Disney is reportedly considering Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson as a successor to Disney CEO Bob Iger, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.
Wilson is reportedly one of several external candidates, according to unnamed sources cited by the WSJ. EA declined to comment on the story.
Disney is reportedly working with recruiters from the firm Heidrick & Struggles to review external candidates, and the search firm has identified at least two more potential external candidates, the sources told the WSJ.
There were rumors floated in the past year that Disney wanted going to buy EA, particularly when the partnership on Star Wars games was going really well. At that time, the idea of Wilson becoming CEO of Disney was also floated.
Our Disney expert Mike Minotti noted that Wilson could be an odd choice. Running a Disney requires knowledge of movies, merchandise, theme parks, TV, subscriptions, sports, cruise lines, games and more. Wilson may only cover a couple of those bases.
“I think that Iger is afraid of making another mistake with video games, but recognizes the synergies EA brings to Disney,” said Michael Pachter, an analyst for games at Wedbush Securities. “They could integrate Ultimate Team with ESPN and ultimately perhaps even get into real money sports wagering. Andrew is young enough to replace Iger, has 10 years of CEO experience and has clearly built a great business at EA. I’m not sure who else is in the mix (there may be media types who make more sense), but Andrew would eliminate the concern about another video game failure by Disney. It is plausible at least that he is under consideration.”
The WSJ said internal candidates are Disney co-chairs Dana Walden and Alan Bergman, ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro, and Disney Experiences chairman Josh D’Amaro.