Some of his work prior to being in the parks division is also…well, as the meme goes, not great, Bob. (If there is one bonus to this news, it’s that we can keep using that meme. Truly, we’re all winners.) As an earlier bio of Chapek
notes, he “spearheaded” the vault strategy of hiding classic Disney movies away from home-media purchases. (Seeing as Disney+ essentially has upended that strategy, thank God, it’s an interesting thing to see from the top dog of the company.)
But it’s Chapek’s work in the Disney theme parks that’s raised
concerns for fans on Twitter. Chapek’s tenure at Disney Parks, Experiences and Products is marked by the increase of hard-ticket events, a dwindling amount of operating hours for the parks, and outrageous price increases that have raised the sense that to go to a Disney theme park requires you to be outlandishly wealthy. Though Chapek has literal decades of experience at the Walt Disney Company, both in filmed and live entertainment, his track record isn’t automatically encouraging.