So… was it the beard? By now you’ve seen the legitimately shocking news that Bob Chapek, the embattled and recently hirsute Disney C.E.O., has been replaced by Bob Iger, the 71-year-old former weatherman and mostly beloved Disney C.E.O. A Sunday night dagger of a press release thanked Chapek for his service and promised that Iger would lead for two years to “set the strategic direction for renewed growth.” That’s the C-suite version of death by firing squad. Truly amazing stuff.
First, a number of readers have asked if I knew what was brewing when I wrote on Thursday about Iger’s persistent trash-talking of Chapek in private, and how the company’s recent stock slide had played into Iger’s criticisms. Alas, I did not (and in fact I’ve been chatting with a few Disney executives this weekend on another topic, and they had no idea what was up; the top people were told just before the press release). But I knew something was off. Think about it: Iger’s sentiments kept coming back to me via friends and associates, months after one would think that even he would move on with his new endeavors, so he clearly saw a lane.