London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Jul 12, 2025

Bob Iger

Bob Iger was on a $10 million consultancy deal at Disney - to advise the CEO he eventually replaced

Before his return to Disney, Bob Iger reportedly had a $10 million deal to advise his successor Bob Chapek, despite the two executives barely speaking 

Before Bob Iger returned to the helm of Disney, the entertainment giant signed him to a $10 million deal to advise his successor Bob Chapek—even though the two executives were hardly speaking.  

Iger, who rejoined the company as CEO last week after Chapek’s ousting, was on a $2 million a year contract until 2026 to advise “on such matters as his successor as chief executive officer may request from time to time,” according to terms disclosed in Disney corporate filings reported by the Financial Times. The agreement came into force when Iger left his role as executive chairman at the end of 2021.

The much-loved Iger had hand-picked Chapek to take over the House of Mouse after he had led the company for 15 years. But once Chapek took over as CEO of Disney in February 2020, his relationship with Iger soured rapidly, and the ballooning losses of Disney’s streaming Direct-To-Consumer (DTC) division, which includedDisney+, Hulu and ESPN+, eventually led to calls for Chapek’s head.

According to Disney’s SEC filing, the five-year consulting deal enabled the company and Chapek “to have access to Mr. Iger’s unique skills, knowledge and experience with regard to the media and entertainment business” and included monthly and yearly “maximum time commitments” of unspecified length. Disney was also paying Iger’s security costs as an ex-employee which totaled around $750,000 a year, the FT reported.

Iger’s return rocked Hollywood and sent shares in Disney surging more than 6% after the announcement was made. Disney did not respond to Fortune‘s request for comment.


How the relationship between the Bobs fell apart

Iger and Chapek’s relationship began to deteriorate soon after Chapek took the top position at Disney. According to a CNBC report, the relationship between the outgoing and incoming Disney leaders soured after Iger announced he wasn’t going to fully depart from the company in March 2020, in order to help it weather the pandemic.

Chapek was said to be “furious” with Iger sticking around. Having expressed little desire for help, Chapek felt that Iger was postponing his retirement once again and reducing him to second-in-command.

Tensions within Disney were further exacerbated in Marck 2022 when Chapek stayed quiet over Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill — the legislation that would prohibit classroom discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in primary schools in the state where Chapek had just ordered 2,000 of its Disney employees to move to take advantage of lucrative tax credits.

Chapek later apologized for his muted response on the bill, but it marked a strong deviation away from Iger’s style, where most of Disney’s stances on political and social issues would come directly from him.

Chapek then decided to strategically reorganize the company’s media and entertainment businesses by stripping budget power from content creators and instead centralizing it under his right-hand man, former Goldman Sachs banker Kareem Daniel. This move took away the profit-and-loss power from many of Disney’s veteran division leaders and consolidated that control under Daniel, a shift that was met with strong backlash from longtime Disney employees.

Another nail in Chapek’s coffin came when he abruptly fired Peter Rice — the head of the company’s TV division — for being an ill fit with Disney’s corporate culture. While Disney’s board threw its support behind Chapek and his ousting of Rice, staffers inside Disney said the move tanked morale and further divided the CEO from Disney veterans and Iger.

As the tensions surrounding Chapek increased, the relationship between the Bobs got worse, the FT reported, with Iger reportedly complaining to friends that his advice was not sought by his successor at key moments.

“Iger never forgave Chapek for the way Chapek distanced himself and took control of the company,” a Disney executive told the FT. “In some ways, Iger thought he would still be the coach. Chapek was not willing.”



Iger’s return after a little time off

Faith in Chapek’s leadership collapsed when the CEO announced earlier this month that “tough and uncomfortable decisions”, including staff cuts, were coming to the company after its Direct-To-Consumer division reported that losses more than doubled to $4 billion for the fiscal year ending Oct. 1.

Iger then received a call on Nov. 18 from board chair Susan Arnold and two days later agreed to return to Disney for another two years to steer the ship back on course.

Iger is returning to Disney on a slimmed-down pay package, which includes a $1 million base salary, a $1 million target bonus, and stock awards valued at $25 million. This compares to an average pay package of around $47 million during his last five years as chief executive, the FT reported.

“Essentially he’s taken a pay cut of 40%. . . to come back,” Tom Gosling, an executive fellow at the London Business School who established PwC’s executive pay practice, told the FT. “He must love the job, love the company, or see a lot of upside in the share price. Maybe all three.”

The first moves taken by Iger after being reinstated as CEO this week were to walk back Chapek’s strategy, return profit and loss power to content creators, and fire Kareem Daniel.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
×