And Then There Were Two in the Disney CEO Battle

If a recent Bloomberg report is to be believed, The Walt Disney Company’s CEO succession battle is nearly over.

According to Bloomberg, two candidates have separated themselves from the other candidates.

In a huge, shocking twist, Bloomberg lists the same two names we’ve always suspected.

Still, we’re late enough in the game that Bloomberg’s probably right.

And then there were two in the Disney CEO battle. So, who are they, and what are their pros and cons?

The Bloomberg Report

As Kristin Sabol recounted on Thursday, Bloomberg believes that it’s a two-person race now.

Either Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro or Disney Entertainment Co-Chairman Dana Walden will succeed Bob Iger as Disney CEO.

MickeyBlog has chronicled this battle pretty much since the day Iger returned as CEO.

Throughout this time, we’ve consistently listed Walden and D’Amaro as the co-favorites.

We’ve also evaluated the candidacies of outside contenders, including Andrew Wilson.

The CEO of EA finds himself in a new position now, as that company just went private in a complex deal.

Based on current reporting, Wilson will remain with EA for the foreseeable future, as he’s vital to the deal.

While anything is possible on Wall Street, all the connecting dots between Wilson and Disney have been erased.

Similarly, Ted Sarandos appears focused on evolving Netflix into a trillion-dollar business.

Since James Gorman, the person in charge of Disney’s CEO search, previously worked at Morgan Stanley, their executives theoretically remain in play.

However, I doubt Gorman would poach the person he just named the successor at his former business.

Similarly, I’d be shocked if Gorman chose someone else from Morgan Stanley as Disney’s CEO.

If those two individuals weren’t good enough to be CEO at Morgan Stanley, they’re not the best fit for Disney, either.

So, the focus has turned internal at Disney, which I strongly suspect has always been the case.

According to Bloomberg, two of those candidates aren’t under serious consideration.

Personally, I don’t think that’s accurate, as I suspect this is really a three-person race.

Before we discuss the two finalists, let’s remember the other potentials.

Bergman and Pitaro

Throughout this process, I’ve emphasized that Jimmy Pitaro and Alan Bergman probably won’t win.

That’s not a knock on either individual, as both have comported themselves well at Disney.

Bergman runs Disney’s film division as the Co-Chairman of Disney Entertainment.

So, Bergman gets credit for Disney’s stunning 2024 and Lilo & Stitch being the top film of 2025. And no, Ne Zha 2 doesn’t count.

However, Disney’s film division hasn’t taken the victory lap many, including myself, had expected this year.

A few titles, most notably the Marvel ones, have underachieved, which had led to an odd circumstance.

While few believe this fact will continue through the end of the year, Warner Bros. Discovery is currently the top box office studio of 2025.

WBD has had an excellent year, which is hilarious when you realize that CEO David Zaslav almost fired everybody in April.

Even he had no idea how good the WBD lineup was over the past six months. That’s how the box office works.

Even the best forecasters in the world get plenty of stuff wrong…and that statement applies to Bergman.

Disney’s film division is probably about 25 percent under the total I’d expect in 2025.

Unfortunately for him, that’s the same timeframe where Disney is finalizing its CEO options.

So, Bergman is probably a year too late with his candidacy. He would have looked better last year.

As for Pitaro, I 100 percent DO NOT rule him out, nor should you.

Strange things are afoot in the corporate world right now, and he makes for an ideal compromise candidate.

I don’t mean this for Disney as much as Disney investors who want a vanilla candidate with a business focus.

Pitaro would be another Chapek imo, but that’s a discussion for another day. According to Bloomberg, he’s not winning anyway.

The Pros and Cons of Dana Walden

Presuming that Bloomberg’s right, we’re down to two serious contenders to succeed Bob Iger as CEO.

For the longest time, Walden appeared to be the frontrunner, although that changed last November.

Walden’s friendship with former (and potentially future) Presidential candidate Kamala Harris has impacted her candidacy.

Whether that’s fair or not is a conversation for another day, but reports suggest it has happened.

Walden also faced a stunning turn of events in September when her friendship with Jimmy Kimmel (briefly?) turned sour.

The Co-Chairman went from partying with Kimmel on Sunday to suspending him on Thursday.

To Walden’s credit, she has received praise for his crisis resolution behavior while defusing that situation.

However, she escalated it first by benching Kimmel, which led to many Disney fans complaining.

Even if we ignore all of that, which I prefer to do, Walden’s candidacy isn’t ideal for this job.

As I’ve mentioned previously, Walden didn’t join Disney until 2019. She came over in the Fox acquisition.

So, she’s not ingrained in the Disney way of life the way that Bergman and D’Amaro are.

That matters to those of us who are huge fans of all things Disney, as it impacts her perspective when making decisions.

Independent of the politics involved, Fox has a multi-generational reputation as a corporate snakepit.

Disney’s executives behave much differently, and they’d respond better to one of their own…theoretically.

Chapek was a lifelong Disney employee, and we see how well that worked.

The other concern about Walden is that she’s worked in a very small niche of the company.

She’s Co-Chairman because she only handles Disney’s television side. Bergman does the movies.

So, Walden’s resume is a bit limited in addition to her lacking Disney DNA.

Is D’Amaro the Favorite?

The Bloomberg report mentions that Iger is having to push back on the perception that D’Amaro has won.

At this point, that’s how confident people involved with the process are that D’Amaro’s going to win.

Iger doesn’t like that either personally or professionally, as Walden’s one of his favorite employees ever.

Meanwhile, D’Amaro earned the promotion to his current position from Chapek, not Iger.

Don’t get me wrong. Iger promoted D’Amaro plenty, too, but he’s a Chairman thanks to Chapek.

As such, their relationship always has an asterisk, but Iger trusts his lieutenant completely.

Just the other day, a reporter relayed a story of D’Amaro meeting with Iger after the CEO’s return.

D’Amaro brought a 250-page binder involving every aspect of the Disney Experiences division.

Iger showed up at D’Amaro’s office the following day, having already read the report and made notes.

The two individuals trust each other implicitly and possess a tremendous amount of mutual respect.

The Pros and Cons of Josh D’Amaro

Of course, trust and respect only go so far, especially in the business world. Results matter.

The unmistakable positives of D’Amaro are threefold. First, everyone loves him.

Whatever cult of personality is, D’Amaro has it in spades. People treasure this human being.

Should D’Amaro become Disney’s leader, he would immediately become one of the nicest CEOs on Wall Street.

Notably, a nice guy would finish first for once in the corporate world. Then again, he should.

As the Bloomberg report notes, D’Amaro’s division has evolved into the clear-cut breadwinner at Disney.

Walden’s part of her division wins award and is integral to the success of Hulu and, thereby, Disney streaming.

D’Amaro’s division nets dramatically more money, though, with Disney Experiences topping $8 billion.

Disney Experiences, which includes Walden’s and Bergman’s work, falls slightly under $4 billion.

Money talks on Wall Street, and it all but shouts, “D’Amaro!” from the rooftops. He’s got Disney DNA, too.

Honestly, D’Amaro’s Disney DNA surpasses that of Iger, who joined Disney after a merger.

D’Amaro started at Disney in 1998 and has worked there continuously for 27 years.

Iger joined in 1996 and left for a year. So, by the middle of 2028, D’Amaro will have worked at Disney longer.

Still, there’s a downside to his candidacy. He’s primarily worked in theme parks throughout his career.

If or when D’Amaro gets the job, that’ll be his most pressing concern. Can he handle the rest of the Disney empire?

That’s his only real con, but it’s a BIG one.

We’re heading to the big finish in Disney’s CEO battle, folks. So, stay tuned!

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