Hollywood has been playing games to speculate about Bob Chapek’s future as Disney’s chief executive officer for months, and the blunder claims that failure has sealed his fate with Disney’s board of directors. .. His reign will soon end.
it’s not.
The Walt Disney Company’s board renewed Mr Chapek’s contract for another three years on Tuesday, and board chairman Susan Arnold said in a statement that he was “the right leader at the right time” and the board. He said he supported his “full trust in him.” And his leadership team. In other words, Mr. Chapek, who took command of Disney in February 2020, was able to stay there until at least July 2025. The vote was unanimous.
“At this crucial time of growth and transformation, the board promises to lead Disney to today’s success. Bob’s leadership is the key to achieving that goal,” Arnold said.
Chapek, 63, faces a daunting to-do list. Disney’s stock price needs to be rejuvenated, to say the least. The company’s balance sheet is still recovering from the pandemic. We need to improve employee morale. Disney is struggling in China, Shanghai Disney Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland are closing and reopening (and closing and reopening) due to concerns about the coronavirus, and Disney movies have been licensed for theater release by Chinese authorities. not.
Disney’s national theme parks are full and visitors are spending more on food, merchandise and hotel rooms than ever before. However, some investors are concerned that the possibility of a recession could adversely affect park attendance and guest spending. Disney needs a theme park that continues to generate wheelbarrow cash to offset losses at Disney +, a fast-growing but unprofitable streaming sector.
“It is a lifetime honor to lead this wonderful company and we thank them for their support,” Chapek said in a statement from Florida. ..
Chapek was groomed by his predecessor, Robert A. Eiger, who resigned from his role a month before the coronavirus pandemic forced Disney to close most businesses. Mr. Eger was Disney’s Executive Chairman until he left the company altogether in December.
Since then, Mr. Chapek has exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. Importantly, his team was able to keep Disney + growing much faster than expected. Streaming services have added approximately 20 million new subscribers worldwide in the last two fiscal quarters of Disney. This is about 60 percent more than analysts expected.
However, three factors have caused Disney’s share price to fall by nearly 40% since Eiger’s departure.
In March, Disney was caught up in a political storm over a failure to respond to a new education law in Florida, which employs about 80,000 people. Many laws prohibit classroom discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity up to the third grade, limiting what teachers can say in front of older students. A torrent of LGBTQ organizations and businesses criticized the bill, and opponents called it “don’t call it gay.”
Initially, Mr Chapek urged employee rebellion, at least not publicly, but trying not to stand by. Then he forcibly condemned the bill. Right-wing media figures and Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis have begun to oppose “Awakened Disney.” In April, DeSantis revoked Disney World’s designation as a special tax district. This is a privilege that has enabled the effective autonomy of 25,000 acres of mega-resorts near Orlando since 1967. To find a compromise in the tax district. )
1 Independent investigation Of the more than 33,000 Americans captured during the blunder, the Disney brand was found to be hurt. On April 29, Chapek fired Disney’s best communications and government executives who joined the company just four months ago.
Two other factors beyond Chapek’s control have hit Disney’s stock price. One is the general stock market downturn, with investors concerned about potential recessions, inflation and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Disney’s more mature streaming rival, Netflix, even surprised Wall Street by losing subscribers for the first time in 10 years, prompting a significant sale of media stocks.
Mr. Chapek’s previous contract was scheduled to expire in February. By giving him a second term in such a proactive way, the board has the opportunity to wipe out the slate of essentially “not gay” issues and restore investor confidence in streaming promises. Is giving him.
Disney stocks rose slightly in after-hours trading on Tuesday.
