Dana Walden, co-chair of Disney Entertainment, will be the next President & Chief Creative Officer beginning March 18, 2026.
Dana Walden
The company had reportedly considered making D’Amaro and Walden Co-CEOs but ended up going the conventional solo route. D’Amaro is named the next CEO.
“Dana Walden is an excellent leader who commands tremendous respect from the creative community,” said current CEO Bob Iger. “Given that creativity is at the heart of everything Disney does, she is a wonderful choice to serve in this new leadership role. In the years since Dana joined Disney, she has accumulated great knowledge about the many facets of our businesses and brands, and is very well prepared to be President and Chief Creative Officer.”
Walden joined Disney via their acquisition of 21st Century Fox and related assets in 2019. She was chairperson and CEO of Fox Television Group, which included Fox Broadcasting Company, 20th Century Fox Television, Fox 21 Television Studios, Fox Consumer Products, and 20th Television. During her 25 years with 21st Century Fox, the studios overseen by Walden received 184 Emmy wins, 29 Golden Globes, 17 Screen Actors Guild Awards, and 24 Peabody Awards and Humanitas Prizes.
She became chair of Entertainment at Walt Disney Television and then, in 2022, chair of Disney Entertainment Content. In February 2023, she was named co-chair of Disney Entertainment alongside Alan Bergman.
Walden is responsible for global streaming and television, leading ABC Entertainment, ABC News, ABC Owned Television Stations, Disney Branded Television, Disney Television Studios (20th Television, ABC Signature, 20th Television Animation and Walt Disney Television Alternative), Freeform, FX, Hulu Originals, National Geographic Content, and Onyx Collective. Disney has been nominated for and won a record-breaking number of Emmy Awards during her tenure, including 183 Emmy Award nominations in 2024.
Through the duration of her career, teams and programs under Walden’s supervision have won more than 1,000 awards.
Successful Hulu Originals under Walden’s leadership have included The Handmaid’s Tale, The Kardashians, and Only Murders in the Building. In the past 30 years, Walden also oversaw the development and production of 24, Glee, Grey’s Anatomy, Homeland, This is Us, American Horror Story, black-ish, Family Guy, The Simpsons, American Idol, Dancing with the Stars, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Bluey, Shōgun, Abbot Elementary, The Bear, and Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Though Walden was responsible for the controversial suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live! last year, Kimmel praised how she handled the situation and said she should be the next CEO.
Walden is on the board of directors for UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Saban Free Clinic of Los Angeles. She’s a member of USC’s President’s Leadership Council and the President’s Circle of the NAACP. She was appointed by President Biden to the President’s Export Council.
In 2021, Harvard Undergraduate Women in Business gave her a Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2016, she received the National Association of Television Program Executive’s Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Award. In 2015, she was named MIPCOM’s Personality of the Year. She was honored as a CNBC Changemaker in 2024.
Search for Disney CEO
Iger initially stepped down from the CEO position and Bob Chapek took over in 2020. Iger remained executive chairman of the board through 2021 and then retired. 11 months later, Disney’s board fired Chapek and Iger returned under a two-year contract. It was quickly extended through 2026.
James P. Gorman led the search for Disney’s next CEO. He was brought in as chairman of the board in 2024 after his retirement from Morgan Stanley. Disney soon after announced their intention to name a new CEO in early February.
D’Amaro has been the long-time favorite for the position. Also under consideration were Walden’s fellow co-chair Alan Bergman and ESPN chairperson Jimmy Pitaro.
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