Bob Chapek's early blunders made it hard to escape Bob Iger's shadow at Disney

Bob Iger was always going to be a tough act to follow. But Bob Chapek's tenure at the helm of Disney was also marred by unforced errors that ultimately made it impossible to escape Iger's shadow.

Sunday evening, Chapek was ousted and replaced by Iger, just under three years after the success of Chapek Iger as CEO in February 2020.

Chapek came to the top position in the Parks and Resorts division and had little experience in handling A-list talent and high-pressure political situations (a particular strength of Iger, who made tough decisions with a touch of velvet). What followed was a series of jaw-dropping blunders, including a public run-in with an actor.

In the summer of 2021, Disney released Marvel's "Black Widow" simultaneously on Disney+ and in the movie theaters — boosting the streaming service at the expense of box office revenue. But the company failed to strike a deal with the film's star, Scarlett Johansson, whose pay was tied to a series of box office bonuses. This prompted the actor to take legal action, bringing the contentious negotiations out into the open. He compounded the error by endorsing a public statement that Johansson was greedy and insensitive to the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. (The lawsuit was quickly settled.) It was astonishing to many industry insiders that Chapek would so openly castigate a movie star for respecting his contractual rights. A rival studio head told Variety at the time that it was "the most embarrassing thing I've witnessed in my career".

Chapek also resisted pressure to take a stand against a Florida law restricting classroom instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation, dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" bill by its critics. Chapek chose to remain neutral even after Iger tweeted his opposition, and despite the company's history as a champion of LGBTQ rights.

This led to employee walkouts. Many employees were particularly outraged when Chapek suggested that the company's best way to bring about change was through its inclusive content. It emerged that the company had removed a gay kiss from "Lightyear", which was restored after Pixar employees wrote an open letter criticizing the company.

Chapek was forced to reverse completely on "Don't Say Gay". But with the zeal of recent converts, he opposed the law in such vehement terms that it drew a concerted backlash from Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and social conservatives. This has compromised the company's political interests in Florida, where 40% of its employees are based. Just before that headline-grabbing debacle, Chapek hired the communications strategist who helped BP weather the 2010 oil spill disaster as the company's chief spokesman and policy adviser. Executive Geoff Morrell spent around 90 days in the job before being ousted (following the Don't Say Gay backlash). It was another blow to the C-suite, which many thought would never have happened under an Iger regime - especially with the fearsome and fearsome Zenia Mucha in the role briefly held by Morrell.

Just a few months after that, Chapek shocked the industry again by unceremoniously firing Peter Rice, the chairman of Disney General Entertainment Television, who has been one of the industry's most highly regarded executives since his long career under the Murdochs at 20th Century Fox. Rice had been seen as a possible candidate for Chapek's job, should it become open, and the move was seen by many as a preemptive strike against a formidable challenger. Board chair Susan Arnold had to release a statement supporting Chapek: "Bob and his management team have the support and confidence of the board."

To confirm this, the board then extended Chapek's contract for three years. But, just five months into the extension, the board has made a clear decision to do an about-face. Iger officially returned to duty on Sunday evening.