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Credit: DisneyBob Iger’s recent comments have stirred some controversy online.
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Few people other than Walt Disney himself have been as influential or as important for The Walt Disney Company than Bob Iger. While Iger has faced his fair share of controversies, his name is now as ubiquitous for the company as Mickey Mouse himself.
Over the last two decades, Iger has guided the company through some of its most challenging and rewarding times. Iger has been a very influential for Disney’s theme parks too, overseeing some of their largest expansions and additions like Pandora – The World of Avatar in 2017 and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in 2019.
Iger is a fan of the parks and has been spotted visiting the parks countless times, whether for business or leisure. Recently, Iger took a trip to Disneyland with the popular YouTube channel, The Rest is History. During the 34-minute video, Iger shared insights into the company and the parks, explores the company archives, and, of course, enjoyed a few attractions.
During one segment of the video, Iger makes a rather interesting comment while riding Pirates of the Caribbean. The CEO says that Pirates “isn’t brilliant storytelling but brilliant execution”. This comment sparked a debate online, with some pushing back against Iger.
“Bob…I respectfully disagree, said Theme Park Obsession on X. “The ride has both, and it’s one of the reasons why it’s still enjoyed by millions.”
“Saying this while Zootopia Better Zoogether is stinking up the Tree of Life is a choice,” said another, joking about Animal Kingdom’s new Zootopia-themed theater show.
“He’d shut it down and replace it with a “relevant IP” if he could, the man is insane,” said another.
What Iger is saying seems to be more that Pirates of the Caribbean as a whole isn’t groundbreaking story-wise. It’s a straightforward tale, but one that is brought to life in a magical way.
The full video can be found here.
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Iger is closing in on his final months at The Walt Disney Company, with the longtime CEO set to retire from his post in 2026.
Bob Iger became CEO of The Walt Disney Company in 2005 after working with ABC before joining the company. When Disney acquired ABC Entertainment, Bob Iger remained chairman, quickly becoming then-CEO Michael Eisner’s second-hand man.
Iger was succeeded by Bob Chapek, a longtime employee of The Walt Disney Company, in 2020, though this change in personnel would not last long. Chapek’s time as CEO was extremely divisive and controversial, with many fans feeling as though the new leader of the company was focused more on profits than creativity.
Chapek admittedly took over as Disney’s leader during a very difficult time in history and was forced to adapt quickly to the way the world changed during the outbreak of COVID-19.
Eventually, Disney announced it would be axing Chapek and bringing back Iger. This agreement was to last just a few years until Disney found its next true successor.
Last year, Iger revealed he had become “obsessed” with finding a replacement in a discussion on Kelly Ripa’s show Let’s Talk Off Camera with Kelly Ripa.
Well, I think it would be safe to assume that I think about this all the time. I could say that I’m obsessed with it would be probably an understatement and actually, the board and I established when I returned that that would be among our biggest, if not our biggest priority.
It’s actually something that I’m obviously very focused on, not just because of the past, but because I’d like to retire again and I’d like to leave the company in great hands, and that is my intention and I’m now confident that not only will we do that, but we’ll do so on a timely basis that works for the company and hopefully works for me as well, but yes. It’s a huge priority.
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