Disney CEO Bob Iger is bringing in a couple of familiar names to serve as consultants.
Kevin Mayer and Tom Staggs, the co-CEOs of Candle Media, have been hired as consultants and “will take a hard look at ESPN,” per Deadline.
Mayer was Disney’s former direct-to-consumer and international chairman, which included some oversight of ESPN+, and left the company in 2020 to become the CEO of TikTok. He later became the chairman of DAZN before founding Candle Media with Staggs. He was also considered one of the top contenders to replace Iger back in 2020, a job that eventually went to Bob Chapek. Chapek was replaced by the returning Iger in late 2022.
Staggs left Disney in 2016 after serving as Disney’s chief financial officer, chief operating officer, and head of parks.
Iger has been in the news lately due to his varying opinions on Disney’s media strategy. Earlier this month, Iger claimed ABC “may not be core” to Disney going forward, while rumors of an ESPN spinoff have refused to die. Disney has also faced questions about when to launch a direct-to-consumer offering of ESPN’s linear networks, while the idea of “strategetic partners” investing in the company has also been floated. The company, like every other media company, is currently dealing with the double-barreled strike of both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA.
But hey, aside from all that, it’s been quiet at Disney. Iger bringing in a couple of former company executives for their opinion makes sense on paper since both Mayer and Staggs are familiar with the company’s inner workings and struggles. However, a lot has changed since both Mayer and Staggs (especially Staggs) left the company, and it might take them some time to catch up with the current state of affairs and the various crossroads that Disney is approaching.
[Deadline]
