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Ahead of his memoir’s release, Bob Chapek has done his first interview since being fired from Disney back in 2022. The Wall Street Journal asked the former CEO what happened in the five months between the Disney board extending his contract and firing him.

Bob Chapek Blames Firing on Bad Earnings Report

In June 2022, the Disney board unanimously voted to extend Bob Chapek’s contract for three more years. But in November, they fired him, bringing Bob Iger out of retirement to resume his role as CEO.

According to WDW Magic (via the Wall Street Journal), Chapek said the turning point during that period was the November earnings report, when Disney+ losses reached $1.5 billion and the company’s overall revenue was below expectations. Disney’s stock dropped to a multi-year low and calls for his firing increased at this time.

Regarding criticism that he downplayed that quarter’s losses during the earnings call in favor of talking about parade updates, Chapek said that earnings calls are supposed to focus on lighter topics. He told the Journal “It’s an absurdity” to think his attitude during that call contributed to his firing.

Chapek sees himself as the person who steered The Walt Disney Company through its most difficult period. The parks shut down due to COVID-19 in 2020, leading to two years with little to no park revenue, all while the company was struggling with debt due to the 2019 Fox acquisition.

He said he positioned the company for success, making the transition easier for his successor, reflecting a New York Times report that he takes credit for Josh D’Amaro’s rise to CEO.

The Journal asked Chapek if he has visited Walt Disney World since his firing and he said no. While it was a place that mattered to him long before he worked for Disney, he now feels let down and disillusioned. He said he might visit the parks again some day but the company’s efforts to minimize his tenure as CEO don’t make him eager to return.

The New York Times also reported that Chapek stands by Disney Parks price hikes and blames Bob Iger for the company’s problems during his tenure.

Iger handpicked Chapek as his successor but has since indicated the choice was his biggest regret and he was disappointed watching Chapek’s tenure. D’Amaro stepped into the role of CEO earlier this year.

Behind the Castle Walls: Bob Chapek’s Memoir About Disney

Chapek’s memoir, Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth, was co-written with Don Yaeger and will be published by Gallery Books on September 29. Pre-order now on Amazon.

The memoir will recount his tenure with The Walt Disney Company, which began in 1993, including his two years as CEO.

For the first time ever, Bob Chapek breaks his silence on his tenure as the Walt Disney Company’s CEO, offering a behind-the-scenes account of the challenges he faced—from getting the job just weeks before a worldwide pandemic, to the shifting political landscape, to his ousting given Bob Iger’s apparent desire to return.

In 1993, Bob Chapek began his career at the Walt Disney Company as the marketing director for home video. After twenty-seven years of hard work, climbing the corporate ladder, and garnering respect across the wide variety of businesses that Disney has, he earned the most coveted (and scrutinized) position of all: In 2020, he was named CEO of the Walt Disney Company.

Born and raised in small-town Indiana by a World War II–veteran father, Chapek learned early in life that grit, resilience, and curiosity can take you far. These values are what got him to Disney. However, within weeks of starting at the top, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down parks, resorts, cruise ships, live sporting events, and film and television production, forcing Chapek to steer the billion-dollar empire through unprecedented times. The stakes were high, the decisions unforgiving, and the backlash often inordinate, leaving him wondering whether he had become the corporate scapegoat of it all. In 2022, he got his answer—Chapek was out, Iger was back in.

Was he really given a fair shot or was he set up to fail? What drove his ousting and Bob Iger’s return? What happened behind the scenes at Disney during COVID, and how did those decisions impact what we see today? Four years later, after reflection and healing, Chapek is ready to tell his story, sharing what he hopes will be his true legacy.

Even now, after everything, he’s still a lifelong fan, and wants the magic of Disney to endure for generations.

Behind the Castle Walls is a revealing and thrilling memoir of ambition, power, and corporate intrigue in the happiest company on earth.

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The post Bob Chapek Reveals Why He Hasn’t Returned to Disney World, Calls Earnings Criticism ‘An Absurdity’ appeared first on WDW News Today.