Robert A. Iger will return to run the company for two years after the board of the Disney Company ousted Bob Chapek as CEO.
Susan Arnold, the board chair, thanked Bob Chapek. Disney is embarking on an increasingly complex period of industry transformation and Bob Iger is uniquely positioned to lead the company through this crucial time. In December, the Disney board is going to meet in person.
She said that Mr. Iger had a good relationship with Disney's senior leadership team.
Mr. Iger said in a statement that he was excited to be asked to return as CEO. Mr. Iger was Disney's CEO between 2005 and 2020. He handed the day-to-day running of the company to his successor. Mr Iger left the company in January.
The man could not be reached for comment.
The ousting of Mr. Chapek came after a disastrous earnings announcement. Disney reported a bigger loss at its streaming division than it did a year ago. The peaks of losses were caused by higher Disney+ production, marketing and technology costs.
Many people inside Disney were shocked by the happy-go-lucky tone that Mr. Chapek struck while discussing the earnings report on a conference call. Many felt that Mr. Chapek was tone deafness.
Jim Cramer called for Mr. Chapek to be fired immediately after his show. On Friday, Mr. Cramer said that Disney needed a new CEO.
The balance sheet from hell is what Mr. Cramer said.
Mr. Iger passed the baton to Mr. Chapek in February 2020. The handoff wasn't smooth. Most of the company was closed because of the coronaviruses. Mr. Chapek had a lot of crises this year.
In March, Disney became entangled in a heated dispute with the governor of Florida over legislation meant to prohibit classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity. The employee revolt was caused by Mr. Chapek trying not to take a side at first. The bill set off a political uproar with right-wing figures railing against it.
The top television executive at Disney was fired in June. Mr. Chapek was pushed to consider a number of changes, including shaking up the board and spinning off the sports network. He later said that he had learned more about Disney's "growth and innovation plans" for ESPN.
Some of Disney's most dedicated theme park customers have grown irate over price increases they see as nickel and diming. Disney told investors that theme park profits would have been higher if not for Disneyland, which annual pass holders took as an insult. The word "Unfavorables" was written in Disneyland's signature calligraphy.
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