Disney’s Hunt For A New CEO Should Take A Lesson From Lucasfilm’s Recent Changes

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For a while, there have been whispers that Kathleen Kennedy would be stepping down as President of Lucasfilm, and this week that became official with her retirement announcement. While she’s faced some challenges, Kennedy leaves a strong legacy, having overseen films that earned over $5 billion worldwide and launched the first live-action TV series in the franchise.

The previous role was considered so demanding that leaders decided one person couldn’t handle it alone. Instead of hiring a single new President, they appointed two: Dave Filoni, who will continue as Chief Creative Officer, and Lynwen Brennan, who will focus on the business side as Co-President. This approach has been successful at DC Films, and hopefully, Disney’s current CEO search committee will consider a similar model.

Lucasfilm Went With Two New Leaders, And So Should Disney

Bob Iger plans to leave his role as CEO of Disney at the end of 2026. Disney has said they’ll announce his successor soon – potentially any day now. The leading candidates for the job appear to be Josh D’Amaro, who leads Disney’s parks and experiences, and Dana Walden, a co-head of Disney’s film and television studios. Disney is considering both internal and external candidates.

All signs point to a close contest between these two candidates. Walden has strong connections with creatives in Hollywood, something the previous Disney CEO, Bob Chapek, didn’t have. D’Amaro, on the other hand, leads the very profitable theme park and consumer products divisions. Both candidates bring valuable skills to the table, but also have areas where they could improve.

Here’s an idea worth considering: why not have both current leaders in charge? Disney could explore a co-CEO structure, which, while unusual, has worked for other companies. If that’s not feasible, they could appoint one as CEO and the other to a role like President. This would allow both leaders to use their individual strengths and steer Disney towards success.

It would work, and the reason I know it would work at Disney is that it’s happened before.

Disney’s Most Successful Times Came When Two People Were In Charge

Although Disney has never officially had two CEOs, the company actually started with a leadership partnership. When it was first founded as the Disney Bros. Studio, Walt Disney led the company alongside his brother, Roy.

Walt Disney was the imaginative force behind ambitious projects like the first full-length animated movie and the creation of Disneyland. His brother, Roy, was the practical one, handling the financial side to make it all possible. This partnership clearly worked, as Disney quickly became a major player in the entertainment world.

The same situation occurred in the mid-1980s when Disney hired Michael Eisner, its first and only CEO to date from outside the company. They also brought in Frank Wells as President. Many people compared Eisner and Wells to Walt and Roy Disney, seeing Eisner as the imaginative leader and Wells as the practical business manager.

Wells died unexpectedly in 1994 at the age of 62, and his absence was deeply felt. It’s reasonable to ask whether some of Disney’s unsuccessful choices in the late 1990s and early 2000s might have been different if someone had been there to collaborate with Eisner.

Both D’Amaro and Walden are highly capable leaders, and Disney should retain both of them. It’s normal for candidates who aren’t chosen as CEO to seek opportunities elsewhere. To avoid losing either of these valuable executives, Disney should consider promoting them both.

Both Josh D’Amaro and Dana Walden have the potential to be excellent CEOs, though each has their own strengths and weaknesses. Their combined skills, however, could be a perfect fit. It would be fitting for Disney, a company built by two brothers, to recognize the power of a collaborative leadership approach.

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2026-01-17 00:11