Since Disney CEO Bob Iger returned to the company in 2022, he knew he had some incredibly important tasks to check off his To-Do List.

But, there’s one task that might prove to be the most integral to the future of Disney — choosing a successor to replace him once his contract expires. Though his contract has already been extended once since his return, it’s set to expire in 2026. Rumblings of who’s on Iger’s shortlist to replace him have been swirling for a while, and it’s possible we could get an announcement sooner than we originally thought.

We could learn who will be in control of the fate of Disney by the end of 2024, according to a new report from Yahoo Finance. At the Cannes Lions Festival on June 18th, Kevin Mayer, Candle Media co-founder and close Iger adviser, said we may be closer than we think to finding out who the second-time Disney CEO will choose as his replacement.

“I think we may know this year, but [Bob Iger] has two and a half more years. So it wouldn’t surprise me if it is extended a little bit beyond this calendar year into next calendar year,” Mayer said. He continued that he doesn’t know an exact date or have any specific insight into the process, but he said the transition “will be very clean and very good this time around.”

“In the not-too-distant future, he’s going to make it known who a successor is so he has some time to spend with him or her at the helm,” Mayer — whose name was once thrown into the ring as a potential candidate — said.

This is especially interesting because it was previously reported that no decision on a successor was expected this year.

The four people who have been named as the next potential Disney CEO are Dana Walden, co-chair of Disney Entertainment; Jimmy Pitaro, former ESPN president; Disney Parks chair Josh D’Amaro; and Alan Bergman, Walden’s other co-chair at Disney Entertainment.

Iger has reportedly been spending time with the internal candidates to give them an idea of how he does the job, along with giving them exposure to other areas of the business they may not be familiar with.

We do know that the board committee formed in 2023 met six times last year and has been working with a search firm along with conducting interviews.

One thing is for sure, we’ll be on the lookout for the latest updates about Iger’s search for a successor and more news from The Walt Disney Company. Don’t forget to stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog for all the news you need to know!

“We’ve Learned From the Past” — Disney CEO Bob Iger Comments on Succession Process

Who do you think will make the cut and become Iger’s successor? Tell us in the comments.

The post NEWS: Disney CEO Announcement Could Be Imminent, Says Iger Adviser first appeared on the disney food blog.