Disney CEO Bob Iger Asked If He Regrets Choosing Chapek — “He Wasn’t the Right Person for the Job”

It’s been a whirlwind few months (or years, depending on who you ask) for The Walt Disney Company.

Bob Chapek was hand-picked to lead Disney by then-CEO Bob Iger, but Chapek didn’t prove to be the leader the company needed. Now that Iger has returned to hopefully bring Disney back to its former glory, we’re learning more about what went down behind the scenes — including whether or not Iger regrets choosing Chapek.

After Bob Iger’s first earnings call back as the leader of Disney, we gained a little more insight into his plans during his two-year contract, which includes undoing a lot of what Bob Chapek had done.

Iger announced his plans to restructure the company effective immediately. When Chapek took over, he created the Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution (DMED) division — something Iger has now dismantled.

In an interview with CNBC’s Squawk on the Street after Wednesday’s earnings call, Iger was asked how long he plans on staying at his current post. He replied, “Well, my plan is to stay here for two years, that’s what my contract says, that was my agreement with the board, and that is my preference.”

Two years is a short amount of time to completely overhaul a company, but Iger has already proven what he can do in a pinch. Since returning in November 2022, he’s created a new organizational structure aimed at putting the “creativity back into the hands of the creatives.”

It’s clear that Iger didn’t agree with Chapek’s plans for DMED, and CNBC questioned him about that.

“We thought we made the right decision when we chose Bob [Chapek] in 2020. The board decided in November he wasn’t the right person for the job and made a change,” Iger responded. He didn’t comment further on what ultimately led to Chapek’s ousting.

But, a second chance to pick another successor has been served to Iger on a silver platter. In the Q1 earnings call, Iger talked more about the Succession Planning Committee spearheaded by board member Mark Parker. He shared his excitement for the opportunity and said he’s looking forward to working with Parker.

We’ve already seen Iger accomplish quite a bit since his return, and we’re looking forward to what comes next. We’ll be looking out for more updates from Iger and Disney, so stay tuned to AllEars for more.