• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, March 10, 2021

Longtime Disney leader Bob Iger — who stepped down as CEO last February but stayed on as executive chairman to help new CEO Bob Chapek as the company navigated through the pandemic — has confirmed that he will leave the company in December.

“I will leave at the end of December with a strong sense of pride and a deep sense of appreciation for the very special place Disney holds in the hearts of people all over the world,” Iger said during Disney's annual shareholders meeting on Tuesday.

Disney has been hard-hit by the pandemic's impacts on its theme parks, movie theater ticket sales, and cruise business, but has reorganized and consolidated to focus on making streaming a cornerstone of its future growth. In just 16 months, the company has built Disney+. into a force second in size only to Netflix.

Chapek on Tuesday announced that the service has blown by its initial projections, surpassing 100 million paid subscribers worldwide, and is now aiming for an upwardly revised 230 million to 260 million paid subscribers by 2024. The company also plans to reopen Disneyland in late April, now that California is loosening pandemic restrictions. 

“When I assumed the role of CEO, none of us could have imagined" how COVID-19 would change the business, the world and "our way of life,” Chapek said yesterday “However, we have persevered.” In fact, after dropping to a low of $79 per share in the initial pandemic period, Disney's stock is now trading at around $195.

In addition to some theme parks resuming operation, movie theaters are starting to reopen, and production is picking up, Chapek noted, adding that cruise lines could potentially resume operation in September. 

Iger, who had postponed stepping down from the CEO post four times since 2013 before pulling the trigger last year, led Disney to unprecedented levels of success during his 15-year run, and overseeing game-changing acquisitions including Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm and 21^st Century Fox. 

As executive chairman, he "directs [Disney's] creative endeavors, while leading the board and providing the full benefit of his experience, leadership and guidance," according to his official Disney bio. 

But at least in the initial months following his change of position, Iger continued to take a strong hand in the business. Last April, The  New York Times' Ben Smith reported sources saying that Iger had effectively reasserted control, sidelining Chapek, who had run the parks/experiences/consumer products business successfully for years.

During the annual meeting, Chapek expressed gratitude to Iger for "the opportunity he has given me and for his faith in me," adding that Iger "has led this company to amazing heights over the years, and I look forward to continuing to build on his remarkable legacy.”

Iger has publicly stated that once he leaves Disney, he would consider a post with the Biden administration, given the right opportunity.