What Disney’s CEO Change Means For The Company

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If you’ve ridden the Disney Wish, explored new themed lands, or noticed changes at your favorite park over the past few years, you’ve already experienced Josh D’Amaro’s vision for Disney. Now, the man who has shaped your recent park experiences is about to run the entire Walt Disney Company.

Disney announced Tuesday that D’Amaro, who chairs the company’s hugely successful parks division, will succeed Bob Iger as the next chief executive. For theme park enthusiasts and frequent visitors, this isn’t just corporate news—it’s a signal about the future of the places where you create memories with your family.

A Leader Who Actually Worked the Parks

Here’s what makes D’Amaro different from your typical corner-office executive: he’s been with Disney since 1998, starting out at Disneyland. Not in a corporate tower. At Disneyland. He worked his way through the company from the ground up, holding positions across business, marketing, and operations throughout Disney’s parks and resorts.

That trajectory matters. D’Amaro served as president of Disneyland Resort and president of Walt Disney World Resort before being promoted to his current post as head of Disney parks and cruises, consumer products, and Walt Disney Imagineering in May 2020.

Before his parks leadership roles, D’Amaro worked across a range of business positions within Disney, including CFO of Disney Consumer Products Global Licensing. Before joining Disney entirely, he worked in Gillette’s finance department. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration/marketing from Georgetown University.

The 54-year-old Massachusetts native is the second parks chief to ascend to the top job after Bob Chapek, whose brief tenure as CEO interrupted Iger’s two stretches at the helm.

He’s One of Us: A Lifelong Disney Fan

Here’s a detail that might resonate with anyone who has a must-do attraction list: D’Amaro has one too. He told the Orlando Business Journal in 2020 that his must-do Disney World ride is “Peter Pan’s Flight,” which he said he and his siblings rode as kids—an experience he said he tries to recreate “whenever I’m here.”

Think about that. The incoming CEO of The Walt Disney Company still makes time for Peter Pan’s Flight because it connects him to childhood memories with his family. From childhood, D’Amaro was a Disney fan. That emotional connection to the parks isn’t something you can learn in business school or develop in a boardroom. It’s the kind of thing that shapes how you think about guest experience, about preserving magic while still running a profitable business.

For frequent visitors who worry about whether Disney leadership truly understands what makes the parks special, D’Amaro’s personal history offers some reassurance. He’s not approaching this role as someone who views theme parks as mere revenue generators—he’s someone who grew up loving them.

The Track Record: What He’s Already Built for You

Under D’Amaro’s leadership, the parks added new attractions and themed lands. But perhaps most notably for Disney vacation planners, the division also expanded its cruise line with new ships—Disney Wish (2022), Disney Treasure (2024), and Disney Destiny (2025).

If you’ve been following the cruise line expansion, you know this represents a significant investment in guest experiences beyond the traditional parks. The addition of three new ships in just four years demonstrates an aggressive growth strategy focused on giving Disney fans more ways to experience the brand.

D’Amaro’s appointment as CEO will be effective as of Disney’s annual meeting on March 18. At that point, Iger will transition to serving as senior adviser and a member of the Disney board until his retirement from the company on Dec. 31, 2026.

The Transition: What Happens Next

The 10 board members, including Iger, unanimously approved D’Amaro’s appointment as CEO at a meeting Monday afternoon, according to Variety. Disney announced the succession plan Tuesday morning, ending years of speculation about who would take the place of Iger, 74.

“Josh D’Amaro is an exceptional leader and the right person to become our next CEO,” Iger said in a statement, per CNN. “He has an instinctive appreciation of the Disney brand, and a deep understanding of what resonates with our audiences, paired with the rigor and attention to detail required to deliver some of our most ambitious projects.”

That phrase—“what resonates with our audiences”—should catch the attention of anyone who visits Disney parks regularly. Iger is essentially saying D’Amaro understands guests, understands fans, understands what makes Disney experiences meaningful.

Disney TV and streaming boss Dana Walden, who was thought to be the other leading contender for the CEO role, will become the company’s president and chief creative officer.

Here’s an interesting coincidence that Disney fans might appreciate: D’Amaro has the same birthday as Bob Iger, with Josh’s on February 10, 1971 and Bob’s on February 10, 1951. Aquarius!

But beyond astrological curiosities, what matters is that someone who has spent decades in parks operations. For frequent visitors and theme park enthusiasts, D’Amaro’s rise represents something meaningful: a leader who has walked in your shoes, who understands the magic from the inside out, and who has already demonstrated a commitment to expanding and enhancing the experiences you love. What he does with that opportunity will shape your Disney vacations for years to come.