Some people thought he was a right-winger brought in by Bob Chapek to move the company rightward. In reality, Geoff Morrell was as middle-of-the-road as they come. A former Pentagon spokesperson turned news guy turned Disney exec, Morrell knew how to navigate both the conservative and liberal worlds. No, he wasn’t accustomed to Disney or entertainment, but that was never the point. Bob Chapek had seen that trouble was ahead for Disney in regards to navigating politics and the culture war — he needed someone who could get them through the storm. But when the bellows came from within the company, Chapek changed his approach. He chose to grovel. And once that was done, operational control was forfeited and Geoff Morrell’s attempt to moderate Disney had come to a halt.
The writing was on the wall when Disney brought in Kristina Schake just a month ago. She is a Democrat strategist and bomb-thrower; it was never going to work having her as the person directly below Morrell. Everyone knew it. In a political explosion within and outside the company, it was a bone to throw to the far left inside the company to hire Schake. But just as Ton Newton and the Reimagine Tomorrow program were undermining everything Bob Chapek wanted to accomplish, so too did the hiring of Schake undermine Morrell. And so, with just a month under her belt, Schake is now in charge of all public communications for The Walt Disney Company. An analogy of what this would be like if Disney had hired a conservative is that it would be like Disney putting Karl Rove in charge of their PR. It’s an unfortunate further-politicization of a company originally intended to be ideologically neutral and safe for small children of all backgrounds.
So, Morrell is gone.
In case you think all of this is hyperbolic, take a look at Morrell’s statement as he leaves. I’ll break down what it’s saying in business parlance:
“After three months in this new role, it has become clear to me that for a number of reasons it is not the right fit. After talking this over with [Disney CEO] Bob [Chapek], I have decided to leave the company to pursue other opportunities.” — Geoff Morrell
The blurb “for a number of reasons” is the sticker here. It’s an unnecessary piece added to the quote that is meant to signal that there’s plenty wrong at Disney which is resulting in Geoff Morrell walking away, by his own choosing, from the highest paying salary he’ll likely every receive. A man can only be subverted for so long. Remember that it was he that defended Chapek for staying out of the Florida legislation issue right up until Chapek reversed course… and since then Morrell has been totally silent. Until now.
But if you’re wondering why Geoff Morrell leaving is such a blow to Disney, consider that there are two people replacing him. Schake takes over the communications side for public affairs. She’s been at Disney for one month.
“Fortunately, the strength and experience of our existing leadership team — including relatively new all-star hires — means there is no shortage of talent to guide our reputation-driving functions,” Mr. Chapek said in an email to senior Disney managers on Friday regarding Mr. Morrell’s departure.
The other person Disney is bringing in to replace Mr. Morrell is a no-name individual hired, again, just a month ago. That means there is literally now nobody to help Disney negotiate with Florida, because Morrell was the only person with the conservative connections to try to calm the waters. There is no way in this world that Chapek can convince DeSantis to ease up on Disney World with a Democrat strategist leading talks. There’s no way. And the loss of Morrell further cements inside the company that the organization is hostile to not just conservatives, but moderates, which is what Morrell is. Sources within the company say that it very much feels like Chapek has lost operational control of the company. He is a CEO in title only.
Let it sink in: at a time when Disney face a crisis over Disney World like never before, their best chance to resolve the issue just walked out the door. The mainstream news may try to spin it, but there’s no other way to rationally look at the situation.
The real losers here are the shareholders. If rumors hold true, the next six months could be very rough for The Walt Disney Company and there seems to be no way to right the ship near-term except through financial pain. Even then, Disney’s best days may be closer to behind them than they are ahead of them. There is no path towards moderating the company and there is no good solution to making money from consumers of all political persuasions if Disney continues moving out of the middle. When Buzz Lightyear is getting more buzz about a lesbian kiss than for anything else about the movie, you’re selling a space ranger children’s movie in the wrong way.
But what do I know, I’ve just been calling this for years now?
For all the latest news that should be fun, keep checking back with That Park Place. Feel free to drop a comment down below if you feel the same, or if you don’t, and let me know your thoughts!
Truly depressing.
Looking around the world from macro to micro, I see no one leading. Leadership is gone.
Micromanaging and move-along replaced leadership.
Not just Buzz Lightyear, Dr Strange and Thor are way beyond Woke. Full gay indoctrination in those films.
With the Netflix crisis, TWDC was going to have a rough 2022 anyway, having banked so hard on D+. But just courting even more trouble when there was no need.
If Disney moves more of their company out of California and into conservative states like Florida and Texas, Disney will be forced to be more in the middle. Imagineering will still move to Florida since the $1 Billion tax incentive hasn’t been revoked. It’s also quite comical that Disney will continue to be forced to remove gay scenes if they want their movies to be shown in China, Saudi Arabia, and other such countries. Their movies and Disney+ will just be less watched and influential. Their theme parks appear to be the only bright spot, but people hate how expensive it is. How can they only survive on one leg of a three leg stool?
“That means there is literally now nobody to help Disney negotiate with Florida, because Morrell was the only person with the conservative connections to try to calm the waters. There is no way in this world that Chapek can convince DeSantis to ease up on Disney World with a Democrat strategist leading talks”
Think WDW Pro is being naive if he expects there to be anyone in the world who can “calm the waters”……… what Chapek did is so egregious that it is incomprehensible.
Not naive, just noting that Morrell was a key asset in backchannel negotiations for setting up a new district under the best terms Disney could hope for in 2023. There’s going to be a new special district one way or another, but it could swing wildly for or against Disney depending on discussions with Fl legisltaors, Orange County and Osceola County governments. They lost their best connection.
What are you talking about Pro? Disney can send Ton and she’ll swoon the Florida legislators with lessons on jewelry craftsmanship interwoven with tales of DEI.
In all seriousness, my hope is that this is some serious 4-D Chess on Chapek’s part and that he’ll right the company. The realist in me thinks that Chapek is flailing and hoping to hit a solution (like a blindfolded kid swing at a piñata)
Who thinks DIS will go bellow 100 this quarter?
*raises hand*
I’m next quarter is a disaster and the stock goes into the $80s.
*bet
Kamran Pasha has a completely opposite take on this situation. For one, Morrell was fired. He became the fall guy responsible for Chapek’s response to the news about political payments being made to politicians supporting the Florida bill. The two replacements for Morrell–Kristina Schake and Horatio Gutierrez–are more experienced dealing with the Left and less of a lightning rod than Morrell.
Will the new hires deal with the Left or make deals? If they can calm or appease them, it’s a win for Disney. If they continue to escalate, it’ll be a total disaster.
I no longer have a lot of confidence in Pasha, because he has been pushing several narratives for a long time that increasingly appear to be wrong, particularly Kathleen Kennedy being powerless and on the way out.
I just don’t see how appointing ex-Obama administration members is anything other than an escalation and doubling down on rejiggering Disney into an activist company first, with profitability concerns as very distant second.
The left isn’t cancelling Disneyland. Once you think on that, you start to figure out a bit more about what’s going on.
Hopes that Chapek has the ability to right the company are quickly fading. There may be another big quit in the next three months and it would be equally devastating to Chapek having any content power.
Here’s the future… Chapek will be gone soon enough, a minority woman will be made ceo, Disney will continue its decay but it’s destruction will quicken at an alarming rate, Walt Disney’s likeness will be removed from the parks within 3 years. In six years Disneyland will feel more like magic mountain and normal people will generally avoid it.
Feels like Morrell saw the writing on the wall, almost immediately. He jumped ship as soon as he could comfortably do so. In all likelihood, the guy probably never has to work again, anyway.
The hiring of Schake, to me, was Disney’s promise that they have absolutely no intention of correcting their current course of DEI. None whatsoever. They’re going to drive their company into the ground for the message. They know this crap isn’t popular, but they don’t care. They’re not interested in profit, anymore, only the agenda.
For an example of how these woke powers work, see Twitter and the board’s reaction to Elon Musk’s offer. The only reason they agreed to sell, was because of the legalities involved.
We’re at war, friends, and it’s only going to get worse, before it gets better.