The dust is still settling from the massive behind-the-scenes shake-up at The Walt Disney Company that saw CEO Bob Chapek removed and replaced by Bob Iger, the man he had originally replaced. A lot of Disney fans have been vocal that they’re happy about the change, Iger was a popular head of the company, and Chapek failed to win some over. That would seem to include noted Disney fan Neil Patrick Harris, who took a moment during this weekend’s Candlelight Processional at Epcot to take a shot at the former CEO.
The Candlelight Processional at Epcot sees different celebrity narrators lead an evening show where they tell the story of Christmas. Neil Patrick Harris, who is well known for his Disney fandom, has appeared for several years in the past and returned last week to perform for several nights. A video (via @RopeDropLife) is now going viral where Harris takes a bit of a shot and the embattled former CEO. Check it out.
“EPCOT - an acronym. And I’m pretty sure the C doesn’t stand for “Chapek”. ~@ActuallyNPH pic.twitter.com/JuRdmu5xj4December 19, 2022
If you’re a serious Disney fan then it’s difficult to not have an opinion on the recent change in leadership, and so honestly you expect Neil Patrick Harris to have feelings on the topic. Having said that, you probably don’t expect to see him reveal those feelings into a live mic in front of a crowd at Epcot. Although, considering his audience, it seems unlikely he would hear anything but agreement.
No, the C in Epcot does not stand for Chapek, and certainly never will now. If you’re curious, the acronym in question stands for Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow. Epcot the theme park was inspired by Walt Disney’s plan to build an actual prototype city where people would live and work within the grounds of Walt Disney World. Unfortunately, Disney died before he could see that particular dream become a reality.
The biggest changes that we’ve seen since Bob Iger took over as CEO once again has nothing to do with Disney Parks and is all about the media side of the company. Bob Chapek’s biggest initiative was the creation of the Disney Media and Entertainment Division (DMED) which reorganized everything from Walt Disney Studios to Disney+ into a single vertical.
This took a significant amount of decision making out of the hands of studio executives, which reportedly made a lot of those people unhappy. Kareem Daniel, the person in charge of DMED was let go as one of Bob Iger’s first official acts. A new group has been put together within the company that will realign the media side, likely into a structure similar to the way things were previously.
Bob Iger will run The Walt Disney Company for two years. In that time he is expected to find and train a successor. Hopefully he'll find somebody that won't become the butt of jokes.
