After just two years on the job, Disney CEO Bob Chapek is already in the hot seat after stumbles over Florida’s controversial Parental Rights in Education law, dubbed by critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” legislation. Now, new reports indicate entertainment insiders are questioning whether Chapek can hold onto the Disney magic and his job when his contract expires in less than a year.
Chapek, who has been with the company since 1993, was given the keys to the Magic Kingdom in 2020. Mere weeks after becoming CEO, the magic stopped as the COVID-19 pandemic forced park closures, but he managed to cruise through COVID-19’s challenges and the company thrived in the streaming space. Then, things took a turn.
In March 2022, Chapek and Disney stayed silent over the controversial Florida bill working its way through the legislature, prompting outcry and staff walkouts. Within days, Chapek reversed course and Disney put out a statement opposing the bill, which prohibits classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation for grades K-3.
“I know that many are upset that we did not speak out against the bill,” Chapek said during a shareholders meeting in March. “Now, we were opposed to the bill from the outset, but we chose not to take a public position on it because we thought we could be more effective working behind the scenes engaging directly with lawmakers…We stand with our LGBTQ+ community going forward.”
In what many considered to be a no-win situation, Chapek managed to anger people on both sides. For those against the bill, it was too late. For those in favor of the bill, they thought Disney should have stayed silent.
“They really put pressure on Mr. Chapek and Mr. Chapek flip flopped like a banked catfish,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) said on Fox News.
“The fact that this was a difficult issue for Chapek to deal with really just makes me doubt his ability as a leader,” prominent investor Ross Gerber said.
Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis doubled down on Chapek, fracturing an important relationship for Disney between the company and the state.
“For Disney to come out and put a statement and say that the bill should have never passed and that they are going to actively work to repeal it, I think, one, was fundamentally dishonest, but two, I think they crossed a line,” DeSantis said.
The state of Florida retaliated by stripping Disney of its special tax status, which allowed the park to operate as its own municipality. And Bob Chapek got a lesson in modern politics.
“You will have somebody mad at you no matter which way you respond. That’s just the way life is today and you can’t avoid it and you cannot ride the fence,” former Disney Resort executive Lee Cockerell said.
Chapek got off the fence and onto a global “listening tour” to try to quell internal frustration over his fumbling. But will it be enough to save his job? With DeSantis fundraising off the feud, the heat on Chapek is intensifying.