It was part pep rally and part therapy session: On Monday, Robert A. Iger stood in a soundstage of a movie in Burbank, California, for 45 minutes, answering questions from Disney employees about the company’s dramatic turn from Hollywood- juggernaut to warning from the streaming-era story.
Are you going to sell Disney to Apple? Will our vacancies freeze remain in effect? Do traditional TV companies like Disney-owned ABC have a future?
“These are challenging times, and I feel like now that I’ve taken on this role again,” Mr. Iger said, according to four Disney employees who visited City Hall, two of whom provided The New York Times with audio recordings of the event. . “We have a lot to do and fast.”
Mr Iger downplayed chatter that Disney might be seeking safety in Apple’s arms as “pure speculation” and said cost-cutting measures, including a hiring freeze, would remain in place.
“If you look at the long-term future of linear TV, it would be wise to be skeptical or pessimistic about it,” said Mr. Iger, with the trademark candor that has always made him stand out as a Hollywood executive. “I don’t know how that manifests itself in our company.”
The race to rule streaming TV
Mr. Iger, 71, retired as CEO of Disney in 2020 after a celebrated 15-year stint, but was rehired on Nov. 20 after the company’s board of directors fired his hand-selected successor, Bob Chapek . After enduring a tumultuous year marked by executive layoffs, a falling stock price, demands from activist investors and attacks from conservative pundits and politicians, Disney employees seemed thrilled to see Mr. Iger, according to those in attendance, who were on condition of anonymity. talked to discuss a private event.
Wearing a vest and crisp white shirt with no tie, Mr. Iger entered the stage to prolonged applause. He joked that the welcome – and realization of how much work lay ahead of him – brought him to the brink of tears. (The crowd gave him a standing ovation as City Hall ended.)
Since the surprise ouster of Mr. Chapek, 62, just over a week ago, more changes have come quickly at Disney. For example, Mr. Chapek had restructured the company to prioritize its streaming services (Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+). In doing so, Mr. Chapek took distribution and profit-and-loss responsibility away from the executives who run Disney’s film and television studios. Mr. Iger promptly began putting the old structure back in place.
Last week, Mr. Chapek’s top lieutenant, Kareem Daniel, was also dismissed, as was Arthur Bochner, who helped write Mr. Chapek’s prepared remarks on earnings conference calls and who previously served as his chief of staff. In what was considered a petty move, someone removed a tribute to Mr. Chapek from the side of a small themed building on Castaway Cay, a Disney-owned island in the Bahamas that serves as a Disney Cruise Line activity port.
What we consider before using anonymous sources. Do the sources know the information? What is their motivation for telling us? Have they proven reliable in the past? Can we confirm the information? Even with these questions met, The Times uses anonymous sources as a last resort. The reporter and at least one editor know the identity of the source.
Mr Iger did not name Mr Chapek on Monday. But Mr. Iger’s rejection of his tenure was clear.
Dismantling the structural changes Mr Chapek had introduced – changes Mr Chapek had called hugely successful – would “restore control, accountability and accountability in the creative companies,” Mr Iger said. He added that strengthening Disney’s creative executives and cultivating a company culture where creativity can flourish was his number 1 priority.
“I’m obsessed with it, and I’m obsessed with it for a reason — because it’s what drives this business,” said Mr. Iger.
“It’s not about how much we create, it’s about how great the things we make are,” Mr Iger continued, perhaps in a swipe at the avalanche of content that Disney and other media companies have been dumping onto streaming services to power subscription growth.
A staff member asked about Disney’s commitment to future LGBTQ storytelling. In the spring, Disney became a political piñata among conservative pundits, in part because it had begun adding openly gay, lesbian, and queer characters to its animated films.
“One of the core values of our storytelling is inclusion, acceptance and tolerance, and we cannot lose that,” said Mr. Iger.
“We’re not going to make everyone happy all the time, and we’re not going to try to,” he added. “We are certainly not going to compromise our core values of always making everyone happy.”
At one point, Mr. Iger referenced the song “What’d I Miss?” from the musical “Hamilton”, in which Thomas Jefferson returns to the United States from France and sings, “There is no longer the status quo, but the sun is rising and the world still turns.”
“That’s how I feel,” Mr. Iger said. “The status quo is gone. A lot has changed. But the sun is still shining and our world and our Disney world are still spinning.”
John Koblin reporting contributed.
