Disney C.E.O. Says Company Is ‘Opposed’ to Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill

It was a bruised Bob who arrived at Disney's annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday because of a crisis of his own making.

Mr. Chapek, the company's chief executive, accidentally sent an email to Disney employees. He wanted to explain Disney's silence on the anti-L.G.B.T.Q. legislation in Florida. Robert A. Iger had already condemned the bill on social media and Disney employs 80,000 people in Florida. The #boycottDisney was started by Mr. Chapek's nearly 1,000-word memo, and was quickly used on social media.

The granddaughter of one of Disney's founding fathers wrote on social media that she was angry with Disney for thinking it could look different. Lucasfilm in San Francisco, Walt Disney World in Florida and other parts of the company were unhappy with their managers. The Animation Guild, which represents Hollywood animation artists, writers and technicians, called Mr. Chapek's decision to stay quiet a momentous mistake.

The criticism was addressed by Mr. Chapek on Wednesday.

While we have been strong supporters of the community for decades, I know that many are upset that we did not speak out against the bill.

The Florida legislature passed the bill on Tuesday and Mr. Chapek called the governor to express his disappointment and concern that it could be used to unfairly target gays.

The governor heard our concerns and agreed to meet with me and L.G.B.T.Q.+ members of our senior team in Florida to discuss the ways to address them. Mr. DeSantis has supported the bill in the past.

Disney will donate $5 million to L.G.T.B.Q. organizations, including the Human Rights Campaign.

Susan Arnold, who succeeded Mr. Iger as Disney's chairman and is one of the highest-ranking women in corporate America to live openly as a lesbian, started the company's shareholder meeting. She praised the company's profitability and growth and said that Disney wanted to create a workplace in which all employees felt welcomed and supported.

In what appeared to be a pretaped video, Mr. Chapek, smiling and wearing a light gray suit with no tie, spent more than 30 minutes acting as cheerleader in chief. He heaped praise on recent accomplishments, including the opening of a new Star Wars attraction at Disney World, and teased upcoming offerings.

He went off camera and said what he wanted to say.

The executive training wheels came off in December. He continued to answer to Mr. Iger even after Disney promoted him to C.E.O. When Mr. Iger retired at the end of last year, it was Mr. Chapek's chance to shine.

It began well. The number of Disney+ subscribers and theme park profitability were both shocking. The Florida legislation was criticized.