

Disney’s future now depends on the ultimate theme park insider
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Soon after Bob Iger returned to Disney in late 2022, experiences chairman Josh D’Amaro went to the chief executive’s office with a book of data on the businesses he led. Theme parks and cruise ships were constrained only by their size.
Guests were spending ever more during their visits. At home, the next generation of Disney fans was abandoning traditional media to spend their time with video games and virtual worlds. Within about a year, Disney had committed to nearly doubling its investment in its parks and cruise ships to $60 billion over the next decade.
It also invested $1.5 billion in “Fortnite" maker Epic Games. The moves were a coup for D’Amaro. But they were topped on Tuesday, when he was named the next CEO of the storied 102-year-old entertainment company.
The plan he successfully pitched three years ago gives a strong indication of where he will take America’s best known entertainment brand when he officially takes over next month, according to people close to him. D’Amaro, 54 years old, won the top job over Disney entertainment co-chairman Dana Walden, who was named president and chief creative officer. People inside and close to the company saw their horse race as a contest for the soul of Disney, between real world vs.
on-screen entertainment. Experiences have accounted for most of Disney’s profits since 2022, but movies and television shows create the stories and characters that draw people to visit parks, sail on cruise ships and buy toys. D’Amaro will have to learn the businesses Walden oversees as Disney’s first CEO since the early 1980s with no experience in television or film.
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