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walt disney company New CEO Josh D’Amaro takes over.
Chairman of Disney Experiences division, which includes the company’s theme parks, cruise lines, resorts and consumer products, named Replacing longtime CEO Bob Iger. He will be the eighth CEO in Disney’s more than 100-year history.
Damaro, 54, joined Disney in 1998 and has held leadership roles domestically and internationally, including chief financial officer of Disney Consumer Products Global Licensing, president of Disneyland Resort and president of Walt Disney World Resort.
“Josh has decades of experience at Disney,” Disney Chairman James Gorman told CNBC’s Julia Boorstin on Tuesday. “He’s a tremendous operator. He operates a lot across the entire park and cruise business. He also has great creative ideas.”
D’Amaro’s appointment to the top job once again highlights Disney’s storied history in park visits. Huge growth in the sector —Disney Promise $60 billion More than ten years of park investment. After a high-profile succession battle, D’Amaro beat out Disney Entertainment co-chairman Dana Walden to take the CEO job.
Since D’Amaro took over as experience chief in May 2020, the division’s revenue has grown nearly 40%, from $26.2 billion in fiscal 2019 to $36.2 billion in fiscal 2025.
The business unit accounted for about 40% of Disney’s total annual revenue last year.
Perhaps even more impressive is the segment’s bottom line: Experience operating revenue jumped nearly 50% from $6.8 billion in fiscal 2019 to $10 billion in fiscal 2025. Since fiscal 2022, the experiences segment has accounted for between 55% and 70% of Disney’s profits.
building a park
D’Amaro, who is in his 28th year with the company, has a strong track record on the consumer side and has been instrumental in growing the experience division since taking over in the early months of the pandemic.
At the time, nearly every aspect of the experience landscape was shut down—domestic and international parks were closed, cruise ships remained in ports, and hotels sat vacant. But during the shutdown, when it was safe for staff on campus, Damaro got to work. Construction continues on a new Avengers-themed land at Disneyland Resort in California, and the company’s domestic parks are also getting cosmetic updates.
Disney has also upgraded its guest technology with rides and attractions that are a fixture at Disney theme parks. Mobile ordering capabilities have been expanded, and the company has begun working on new ride services and new ways for park guests to purchase skip-the-line passes for certain rides.
Cynthia Randez poses for a photo with her 7-year-old son Apollo Leisz and Disney Parks, Experiences and Products Chairman Josh D’Amaro on Main Street U.S.A. after the gate opened on Friday, April 30, 2021, in Anaheim, California.
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Once the parks and resorts reopened, D’Amaro oversaw the launch of new rides such as Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, Tron Run, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure“Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind” and “Remy’s Ratatouille Adventures,” as well as new themed lands such as the renovated Mickey’s Toontown at Disneyland.
With the opening of Tokyo Disneyland’s Fountains and Shanghai Disneyland’s “Zootopia” theme parks, international development has also continued to expand.
Damaro is also the leader behind the development of Disney Cruise Line, which will Double fleet size by 2031. Three new ships have already set sail, with a fourth due to set sail in April.
In consumer goods, D’Amaro boosts Egger invest Epic Games spent $1.5 billion to provide a digital playground for Disney’s online game “Fortnite.” This space is especially important for attracting a younger demographic, which is increasingly difficult for companies to reach.
Damaro also has experience outside the department. He’s working with the company’s studio chiefs as Disney injects more movie franchises into its theme parks, cruise ships and hotels. Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, Disney Animation and more are all integrated into D’Amaro’s division.
“Josh actually has a deep understanding of intellectual property,” Gorman said. “He works with many IP producers to add new attractions, new rides to parks around the world. His collaboration with Bob on this new development is critical, Exciting developments in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates). So Josh definitely has his street cred in that regard. “
The ultimate Disney fan event presented by VISA – bringing all the worlds of Disney under one roof for three days packed with presentations, pavilions, experiences, concerts, sneak peeks, shopping and more.
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Streaming and TV
D’Amaro will face a learning curve as he takes over as CEO of Disney’s streaming and linear TV businesses.
Years of industry-wide cord-cutting and declining advertising revenue have weighed heavily on all players in the media space, including Disney.
While traditional TV remains profitable, streaming has become a focus for media companies looking to recapture those subscribers and keep their content front and center.
While Disney’s flagship streaming service, Disney+, initially gained subscribers quickly, the company has recently turned to other initiatives, such as bundling its streaming services, offering cheaper ad-supported tiers and cracking down on password sharing, to combat slowing growth.
When Iger returns to the helm at Disney in late 2022, building out streaming — Disney+, Hulu and ESPN — will remain a top priority.
Disney Monday report Quarterly revenue from its entertainment business, which includes streaming and theatrical distribution, was $11.61 billion, a year-on-year increase of 7%. However, this is the first quarter that Disney has not reported streaming subscriber numbers.
Keeping Disney’s streaming future stable will be a Key focuses for the company’s next CEO.
“Looking back a few years ago, when our movie business was impacted by COVID-19 and it became clear that our streaming business couldn’t take it, it’s clear that the future of both businesses, or what we call our entertainment businesses, is bright and will grow,” Iger said on the company’s earnings call on Monday.
Damaro will also grapple with the legacy of his predecessor. When Iger last left the company, return It took less than two years to right the ship.
—CNBC’s Lillian Rizzo contributed to this report.
