The latest announcement for changes coming to The Walt Disney Company may be in for a little bit of a rumble.

With all the changes coming into The Walt Disney Company between the return of Bob Iger, restructuring of the company, and pulling away from advertising on social media platforms there’s a lot still yet to come for the board of directors for the entertainment giant and the company could be in for a bit more of a battle of the nominees than they anticipated.

The Walt Disney Company board has set its sights on appointing  James P. Gorman and Sir Jeremy Darroch as its newest board directors. “James and Jeremy are both widely respected leaders in their industries, and their expertise will complement the talents and experience of the Disney board as we continue to focus on delivering for consumers and shareholders alike,” said Mark G. Parker who is Chairman of the Board at The Walt Disney Company.

Sir Jeremy Darroch is a veteran media executive and former Group Chief Executive of Sky. His appointment is effective January 9th, 2024 as director while James P. Gorman is also set for his appointment effective February 5th, 2024. Gorman will be joining The Walt Disney Company after serving as CEO of Morgan Stanley for the past 14 years.

Both Gorman and Darroch will be included in the company’s slate of director nominees in the upcoming proxy statement for Disney’s 2024 Annual Meeting of Shareholders. Their nominations come on the heels of the news that current Disney board member, Francis A. deSouza, has decided not to stand for reelection at the annual meeting. deSouza has expressed an interest in pursuing new opportunities in technology sectors that will require his full attention.

If elected, Gorman and Darroch will join the board of directors currently seated among notable names like Mary T. Barra, Chair and Chief Executive Officer of General Motors Co.; Safra A. Catz, Chief Executive Officer of Oracle Corp.; Amy L. Chang, a former senior executive at Cisco and Google and a current director of Procter & Gamble. However, this nomination may not go as smoothly as The Walt Disney Company anticipates.

Upon the news of the nominations to the board of directors, Nelson Peltz has announced he is seeking multiple positions on the board as well. According to a post by CNBC, the activist investor and his firm are “seeking more than two seats on Disney’s board, according to a person familiar with the matter, setting the stage for a proxy fight.”

A spokesperson for Trian Fund Management, said Thursday morning that it “intends to take our case for change directly to shareholders.” which Peltz is a co-founder of. However, Disney seems to believe this potential proxy battle may stem from a personal grudge held by an ally of Peltz named Ike Perlmutter (who is a former MARVEL executive). To support their position, Trian argues Disney offered at one time early on to set up a meeting with the board, however, they rejected Trian’s expressed interest in joining the board, which would have included the addition of Peltz. Trian did not note in a statement exactly how many seats it plans to seek on the board and has declined to comment further beyond its public statement.

Within its statement, Trian went on to say, “While James Gorman and Sir Jeremy Darroch represent an improvement from the status quo, the addition of these directors will not, in our view, restore investor confidence or address the root cause behind the significant value destruction and missteps that this Board has overseen,”

It may be of interest to know that Disney stocks have been underperforming as of the most recent months and are only up by 6%. In addition, Trian claims to own around $3 billion in Disney stock. The firm also has oversight of shares owned by the former MARVEL executive, Ike Perlmutter, who’s been a critic of Bob Iger’s for some time complaining about overspending.

As we mentioned briefly before, Peltz had pushed for a seat on Disney’s board earlier after Trian took an approximate $800 million stake in Disney. After Iger unveiled a broad restructuring of the company this past February, that plan enacted layoffs and cost cuts which then staved off a proxy fight from Peltz.

Iger has recently said he was focused on “building again” and intends to shift focus on theme parks, ESPN’s upcoming streaming service, and improving the studio’s business.

We’ll be sure to keep you posted on the upcoming changes that help shape The Walt Disney Company and its future. Be sure to check back in with us for the latest updates at Disney Food Blog.

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Who do you think will fill the seats left on the Disney board? Tell us your guesses in the comments below!

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