky time atop the Magic Kingdom for the Disney chief, who was booted from his post in November just months after the company’s board renewed his contract. During Chapek’s tenure Wall Street soured on Disney’s spending on its streaming service, to say nothing of a near employee revolt over his stumbling response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law.