Guide to Bob Iger’s Major Achievements at Disney

Robert Iger was the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of The Walt Disney Company from 2005 to 2020. Today, he serves as the company’s executive chairman.

A former TV weatherman, Bob landed a job at ABC in 1974 and steadily worked his way up the ranks of the network, mostly in the sports division, before becoming head of ABC Entertainment in 1989. Five years and a few rungs up the corporate ladder later, he became President and Chief Operating Officer of ABC’s parent company, which was purchased by Disney in 1996. Bob was promoted to President of Walt Disney International in 1999, then to President and COO of The Walt Disney Company as a whole in 2000.

In 2005, Bob was selected to succeed Michael Eisner as CEO of Disney, and in less than a year he had acquired Pixar Animation Studios, and begun a wholesale transformation of not just Disney, but the entertainment industry as a whole. Disney’s annual net income increased more than 400 percent under Bob’s leadership, which makes him uniquely qualified as a mentor for leaders, self-starters, entrepreneurs, and any kind of visionary looking to take their business venture to new heights.

Via careful brand management, a brilliant acquisition strategy, and an eye on the future, Disney is turning profits like no other entertainment company in history—and the company’s rise over the last 15-odd years coincides exactly with the tenure of Bob Iger. Here is an overview of some of Bob’s major accomplishments at Disney.

1. 1. Acquisition of Pixar: One of Bob's first big acquisitions as Disney's CEO was the computer animation studio Pixar. Pixar, which was owned by Apple's CEO Steve Jobs, already had a relationship with Walt Disney Studios, which acted as a distributor for their films. Bob saw the success of Pixar’s films and bought the company in 2006 for $7.4 billion. Since it's acquisition, Pixar has earned over $11 billion at the box office.
2. 2. Shanghai Disneyland: In 2008, Bob restructured the Disney Parks & Resorts subsidiary to bring Disney's theme parks into the twenty-first century. The largest effort began in 2009 with the vision of a new park in Shanghai, China. Shanghai Disneyland opened in 2016 and has attracted 11 million visitors in a single year.
   
3. 3. Acquisition of Marvel Studios: Bob acquired Marvel Studios in 2009 on the eve of the launch of The Avengers, the film that would establish Marvel as one of the most powerful franchise-building entertainment companies in the industry. Bob acquired the studio for $4 billion, which has earned over $22 billion in box office for Disney.
4. 4. Acquisition of Lucasfilm: Following the acquisition of Marvel Studios, Bob set his sights on Lucasfilm, the studio responsible for the Star Wars franchise. Disney already had a partnership with the Star Wars properties, with major rides at Disney's theme parks. In 2012, Bob acquired the studio from George Lucas for $4 billion, giving Disney control over two major Hollywood franchises—Star Wars and Indiana Jones. In 2015, Disney launched a sequel Star Wars trilogy with Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens which broke the record for the highest domestic box office gross.
5. 5. Acquisition of 21st Century Fox: In 2019, Bob bought 21st Century Fox and all of its related properties, including Avatar, Alien, The Simpsons, X-Men, Planet of the Apes, and much more. The cost for the studio was $71.3 billion.
6. 6. New Worlds in Disney's Parks: One of Iger's ideas for how to revive Disney's parks was to create new worlds specifically tied to Disney's new intellectual properties. In 2012, Disney's California Adventure in Disneyland debuted “Cars Land,” a world based on Pixar's film Cars. In 2017, an Avatar-themed world opened at Disney's Animal Kingdom in Disney World Resort, Florida. In 2019, Star Wars Galaxy's Edge opened both at Disneyland, California, and Disney World Resort, Florida.

In 2019, the year before Bob stepped down from his role as CEO of Disney, he published his first memoir, The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company. Bob reminisces on his achievements and struggles as Disney's CEO in the memoir, which became a New York Times bestseller and was named a Best Book of the Year by NPR. Bob was also named Businessperson of the Year by TIME that same year.

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