Disney has named Alan Bergman as Chairman, Disney Studios Content. Alan Horn will now serve the division as Chief Creative Officer. Both executives will report to Disney CEO Bob Chapek. Horn and Bergman have both held the role of Co-Chairmen since May 2019.
Bergman was always going to be Horn’s successor that was evident from May 2019 although last-minute rumors made intriguing cases for other executives. It seems to be all but confirmed that Alan Horn will leave Disney when Bob Iger leaves. Both pulled a similar move as they have stepped down from their main business duties to strictly focus on the creative aspects of Disney.
“The Walt Disney Studios’ achievements under the leadership of Alan Horn and Alan Bergman have been nothing short of extraordinary. Having worked closely for years with Alan Bergman, an exceptional leader, and proven executive, I couldn’t be more pleased to name him as Chairman,” said Chapek. “And we are incredibly fortunate to have Alan Horn continue as the Studios’ Chief Creative Officer. Our studios are unmatched in their ability to create incredible cinematic experiences, and with this new structure, we are ensuring a vital continuity of leadership.”
The shift will officially happen on January 1, 2021. Bergman will now oversee creative, production, marketing, and operations for Disney Studios Content, which encompasses Disney, Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, 20th Century Studios, Searchlight Pictures, and Blue Sky Studios, as well as Disney Theatrical Productions. Horn will focus on the creative efforts of each studio.
The list of executives that will dual report to Bergman and Horn are 20th Century Studios President Steve Asbell, Blue Sky Studios Co-President Robert Baird, Walt Disney Studios Motion Picture Production President Sean Bailey, Pixar Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter, Marvel Studios President and Marvel Chief Creative Officer Kevin Feige, Searchlight Pictures Chairman Stephen Gilula, Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy, Walt Disney Animation Studios Chief Creative Officer Jennifer Lee, Searchlight Pictures Chairman Nancy Utley, and Disney Theatrical Productions President Thomas Schumacher.
“It has been an honor to lead The Walt Disney Studios over the past eight-plus years, and I’m so grateful not only to Bob Iger for making it possible in the first place but to the Studios team, whom I find endlessly inspiring — I hope they are all as proud of what we’ve been able to do together as I am,” said Horn. “It has been an amazing run, and the time feels right to shift my focus solely to our enormous creative slate. As for our new Studios Chairman, Alan Bergman has been at my side since day one; he has been the best partner imaginable, and the team could be in no better hands.”
During Horn and Bergman’s tenure, Disney became a box office juggernaut. During their tenure, The Walt Disney Studios set numerous records at the box office, surpassing $7 billion globally in 2016 and 2018 and $11 billion in 2019, the only studio ever to have reached these thresholds.
During the Horn-Bergman era Disney produced countless hits and recent successes like Disney’s live-action Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King; Walt Disney Animation Studios’ Frozen, Zootopia, and Frozen 2; Pixar’s Coco, Incredibles 2, and Toy Story 4; Lucasfilm’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker; and Marvel Studios’ Black Panther, Captain Marvel, Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame, the latter of which is the highest-grossing global release of all time.
Even though Horn will be Disney’s Chief Creative Officer it looks like his career at the Mouse House will be winding down. What a career for Alan Horn. Bob Iger brings him out of retirement in 2012 and he goes on a fairytale run of his own, creating some of the biggest hits of all time for Disney.
Tweets that sum up this situation perfectly:
https://twitter.com/loudmouthjulia/status/1341093230956470277
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Zach Perilstein is the Editor-in-Chief of the Boardwalk Times
