Credit: DisneyThe Walt Disney Company has appointed Josh D’Amaro as its new Chief Executive Officer, after his tenure as Chairman of Disney Experiences, the company’s largest segment, which generated $36 billion in revenue in fiscal year 2025. D’Amaro’s priorities as CEO focus on merging human creativity with cutting-edge technology to enhance storytelling and strengthen connections with fans.
He led significant expansions in Disney Experiences, utilizing a multi-year strategy to increase Disney’s global presence through new cruise ships, resorts, and attractions. With nearly three decades at Disney, D’Amaro has significantly influenced the brand across theme parks, cruise ships, and digital storytelling, driven by a commitment to quality and strategic growth.
The Priorities and Vision
A forward-looking leader, D’Amaro focuses on blending creativity and innovation at Disney, integrating advanced technology across its businesses. His initiatives include breakthroughs in robotics from Walt Disney Imagineering and a partnership with Epic Games that redefines how fans engage with Disney stories. D’Amaro envisions technology enhancing creativity to expand Disney’s reach in a competitive media landscape that includes streaming, gaming, and immersive experiences, alongside traditional parks and theatrical releases.
With a global perspective, D’Amaro has held executive roles across finance, strategy, marketing, and operations, contributing to major projects such as Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and Avengers Campus. He believes in the power of the Disney brand and prioritizes creative courage, disciplined investment, global expansion, and ongoing innovation to inspire future generations while empowering the talent that brings Disney stories to life.
The Disney Parks Background
As fans of the Disney theme parks, many are encouraged that Disney went with a “parks guy” as CEO, given that D’Amaro has a long list of projects that were either completed or began under his various leadership roles within and leading the theme park division. For years, Bob Iger guided Disney through enormous changes, including major acquisitions like Pixar, Marvel, and Lucasfilm, streaming expansion with Disney+, and large-scale investments in theme parks, but now that Iger is preparing to step aside, D’Amaro is widely expected to carry the company forward, bringing something different to the CEO position through a deep connection to the parks themselves.
Before moving into the executive spotlight, D’Amaro served in several leadership roles across Disney’s theme park division, including overseeing Walt Disney World operations and later running Disney Parks globally, creating a background that makes many fans believe D’Amaro understands the parks in a way few Disney CEOs ever have. However, familiarity with the parks does not mean preserving everything exactly as it is, as Disney leadership changes have historically sparked waves of updates to keep the parks relevant for new generations of guests.
The 11 Disney Attractions Expected to Change
For Disney fans, leadership changes often signal something else entirely: change inside the parks themselves, with D’Amaro having built much of his reputation through his work with Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products, where he oversaw major expansions, new lands, and ambitious updates across Walt Disney World and Disneyland. Now that he holds the top job, many fans expect the parks to remain one of his biggest priorities, and with that focus comes speculation that several fan-favorite attractions could soon be facing updates, reimaginings, or major overhauls.
In fact, at least 11 classic Walt Disney World attractions seem especially likely to land on D’Amaro’s radar given their age, popularity, and history, making them natural candidates for attention. Spaceship Earth at EPCOT is one of the park’s most recognizable experiences, sitting inside the famous geodesic sphere. Disney previously planned a large-scale update for the attraction before those plans were paused, and many fans believe the company could revisit modernizing the ride’s storytelling and technology under D’Amaro’s leadership.
Mission: SPACE at EPCOT remains one of the park’s most intense attractions but has developed a reputation for being too intense for some guests, with Disney potentially exploring ways to make the experience more accessible while preserving its thrill factor. Journey Into Imagination With Figment at EPCOT inspires passionate debate among fans who have long hoped Disney might restore more of the original spirit of the attraction, with Figment remaining one of EPCOT’s most beloved characters and many believing the ride deserves a major creative overhaul.
Space Mountain at Magic Kingdom is one of the park’s most famous roller coasters, but also one of the oldest thrill rides, with its nostalgic charm remaining strong, though the attraction’s ride system and overall experience are noticeably different from newer Disney coasters around the world. Tower of Terror at Hollywood Studios remains one of the most iconic rides, though fans know Disney has not been shy about altering this attraction in the past after the California version was rethemed into a Marvel attraction, with speculation about future updates never fully disappearing, given Marvel’s major role in Disney’s entertainment strategy.
Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros at EPCOT has remained relatively simple compared with other EPCOT attractions, with rumors having circulated that the pavilion could eventually introduce a new experience inspired by modern Disney animation. Haunted Mansion at Magic Kingdom is one of Disney’s most beloved attractions, making it both iconic and delicate when it comes to updates. With technological advances, Disney has shown interest in enhancing classic rides with new effects, though any future changes would likely focus on improving immersion rather than altering the core story.
It’s a small world at Magic Kingdom remains a staple though it reflects a design philosophy from a very different era of theme park storytelling, with Disney having updated versions of the ride in other parks sometimes incorporating recognizable characters into scenes. Jungle Cruise at Magic Kingdom has been entertaining guests for decades, blending corny humor, jungle scenery, and the charm of live skippers, though speculation about additional enhancements or complete rewrites continues, as the ride’s connection to Disney storytelling, including films and potential new adventures, means it could continue evolving.
Pirates of the Caribbean at Magic Kingdom remains one of the most famous rides in Disney history, though the Florida version is shorter than its counterparts in other parks, a difference that has fueled long-standing rumors that the attraction could someday expand or receive additional scenes. Star Tours at Hollywood Studios played a major role in Disney’s partnership with the Star Wars franchise long before Galaxy’s Edge opened, though today the attraction sits in a very different park landscape filled with newer Star Wars experiences, leading some fans to wonder whether the ride might eventually receive a refresh or new storyline.
The New Disney Era
Whenever leadership changes happen at Disney, the parks tend to evolve along with the company, with Josh D’Amaro’s arrival as CEO potentially signaling another wave of updates designed to keep Walt Disney World competitive and exciting for future visitors. While nothing has been officially announced for these attractions, their age, popularity, and history make them natural candidates for attention under leadership that deeply understands theme park operations and guest experiences.
D’Amaro holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Georgetown University and brings nearly three decades of Disney experience to the CEO role, positioning him to guide the company through the intersection of creativity and technology that defines modern entertainment.