Behind The Castle Walls

For the first time ever, Bob Chapek breaks his silence on his tenure as the Walt Disney Company’s CEO, offering a behind-the-scenes account of the challenges he faced—from getting the job just weeks before a worldwide pandemic, to the shifting political landscape, to his ousting given Bob Iger’s apparent desire to return.In 1993, Bob Chapek began his career at the Walt Disney Company as the marketing director for home video. After twenty-seven years of hard work, climbing the corporate ladder, and garnering respect across the wide variety of businesses that Disney has, he earned the most coveted (and scrutinized) position of all: In 2020, he was named CEO of the Walt Disney Company. Born and raised in small-town Indiana by a World War II–veteran father, Chapek learned early in life that grit, resilience, and curiosity can take you far. These values are what got him to Disney. However, within weeks of starting at the top, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down parks, resorts, cruise ships,...