Disney Names Bob Chapek New CEO

Ben Bergman

Ben Bergman is the newsroom's senior finance reporter. Previously he was a senior business reporter and host at KPCC, a senior producer at Gimlet Media, a producer at NPR's Morning Edition, and produced two investigative documentaries for KCET. He has been a frequent on-air contributor to business coverage on NPR and Marketplace and has written for The New York Times and Columbia Journalism Review. Ben was a 2017-2018 Knight-Bagehot Fellow in Economic and Business Journalism at Columbia Business School. In his free time, he enjoys skiing, playing poker, and cheering on The Seattle Seahawks.

Disney Names Bob Chapek New CEO

Bob Iger is finally stepping down, sort of.

The Walt Disney Corp. shocked investors by announcing Iger is immediately relinquishing his CEO title and will be replaced by Bob Chapek, who most recently oversaw Disney's theme parks and consumer products divisions. Chapek is only the seventh CEO in Disney's nearly 100 year history.


Iger will stay on as executive chairman, leading the board through the end of his contract on Dec. 31, 2021, and more intriguingly, will also lead the company's "creative endeavors."

Iger, regarded as one of the best CEOs in corporate history because of his savvy acquisition strategy, was first scheduled to retire in 2018 but he twice extended his tenure, most recently to oversee the $71 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox and the launch of Disney's streaming service.

"With the successful launch of Disney's direct-to-consumer businesses and the integration of Twenty-First Century Fox well underway, I believe this is the optimal time to transition to a new CEO," Iger said in a statement. "I have the utmost confidence in Bob and look forward to working closely with him over the next 22 months as he assumes this new role and delves deeper into Disney's multifaceted global businesses and operations, while I continue to focus on the Company's creative endeavors."

When Iger would leave and who would succeed him has been a favorite Hollywood parlor game for years. The choice of Chapek, who rose through the ranks of the company's still profitable but old-line theme park and studio divisions is a blow to Kevin Mayer, who heads the division that includes Disney+ and was seen as a likely successor to Iger.

On a Tuesday afternoon conference call with investors, Iger insisted that Chapek had been the board's choice as new CEO for quite some time and this move was not accelerated.

Iger has mentioned an interest in running for U.S. president and the timing of his announcement a week before Super Tuesday stoked chatter he might be jumping into the race. However, putting aside the difficulty of mounting a campaign so late, his status of executive chairman makes it hard to see him entering politics before 2021.

Iger is heralded for buying Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Pixar at prices that now seem like bargains. Disney is the giant of traditional Hollywood, especially after buying Fox. But it has to compete in a rapidly changing media landscape with the likes of Netflix, Amazon, and Apple – tech companies with much bigger balance sheets that do not blink at spending billions on content. Disney has also been hurt by the erosion of its lucrative ESPN division as subscribers have cut the cord.

Disney shares dropped more than 3% after markets closed.

https://twitter.com/thebenbergman
ben@dot.la

Subscribe to our newsletter to catch every headline.

LA Tech ‘Moves’: Mapp Gains New CPO and CTO, Prodoscore Taps Boeing Exec

Decerry Donato

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor's degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

LA Tech ‘Moves’: Mapp Gains New CPO and CTO, Prodoscore Taps Boeing Exec
LA Tech ‘Moves’:

“Moves,” our roundup of job changes in L.A. tech, is presented by Interchange.LA, dot.LA's recruiting and career platform connecting Southern California's most exciting companies with top tech talent. Create a free Interchange.LA profile here—and if you're looking for ways to supercharge your recruiting efforts, find out more about Interchange.LA's white-glove recruiting service by emailing Sharmineh O’Farrill Lewis (sharmineh@dot.la). Please send job changes and personnel moves to moves@dot.la.

***

Read moreShow less

This Week in ‘Raises’: GITAI Lands $30M, Steno Gains $15M

Decerry Donato

Decerry Donato is a reporter at dot.LA. Prior to that, she was an editorial fellow at the company. Decerry received her bachelor's degree in literary journalism from the University of California, Irvine. She continues to write stories to inform the community about issues or events that take place in the L.A. area. On the weekends, she can be found hiking in the Angeles National forest or sifting through racks at your local thrift store.

Raises
Image by Joshua Letona

A local space robotics startup raised fresh funding to expand the flight model manufacturing facilities throughout the U.S. and increase employment, while a remote litigation platform raised more funding to continue growing its footprint in new markets across the country, develop service channels for its clients and continue expanding its tech team.

***

Read moreShow less

Gitai Raises $30 Million to Expand Manufacturing Footprint in Los Angeles

Samson Amore

Samson Amore is a reporter for dot.LA. He holds a degree in journalism from Emerson College. Send tips or pitches to samsonamore@dot.la and find him on Twitter @Samsonamore.

Gitai Raises $30 Million to Expand Manufacturing Footprint in Los Angeles
\u200bPhoto: Gitai

Space robotics company Gitai raised a $30 million Series B extension this week, bringing the total value of the round to roughly $47 million.

The funding will be used to further develop Gitai’s suite of space robots as well as build out its manufacturing footprint in Torrance. Previously Gitai announced it raised a $17.1 million Series B in March 2021; this additional raise is still part of that round.

Read moreShow less
https://twitter.com/samsonamore
samsonamore@dot.la
RELATEDEDITOR'S PICKS
LA TECH JOBS
interchangeLA
Trending