Disney plans to find a successor to current CEO Bob Iger “in early 2026,” according to a statement released to The New York Times.
The news comes as part of “board shake-up” for Disney, as veteran Wall Street banker James P. Gorman is already been set to replace Mark G. Parker as its chairman effective January 2, 2025. “A critical priority before us is to appoint a new C.E.O., which we now expect to announce in early 2026,” Gorman said in a statement. “This timing reflects the progress the succession planning committee and the board are making and will allow ample time for a successful transition.” As chairman, Gorman will fulfill his task of finding an heir to Iger, who rejoined the company in late 2022 after his handpicked successor, Bob Chapek, was fired by Disney’s board after just two years at the helm.
The NYT reports that the top candidates to replace Iger as CEO are currently “Dana Walden, Disney’s top television executive; Josh D’Amaro, who runs theme parks and video games; Alan Bergman, Disney’s movie chief; and Jimmy Pitaro, whose fief is ESPN.” However, “external candidates are also being reviewed.”
Despite Iger publicly stating he is “definitely” leaving the company a second time when his contract expires on December 31, 2026, the outlet notes “some people inside and outside of Disney have viewed [this statement] with skepticism,” observing that “during his earlier, 15-year stint as Disney’s chief executive, Mr. Iger delayed his retirement four times and seemed reluctant to leave when he did.”
So, there you have it. Will Iger be dragged out kicking and screaming by his “friends on the other side” like Dr. Facilier in The Princess and the Frog, or will he go peaceably like Joanna the Goanna, waving a sorrowful goodbye to the doomed Percival C. McLeach in The Rescuer’s Down Under? If everything goes according to plan, we’ll all find out in 2026.
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