Dana Walden, incoming president and chief creative officer of The Walt Disney Company, has unveiled the new leadership structure for Disney Entertainment, bringing together the company’s streaming, film, and television businesses along with its games and digital entertainment division. Walden reports directly to Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro.
“The strength of Disney has always been the emotional connection between our stories and the people who love them,” said Walden. “As fans engage with Disney across more formats and platforms than ever before, we are bringing together the full power of our creative businesses to build an even more connected experience for audiences. I’m very fortunate to work alongside such a passionate and talented group of leaders who are driven by the joy of storytelling, and I’m especially excited to work with our new CEO Josh D’Amaro as we enter this next chapter together.”
Walden’s new senior leadership team is as follows: Alan Bergman, chairman of Disney Entertainment, Studios, will continue overseeing all aspects of the company’s film studios, and maintaining shared oversight of Direct to Consumer alongside Walden.
Joe Earley and Adam Smith will become co-presidents of Direct to Consumer, sharing responsibility for strategy and financial performance across Disney+ and Hulu, reporting to Walden and Bergman. Earley will also serve as head of content strategy for Direct to Consumer, while Smith continues as chief product and technology officer for Disney Entertainment, and for ESPN, where he will continue to report to ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro.
Debra OConnell will assume the newly created role of chairman of Disney Entertainment Television, overseeing the television brands, including ABC Entertainment, Disney Branded Television, Hulu Originals, National Geographic Content and creative for 20th Television and 20th Television Animation. She will also continue to oversee ABC News and the ABC Owned Television Stations.
Sean Shoptaw, EVP, Games and Digital Entertainment, along with his organization, will now join Disney Entertainment, reporting to Walden.
John Landgraf, chairman of FX, will continue to report directly to Walden.
Asad Ayaz, Disney’s chief marketing and brand officer, will report to incoming Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro and Walden.
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