Nelson Pelts and Blackwells Capital have been pushing for seats on the Disney Board of Directors for some time now. According to Reuters, and before Disney’s annual shareholders meeting, the company announced that its current Board of Directors was successfully re-elected.
The slate of executives includes:
- Mary T. Barra – Chair and Chief Executive Officer of General Motors Co.
- Safra A. Catz – Chief Executive Officer of Oracle Corp. and its former President
- Amy L. Chang – former senior executive at Cisco Systems, Inc. and Google; current director of Procter & Gamble Co.
- D. Jeremy Darroch – former Executive Chairman and Group Chief Executive Officer of Sky
- Carolyn N. Everson – former senior executive at Instacart, Meta Platforms, Inc., and Microsoft Corp.; current director of The Coca-Cola Co. and Under Armour Inc.
- Michael B.G. Froman – President of the Council on Foreign Relations and former Vice Chairman and President, Strategic Growth at Mastercard Inc.
- James P. Gorman – Executive Chairman and former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Morgan Stanley
- Robert A. Iger – Disney’s Chief Executive Officer, formerly also served as Chairman
- Maria Elena Lagomasino – Chief Executive Officer and Managing Partner of WE Family Offices; former senior executive at JP Morgan Private Bank and Chase Manhattan Bank; current director of The Coca-Cola Co.
- Calvin R. McDonald – Chief Executive Officer of lululemon athletic inc.
- Mark G. Parker – serves as Chairman of the Disney Board; Executive Chairman of NIKE, Inc., and its former Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer
- Derica W. Rice – former senior executive at CVS Health Corp. and Eli Lilly and Co.; current director of The Carlyle Group Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., and Target Corp.
Trian Fund
Nelson Peltz, CEO of Trian Fund Management, began pushing for a seat on the Disney Board in early 2023. Soon after, he gave up on this initial proxy fight, but last fall he picked up his efforts again. With former Marvel Entertainment Chairman Ike Perlmutter on his side, Peltz nominated himself and former Disney CFO Jay Rasulo for the Board. Disney denied Feltz’s request for seats and amended its bylaws regarding nominations by outside parties. The proxy fight ensued.
Peltz has suggested bundling ESPN+ with another streaming service for increased profitability, blaming the current Board for Disney’s “declining financial performance.” In Trian’s “white paper” of recommendations, they stated Peltz and Rasulo would initiate a board-led review of Disney’s creative process and structure.
Blackwells Capital
In early 2024, Blackwells Capital launched a campaign for seats, nominating former Warner Bros. and NBCUniversal executive Jessica Schell, Tribeca Film Festival co-founder Craig Hatkoff, and TaskRabbit founder Leah Solivan.
Blackwells has suggested using AI technology to bring characters to life while splitting the Walt Disney Company into three segments.
Disney Response
Meanwhile, Disney officially nominated all of its current Board members, including the recent additions of Morgan Stanley Chairman and CEO James P. Gorman and former Group Chief Executive of Sky Jeremy Darroch. Peltz had hoped to replace Maria Elena Lagomasino and Michael Froman.
Disney together with CEO Bob Iger, repeatedly urged shareholders to vote for its nominees and not for Trian’s or Blackwells’. Strategies included a personal plea by Mr. Iger, a letter highlighting the progress made during Iger’s tenure, a video of Ludwig Von Drake instructing how to vote, and a political ad-style attack video.
Disney and Mr. Iger received support from Proxy advisor Glass Lewis, BlackRock, and T. Rowe Price. Public supporters included former Imagineer Bob Weis, George Lucas, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Olaf voice actor and Disney Legend Josh Gad, and the grandchildren of Walt and Roy Disney.
Glad that the current Disney Board of Directors was re-elected?