Can This Man Break Disney’s Succession Curse?
Thaddeus oversees the editorial direction of the site’s coverage of the film industry. His contributions focus on box office performance and key trends shaping the movie business.
Disney will undergo a major change later this year when its legendary and long-serving CEO Bob Iger retires and is replaced by a yet-to-be-announced successor. For most of 2025, the short list of candidates under consideration for the top job included Dana Walden, Head Executive of Disney’s Television Division, and Josh D’Amaro, the Head of Disney’s Experiences Division, that include its Theme Parks, Cruises, and Video Games.
Recent reporting indicates that the decision by the Disney Board of Directors will be announced as soon as next week, and that D’Amaro is most likely to be the chosen one. The New York Times published an extensive profile on D’Amaro, including the reasons behind his presumed rise over Walden and lingering concerns about Disney’s ability to execute a CEO handoff, given the fumbled attempt to replace Iger in 2022.
D’Amaro has gained respect within the company for his deft ability to navigate Disney’s Experiences division throughout the pandemic, when it faced potentially existential forced closures to its cruise and theme park business. Since that time, Disney’s theme park and cruise businesses have fully recovered and are even more profitable now than ever. This success positions D’Amaro as a capable manager who can guide the media giant through periods of change, and it is expected that change will be the order of the day in the years ahead.
