Bob Iger named Disney CEO in shocking development

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In a move that shocked Hollywood, Bob Iger, one of the most notable CEOs in the history of the Walt Disney company, is returning to once again run the media empire.

Bob Chapek, who replaced Iger in 2020 as CEO, is stepping down immediately.

“We thank Bob Chapek for his service to Disney over his long career, including navigating the company through the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic,” Susan Arnold, Chairman of the Board for Disney, said in a statement on Sunday night. “The Board has concluded that as Disney embarks on an increasingly complex period of industry transformation, Bob Iger is uniquely situated to lead the Company through this pivotal period.”

The announcement, while surprising to the media industry, comes at a time of great evolution for Disney. The company is coming off a lackluster earnings report that showed growth for its streaming endeavors. However, that came at a great cost. Disney’s streaming business lost $1.5 billion in the fourth quarter. That report sent Disney’s stock tumbling after a year of sluggish to bad performance.

Chapek guided the company through the pandemic, one of its most tumultuous periods in its nearly 100-year history, but ultimately Disney decided that its future was in better hands with Iger.

Away from the pandemic, Chapek had a short but bumpy tenure as the head of Disney. Chapek, who served as chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products before taking over for Iger, found himself dealing with issues regarding pay with Scarlett Johansson, one of the company’s biggest stars, as well as Disney’s battles with Florida, and its own employees, regarding the state’s controversial bill restricting certain LGBTQ topics in the classroom.

Disney’s stock has also taken a hit lately. It’s currently down roughly 40% this year.

As for Iger, he has an almost mythical status as the leader of Disney (DIS). He spent 15 years as CEO and was instrumental in acquiring major brands like Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm, the home to Star Wars. Iger also closed the $71 billion deal to buy most of 21st Century Fox and kicked off the streaming revolution at Disney (DIS) with the creation of Disney (DIS)+ in November 2019.

Iger stayed on at Disney as executive chairman directing the company’s creative endeavors. He officially left the company after nearly 50 years at the end of last year.

Disney said Sunday that Iger has agreed to serve as CEO for two years with “a mandate from the Board to set the strategic direction for renewed growth and to work closely with the Board in developing a successor to lead the Company at the completion of his term.”

The move is also surprising since Chapek just renewed his contract. The company’s board of directors unanimously voted to extend Chapek’s contract as CEO for another three years, the company said in June. Chapek’s new contract began in July and was set to run until 2025.

Also, it appeared that Iger was set in retirement with his legacy as one of Disney’s most notable and successful CEOs. Now, he’s back.

“I am extremely optimistic for the future of this great company and thrilled to be asked by the Board to return as its CEO,” Iger said in a statement Sunday. “Disney and its incomparable brands and franchises hold a special place in the hearts of so many people around the globe—most especially in the hearts of our employees, whose dedication to this company and its mission is an inspiration.”

Iger added that he is “deeply honored to be asked to again lead this remarkable team, with a clear mission focused on creative excellence to inspire generations through unrivaled, bold storytelling.”

 

[Snekposter]

Yes but the first Death Star was fully finished and working, the new star wars stuff is half built.

It was also fully armed and operational despite that, and in fact was part of a devious, cunning, and almost entirely successful plan by Palpatine to use both himself and the DSII as bait to draw out the Rebellion from hiding by giving them a single target they can't afford to pass up, no matter the cost in blood, only to be let down at the last moment by Vader deciding to save his son's life. Can't say the same about whatever Disney's doing.

 

[Marissa Moira]

It was also fully armed and operational despite that, and in fact was part of a devious, cunning, and almost entirely successful plan by Palpatine to use both himself and the DSII as bait to draw out the Rebellion from hiding by giving them a single target they can't afford to pass up, no matter the cost in blood, only to be let down at the last moment by Vader deciding to save his son's life. Can't say the same about whatever Disney's doing.

Palpatine was at most going to sacrifice contractors since they made up the majority of the crew and then write the whole thing off under insurance and then use the money to build the new Starkiller Base.

 

[AGreatDipAtAFairPrice]

especially compared to the early plans of "a new star wars movie every year for forty years"

Bob Iger went on this gigantic acquisition spree during his whole tenure, yet none of the more recent pickups are making big money. They are for the most part considered overpriced properties with underperforming material. I especially remember Disney being dogged for the FOX business deal and now Star Wars is bombing and the new Indiana Jones movie looks like a total piece of shit. His last two big ticket buy ups absolutely suck so I don't know why financially bringing him back makes sense. Now, people that Chapek was going to fire banding together to do a coup to save their behinds makes sense, but its not going to make Disney any more money I don't think.

His plan was:
1. Overpay to gobble up other business ventures
2. ???
3. Profit!

Things Iger was around to pick up which were smash hits years ago like Pixar are faltering, too. Pixar just does movies about minority's peculiar, obscurantist superstitions and ancient religious practices at a 5th grader level and WHAT IF SPORTING EQUIPMENT HAD FEELINGS?! and the movies are making shittier money than they used to by a mile.

LMFAO at Disney. They are in the shit now, boys.

 

[Snekposter]

Palpatine was at most going to sacrifice contractors since they made up the majority of the crew and then write the whole thing off under insurance and then use the money to build the new Starkiller Base.

Oh please, the first one wasn't even fully paid off yet when he started the second.

But no, everything burning to the ground out of sheer hubris while pretending everything's going swell is both Disney and Tarkin. "Retreat? In our moment of triumph?"

 

[Drag-on Knight 91873]

Bob Iger went on this gigantic acquisition spree during his whole tenure, yet none of the more recent pickups are making big money. They are for the most part considered overpriced properties with underperforming material. I especially remember Disney being dogged for the FOX business deal and now Star Wars is bombing and the new Indiana Jones movie looks like a total piece of shit. His last two big ticket buy ups absolutely suck so I don't know why financially bringing him back makes sense. Now, people that Chapek was going to fire banding together to do a coup to save their behinds makes sense, but its not going to make Disney any more money I don't think.

His plan was:
1. Overpay to gobble up other business ventures
2. ???
3. Profit!

Things Iger was around to pick up which were smash hits years ago like Pixar are faltering, too. Pixar just does movies about minority's peculiar, obscurantist superstitions and ancient religious practices at a 5th grader level and WHAT IF SPORTING EQUIPMENT HAD FEELINGS?! and the movies are making shittier money than they used to by a mile.

LMFAO at Disney. They are in the shit now, boys.

It also doesn't help that the movies that did come out during his tenure were like The Lion King Remake or Beauty and the Beast Remake or Aladdin Remake. Absolutely soulless content that pale when compared to any Renaissance movie. Likewise, whatever soul the MCU had was slowly drained out of it for years until the inevitable result was Phase 4. Iger doesn't really understand art, hence why Palpy is even in Rise of Skywalker.

 

[draggs]

Disney: Wow we are losing all this money and market capitalization, we need to do something

Also Disney: Let's rehire the guy who spent billions of dollars purchasing all these IPs. The guy that locked us into spending billions more developing revenue streams with these IPs, revenue streams that are badly underperforming. The guy that got us into the wokeshit quagmire that is a significant contributing factor to all these new revenue streams, and the company's formerly reliable revenue-producing units like Pixar, underperforming. The guy who, while not even being part of the company anymore, got us into a slapfight with Ron DeSantis that we lost. Yeah let's bring that guy back

 

[RodgerDodger]

Bob Iger went on this gigantic acquisition spree during his whole tenure, yet none of the more recent pickups are making big money. They are for the most part considered overpriced properties with underperforming material. I especially remember Disney being dogged for the FOX business deal and now Star Wars is bombing and the new Indiana Jones movie looks like a total piece of shit. His last two big ticket buy ups absolutely suck so I don't know why financially bringing him back makes sense. Now, people that Chapek was going to fire banding together to do a coup to save their behinds makes sense, but its not going to make Disney any more money I don't think.

His plan was:
1. Overpay to gobble up other business ventures
2. ???
3. Profit!

Things Iger was around to pick up which were smash hits years ago like Pixar are faltering, too. Pixar just does movies about minority's peculiar, obscurantist superstitions and ancient religious practices at a 5th grader level and WHAT IF SPORTING EQUIPMENT HAD FEELINGS?! and the movies are making shittier money than they used to by a mile.

LMFAO at Disney. They are in the shit now, boys.

Pixar got screwed when Iger fired John Lasseter for hugging people. Without Lasseter to stear them Pixar is just another talentless hugbox.

 

[Marissa Moira]

Pixar got screwed when Iger fired John Lasseter for hugging people. Without Lasseter to stear them Pixar is just another talentless hugbox.

Lets be fair, Pixar's decline started with Cars once it got a taste of those product tie in dollars. The Good Dinosaur was another sign that the studio was already falling apart.

 

[Optimus Prime]

Pixar got screwed when Iger fired John Lasseter for hugging people. Without Lasseter to stear them Pixar is just another talentless hugbox.

Losing Lasseter was a massive mistake on Disney's part, since he was able to turn around and create Skydance, which then produced Luck which if nothing else was at least an original idea. More than most of anything Pixar shits out these days being a sequel machine.

Frankly, as unlikely as it is, both because of why he was fired and the fact he wouldn't be interested in leaving the creative process he has at Skydance, Lassiter might be a good creative head of Disney as a whole. He at least has a working imagination as opposed to being an empty suit like Chapek or Iger.

 

[Product Placement]

Losing Lasseter was a massive mistake on Disney's part, since he was able to turn around and create Skydance, which then produced Luck which if nothing else was at least an original idea. More than most of anything Pixar shits out these days being a sequel machine.

Frankly, as unlikely as it is, both because of why he was fired and the fact he wouldn't be interested in leaving the creative process he has at Skydance, Lassiter might be a good creative head of Disney as a whole. He at least has a working imagination as opposed to being an empty suit like Chapek or Iger.

Disagree on Luck being an original idea, felt like a rehashed Monsters Inc or Inside Out. But thing about Skydance animation is that he was able to take some talented people away from Disney, they have a movie from Nathan Greno who did Tangled and another movie from Brad Bird in the works.

 

[Marissa Moira]

Disagree on Luck being an original idea, felt like a rehashed Monsters Inc or Inside Out. But thing about Skydance animation is that he was able to take some talented people away from Disney, they have a movie from Nathan Greno who did Tangled and another movie from Brad Bird in the works.

Honestly the feeling I get from Skydance is that any type of Disney matchup with their films if they need to compete in the same week is going to go about as well as Don Bluth's did in the long run.

Bluth created some interesting stuff, but all throughout the Mouse was omnipresent and during the same time experienced a revival and the last thing Bluth worked on as far as a movie went was Titan A.E..

Disney may get beaten and it may get battered, but it still rises again from any loss just from longstanding momentum alone. The mistakes that Disney has made recently are not new mistakes for them, they're actually mistakes that they made before just maybe dressed slightly different. Eisner thought he could churn out hit after hit if he had a machine formula like with the princesses. And he released sequel after sequel with direct to video releases and none of them were good.

Here Disney is trying to get formula going by adapting different cultures and trying to stick them into a formula as a base for a movie. You can see it with Luca, Moana, and Encanto. It's the same type of pandering they tried with their Disney princesses. But anything made with a machine like mentality is going to come out as soulless and bland. It needs a team of people behind it who want to actually make something interesting and engaging.

 

[TheBallPit]

Warning - this is gonna be a LONG post and I don't have a tl;dr version. I'm expecting the downvotes.

While the Disney parks certainly have their share of issues, I would caution people to not put Universal on too high of a pedestal, as they take their cues from The Rat just like any other theme park with delusions of grandeur. Perhaps Epic Universe will reshape the theme park industry. Perhaps it won't. Until we see rope drop, no one knows. As such, I'd table that conversation.

I'm going to limit my post to Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios Orlando, as those are the two I'm most familiar with. To start, the general parking fee has gotten pretty ridiculous at $27. I think it's $30 at any of the Disney gates, so that's only a $3 discount. Related to that, when Disney instituted their nightly parking fee for all resorts, Universal followed suit, so there is no cheap or free parking to be had anymore on property at Universal.

Genie+ / Lightning Lane is a fiscal barrier for people on tight budgets, but Universal's version is a "gotta buy 'em all" approach and was around $80 last time I checked. Even then, it excludes certain marquee rides like Hagrid's. At least Genie+ let's you pick and choose which ride you want to select for a fastpass-style entry. I don't particularly like it and think it's a brazen cash-grab, but at least you don't have to pony-up a bunch of money at once.

Disney's physical gate access is leagues better and doesn't require guests to walk a mile on hard concrete to get to either park. And once you're at park entrance, Disney has what seems like endless turnstiles to handle the volume whereas Universal's turnstiles can be counted on one hand, which causes big pre-entry bottlenecks, especially for events like Halloween Horror Nights.

As with Disney, each park is littered with facades, restaurants, and shops instead of things to actually do (aka rides). Universal is also seemingly addicted to cheap carny games, which can be found in several areas of both gates. I always thought that to be tacky as hell and on the same level as rigged Vegas slot machines. I dunno, maybe the kids love 'em, but I hardly see anyone playing them, even during packed events like HHN.

Universal is notorious for creating new rides that essentially operate on autopilot and with screens instead of animatronics. They've also almost eliminated anything which required showmanship, like the old Ghostbusters, Jaws, and T2 attraction. Granted, Bourne is genuinely impressive, but it now exists in isolation, particularly now that the Sinbad show was permanently shuttered years ago. Kong: Skull Island was poorly received, especially when compared to Kongfrontation, and is - you guessed it - heavily screen-based. And Fast & Furious Supercharged has become a theme park meme given how it's been a disastrous boondoggle that's, yet again, almost entirely screen-based.

Universal has also fallen into the trap of basing entire lands around IPs they don't own, e.g., Marvel and The Simpsons. While Marvel doesn't appear to be in jeopardy, it's rumored that Disney is going to put some major screws on Universal to continue with The Simpsons IP come 2028. And it's my personal opinion that Marvel is in a degree of danger, too, as Disney won't let the current situation last forever.

Universal has also cultivated a rabid Harry Potter fanbase. While that sounds like a big plus for them, it puts them in a bind whenever a new attraction is considered, as all the Potterheads start coming out of the woodwork demanding it to be yet another Wizarding World thingamajig. Potter consumes space in both parks (the only IP that does) and even sports the Hogwarts' Express which connects both gates via a themed train ride, yet Potterheads are always screaming for MOAR. I personally wish Universal had just built a third gate exclusively themed to Potter for the express purpose of quarantining these people.

The Lost Continent section of Islands is a disaster, only supported by Mythos (a fairly decent restaurant), Poseidon's Fury, and a scattering of Arabian-themed shops selling cheap trinkets. As mentioned earlier, the Sinbad show closed years ago and is now used for extended queue space for Hagrid's. I also HATED the Poseidon retheme that was done years ago, as it was made child-friendly with the addition of Lord Darkenon, a villain straight out of a really, REALLY bad comic book. People have now forgotten that Poseidon (the antagonist) was played by Jeremy Irons AS Poseidon, which gave the experience a decent amount of narrative gravitas and didn't betray the Greek pantheon. This whole farce was done by Gary Goddard, director of the Godawful Canon He-Man movie, and boy does it show.

At the Studios side of things, the much-loved Twister experience was replaced with yet another screen-based attraction, the embarrassingly bad Jimmy Fallon's Race Through New York. Yep, yet another attraction on autopilot with zero tangibles, just a garden-variety movie screen with seats that rattle periodically. Sure, you could say that about the defunct Back to the Future ride, but at least it had a tremendous coolness factor. Jimmy Fallon is right up there with Kimmel, Colbert, Myers, and Corden as detestable and repulsive late night talk show hosts, IMNSHO.

Food and merchandise prices are similar to Disney, with everything overpriced by at least a factor of three. At least Disney has some fairly decent restaurants whereas Universal is almost solely quick service in quality. In short, you don't go to Universal for the food.

Universal's street shows are...how can I put this politely?...PATHETIC. They have nothing that approaches what Disney has done with their floats and actors. Universal's version of a parade is rolling out a single creaky float with a few characters and calling it a day. I suppose you could argue that it makes the affair very intimate, as you can get up close with the team members, but c'mon.

Universal just adamantly refuses to leverage their IPs, instead riding on the back of other companies. Marvel, Seuss, Simpsons, and Men In Black are just leased from their respective owners. Even Potter is (mostly) a Warner Bros. property (yes yes, I know it's solely owned by Rowling herself). Where is a Universal Monsters attraction, one of the biggest feathers in the company's cap? Jaws is no more along with Back to the Future and Kong is a VERY pale imitation of its former ride. Plus, E.T. is always rumored to be on the chopping block year after year due to various technical issues and is only still operating due to Spielberg's insistence that it remain.

Universal has no nighttime show to speak of. They recently rolled-out a projection show at Islands using Hogwarts, but the images just don't sync with the castle's architecture and is completely constrained by the IP. Disney's version using Cinderella's Castle at The Magic Kingdom is absolutely breathtaking, uses a dizzying variety of movies from their extensive catalog, and also includes a beautiful fireworks display. They also recently restarted Fantasmic and there's always some manner of lagoon show at Epcot along with a mini-show projected onto Spaceship Earth. Universal is laughably behind in this dept.

Universal is HEAVILY reliant on HHN to supplement their income. Now, I'm not saying HHN as a premise is bad. I personally love the event and the houses, shows, and overall vibe are typically outstanding, but it is getting to be entirely too overcrowded and the suits can't or won't implement sane capacity limits. No house should have a 100+ minute standby wait-time, as that's a stark failure of crowd control. It's rumored that the company makes just as much in HHN sales alone as they do the rest of the year, which means a hellish stampede of people attend. HHN as it's currently run is, IMO, unsustainable and Universal desperately needs to find better methods of crowd dispersal.

I could go on, but I think people get the general gist. Universal may offer a better experience in certain limited areas, but Disney puts on a FAR better show and is a much more rounded-out resort. Yeah, it's also more expensive, but everything Disney offers no longer comes cheap. That said, I do root for Universal when I can...I just wish they'd get out of their own way and stop installing fucking screens everywhere.

 

[ZMOT]

@TheBallPit
might wanna crosspost that for posterity in the disney thread over in multimedia, this one is gonna get abandoned the next few days once it slides of the first few pages.

 

[TheBallPit]

@TheBallPit
might wanna crosspost that for posterity in the disney thread over in multimedia, this one is gonna get abandoned the next few days once it slides of the first few pages.

Yeah, I probably should since it took me awhile to compose and allowed me to vent. I want to add one or two more important anti-Universal points that I forgot before doing so. I presume I don't dare post it to a pro-Universal thread, lest I get my virtual head chopped off.

 

[Jet Fuel Johnny]

Yeah, I probably should since it took me awhile to compose and allowed me to vent. I want to add one or two more important anti-Universal points that I forgot before doing so. I presume I don't dare post it to a pro-Universal thread, lest I get my virtual head chopped off.

That's half the fun.

Plus, I rarely see long posts get that downvoted here. Sometimes autism is good.

 

[Mothra1988]

@TheBallPit:

This whole farce was done by Gary Goddard, director of the Godawful Canon He-Man movie, and boy does it show.

This guy is a literal child molester btw. Yes multiple rides at Universal Studios parks were designed by someone that raped little boys. I guess you could still enjoy them maybe since the rides have nothing to do with him, but creepy to think about.

 

[TheBallPit]

This guy is a literal child molester btw. Yes multiple rides at Universal Studios parks were designed by someone that raped little boys. I guess you could still enjoy them maybe since the rides have nothing to do with him, but creepy to think about.

I didn't know that, but (unfortunately) I can't say I'm too terribly surprised. It seems that a lot of Hollywood types have paid oath and fealty to Moloch at some point. I'd love for someone to do a deep dive on Jimmy Fallon's antics, as I'm sure he's got more than a few skeletons scattered about.

Speaking of which, regarding the Race "ride", I suppose I should be thankful it wasn't themed after Kimmel or Colbert's show, as those two are beyond noxious. Fallon just comes off as a clueless dork with the usual boring anti-conservative bias. Still detestable, but a little less so. The attraction still sucks, regardless.

Regarding Poseidon's Fury, I was actually able to see the attraction before the radical makeover and it was GREAT. Cheesy, yes, but in a delightfully enjoyable way that was remarkably immersive and didn't utterly trash its Greek roots. Now, in addition to the bottom-of-the-barrel Lord Darkenon, you're escorted by an archeological employee actor who can't rub two brain cells together for almost the entire length of your stay. For an amusement park that's supposedly aimed more towards general audiences, this change was baffling. There are a bunch of YouTube videos that describe what was altered and why and it was apparently done as a result of guest focus testing, which IMO was a cataclysmic mistake. I don't know how the surveys were conducted, but dumbing-down an attraction and making it mortally cartoony is NEVER NEVER NEVER the way to go.

Arrggh. The same also happened with Dueling Dragons, as it presented a wonderful story themed around Merlin and Arthurian setpieces that was rethemed to Dragon Challenge when Rowling came into town and ultimately dismantled to make way for Hagrid's. I'm happy (to a point) that Universal was supposedly saved with the inclusion of Potter, but it required the annihilation of some terrific attractions that were evergreen in nature and not crass and brazen IP lures.

If you're aware of Universal's history, particularly during its early heydays when you might get eaten by a shark, slimed, or buried underneath a BART station, you'll understand why there are people who lament the trajectory the company has gone in. I understand the need for a theme park to evolve over time to attract new wallets, but it should be a progression of immersion, not a regression.

 

[TheBallPit]

That's half the fun.

Plus, I rarely see long posts get that downvoted here. Sometimes autism is good.

Probably because the long posts get ignored. I'm a bit passionate about Universal (and Disney) because it was a great theme park in my youth that deteriorated due to chasing trends, rising prices, and using impersonal tech as a crutch instead of an asset. I fear that Universal in another ten years will be what Disney has become today and it really saddens me.

 

[naaaaiiiiillllll!!!]

@TheBallPit I was watching some YouTube video about Roller Coaster Tycoon (a great game from my childhood) where the guy (Marcel Vos) cheesed the game by spamming only motion simulator rides. All the comments on the video kept repeating “so you just created Universal Studios?” You posts reminded me of that, haha.

As a guy living on the West Coast, Universal and Disneyland more or less have the same issues (granted SoCal caters more to locals than tourists, but even that’s shifting). I was going to say on the bright side we still have Six Flags Magic Mountain, but it sounds like they shot themselves pretty bad this year (ugh). Only place left is Knott’s Berry Farm, which is very old and a little janky but at least feels like it did in childhood. No idea how long that will last before it inevitably gets turned into condos… :/

 

[TheBallPit]

@TheBallPit I was watching some YouTube video about Roller Coaster Tycoon (a great game from my childhood) where the guy (Marcel Vos) cheesed the game by spamming only motion simulator rides. All the comments on the video kept repeating “so you just created Universal Studios?” You posts reminded me of that, haha.

As a guy living on the West Coast, Universal and Disneyland more or less have the same issues (granted SoCal caters more to locals than tourists, but even that’s shifting). I was going to say on the bright side we still have Six Flags Magic Mountain, but it sounds like they shot themselves pretty bad this year (ugh). Only place left is Knott’s Berry Farm, which is very old and a little janky but at least feels like it did in childhood. No idea how long that will last before it inevitably gets turned into condos… :/

Isn't RCT still being developed? There's a YouTuber called Graystillplays that creates theme parks using something like RCT and it's absolutely hilarious, as he makes these coasters that whip around at a 100 miles a minute and sees how many guests he can kill or maim on any given playthru.

Yeah, Universal has become the new screen king. Even Escape From Gringotts is heavily reliant on screens (though the rest of the ride is admittedly impressive). And Spider-Man and Transformers are practically just one giant screen, along with Kong. The Jurassic World retheme of River Adventure in your neck of woods now uses a bunch of screens that, thankfully, hasn't been implemented here (yet).

At least Forbidden Journey employs some tangibles, even if some of them look no better than what you can get from a Spirit store. And I have a longstanding beef with Hagrid's since it replaced Dueling Dragons, one of the best dueling coasters ever crafted, and Hagrid's is just a ground-hugging fairly leisurely ride with a lot of brake runs (yes, I've ridden it).

I hear Six Flags is in DEEP trouble and the new CEO is Chapek-lite. Which is saddening, as Magic Mountain is prominently featured in a little-known film that I like called Rollercoaster with Richard Widmark and George Segal. In fact, it was the movie that made me want to visit MM, even though it was about a mad bomber that targeted theme parks.

I went to Knotts many years ago and it was fun. Apparently, it's now a major player in the Halloween scene and is considered a direct rival to Universal's HHN, so I doubt the land will get sold and converted any time soon.