Bob Iger Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images Former Disney CEO Bob Iger opened up on a handful of deals that never were in a new Financial Times feature.
The story, which included a series of interviews leading up to Iger’s exit from Disney earlier this year (he remains on the board for now), also touched on Iger’s uneasy relationship with Bob Chapek, among other topics.
Perhaps the most newsworthy comment from Iger was confirmation that Disney held acquisition talks with the tech giant Apple, though it sounds like those talks didn’t go very far: “We talked about it internally, and we had some conversations with Apple about it, but it never went anywhere. Well, Apple didn’t show that much interest.”
Iger, of course, used to sit on Apple’s board of directors, and was close friends with Apple founder Steve Jobs. In his 2019 memoir, The Ride of a Lifetime, Iger wrote extensively about his friendship with Jobs, who financed and help create Pixar and sold it to Disney in 2006.
“I believe that if Steve were still alive, we would have combined our companies, or at least discussed the possibility very seriously,” he wrote in the book.
Iger also said that Disney kicked the tires on the James Bond franchise, pursuing it alongside Marvel and Star Wars (both deals that Disney ultimately consummated, with Amazon now in control of James Bond).
And he also recounted the infamous deal to buy Twitter at what Iger described as “a very attractive price” back in the day. The deal was close to fruition, with Iger backing out the day it was meant to be sealed, after realizing (perhaps presciently!) that it would be a “distraction” to Disney’s core business.
Disney also came extremely close to acquiring BuzzFeed, though that deal was nixed by Jonah Peretti, who wanted to remain in control of his digital media empire.
And sure to have chins wagging in Burbank are Iger’s comments on Chapek, who briefly succeeded him as CEO, only to see Iger return less than two years later.
“There was no urgent need to make drastic changes. And yet he did, and he brought in bureaucracy, and he brought in layers of management,” Iger told the FT, underscoring his frustration with the moves. The story also addresses Iger’s decision to remain in his office suite, despite Chapek taking over as CEO.
And Iger mentioned the call to suspend Jimmy Kimmel after his joke about Charlie Kirk’s killer sparked backlash from the right
“We thought it was in bad taste,” Iger told the FT, adding that Disney wanted Kimmel to address the nature of the comment.
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