A couple years ago at Disneyland, my family and I had one of those guided tours that lets you cut the lines. Throughout the day, I peppered our guide with questions like how often people die at the park (less than you’d think) and which celebrity is the biggest pain in the ass (his answer: Mariah Carey, who once allegedly directed him to purchase churros for her and her entourage—a big faux pas; the guides are not waiters—and then rejected hers because it wasn’t warm enough). When I mentioned that I worked in media and often dealt with Disney’s corporate communications team, he was super impressed. “You know Zenia?” the guide asked, somewhat incredulously. “She’s like the only person who can tell Bob Iger what to do.”

Zenia Mucha has that kind of sway at Disney. Groomed in cutthroat New York politics, she has lorded over her 500 person comms team and meticulously protected Iger’s reputation for almost 20 years. Even top Disney executives fear her wrath, and journalists covering the company often commiserate over her screaming phone calls and vengeful emails. The Times had a great send-off piece in which she’s referred to as Disney’s brand protector and “director of revenge.”