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Disney named Josh D’Amaro to succeed Bob Iger as chief executive, the second time it has elevated the head of its theme parks business — its biggest source of profits — to the top job.
D’Amaro triumphed over the other leading candidate, co-chair of Disney entertainment Dana Walden, in a protracted succession battle that captivated Hollywood and Wall Street.
His elevation comes despite the shadow of Bob Chapek, a former theme park chief who was promoted to CEO in 2020 but was removed after less than three years. Like Chapek, D’Amaro is seen by some as lacking strong relationships in Hollywood.
D’Amaro, a 28-year Disney veteran, has overseen a $60bn budget to expand the company’s experiences division, which includes theme parks and cruise lines. That business has emerged as the primary financial engine of the company as streaming has transformed Hollywood’s business model. Disney’s parks and experiences business made $36bn in revenue last year and employed 185,000 people.
James Gorman, the former Morgan Stanley executive chair who was tapped to lead Disney’s succession process, said D’Amaro had a “keen eye for strategic growth opportunities” and a “deep passion” for the Disney brand.
Iger, who first planned to retire in 2015 but has extended his contract multiple times and returned as CEO in 2020, said he was “thrilled for Josh and the company”.
D’Amaro, 54, will face a tough challenge as Disney’s chief. He will inherit a media giant that faces shrinking revenues from the cinema and traditional television, shifting attention to online rivals such as YouTube, and the threat of further consolidation as Netflix has agreed to buy Warner Bros.
“It’s certainly going to be a crown of thorns. The company has huge challenges,” said a former senior Disney executive. “Netflix today is more valuable than all other media companies put together. There are some parts of the business that Josh doesn’t even know about.
“Josh has no understanding of the media side of the business,” the executive adds. “They did that once. It didn’t really work out well for them.”
Gorman said on Tuesday that D’Amaro has an “outstanding record of business achievement, collaborating with some of the biggest names in entertainment to bring their stories to life in our parks”.
Shares in Disney have dropped 9 per cent in the past year, while the S&P 500 index has gained 16 per cent.
D’Amaro’s selection reflects a dramatic shift in the entertainment business since 2019, when Disney films raked in $13bn at the global box office. The pandemic closed the box office and streaming exploded.
Since then, cord cutting has only continued to erode the traditional TV business, and lengthy strikes by Hollywood writers and actors brought any recovery to a halt.
“People used to get so excited about movies and ESPN and even the early days of Disney+, where it had explosive growth,” said Rich Greenfield, an analyst at LightShed Partners. “Now it’s all about theme parks and cruise ships.”
Until recently, some on Wall Street expected Disney to emulate Netflix and appoint co-CEOs: D’Amaro and Walden, 61, who is known for her deep ties to the talent community in Hollywood.
Walden on Tuesday was named as Disney’s president and chief creative officer. She will report directly to D’Amaro.
Iger led Disney through a golden era from 2005 to 2020, a period that included the transformative acquisitions of Pixar, Lucasfilm and Marvel.
He was considered one of the best CEOs in the country, but his multiple contract extensions frustrated a number of would-be successors.
In 2020, he surprised investors by handing the CEO job to Chapek, a former parks chief who had few ties to Hollywood. Chapek led the company through the worst of the Covid-19 crisis and the onset of the streaming wars. But he angered Hollywood talent and got tangled up in the “Don’t Say Gay” culture wars.
Instead of transformative deals, Iger’s second act included 7,000 job cuts, a large restructuring and wrangling with President Donald Trump, who demanded a $15mn payment from Disney’s ABC news network over an inaccurate assertion by anchor George Stephanopoulos.
Iger will serve as a senior advisor and remain on the Disney board until he retires at the end of the year.
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