Although former Disney CEO Robert Iger invited his successor, Robert Chapek, to his birthday party late last year, the two men barely interacted, and were seated at different tables. “It was extremely awkward,” one party attendee told CNBC. “The tension was palpable.” Multiple guests told the outlet that when Iger got up to make a speech praising his colleagues, he hardly mentioned Chapek. The relationship between the former and current Disney CEOs soured rapidly a few months after the latter’s ascension to the top job in February 2020, according to CNBC. Chapek was Iger-anointed, but the ex-CEO said he would remain executive chairman to see the transition through.
A month later, Iger offered comments to then-New York Times columnist Ben Smith indicating he was sticking around to “actively” handhold Chapek through the worst of the coronavirus pandemic. Chapek was outraged by the story, sources familiar with the matter told CNBC, feeling Iger’s remarks stripped him of his rank. The company elevated Chapek to a position on its board, which Iger then chaired, just three days later. Since that “turning-point moment,” as one source characterized it, Chapek has forged ahead without Iger’s input, and the two men rarely speak anymore.
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