Former Disney CEO Bob Chapek has remained relatively quiet about the rather spectacular end of his time running The Walt Disney Company. It seems that’s about to change.
Chapek’s new memoir, Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth, will be released September 29, and The New York Times obtained an advance copy. According to the Times’ early look at the book, Chapek has plenty to say about his 2022 firing, Bob Iger, and some of the decisions Disney fans still associate with his time running the company. The publisher describes the book as the first time Chapek has publicly told his side of what happened during his brief tenure as Disney CEO.
And Chapek apparently does not believe his firing was the result of his own performance.
According to the Times, Chapek places the blame on Iger, portraying his predecessor and eventual successor as someone who worked against him after handing over the CEO position. Chapek alleges that Iger criticized him privately to influential people in Hollywood and inside Disney, and he believes Iger played an intentional role in bringing his tenure to an end. Iger declined to comment to the Times.
The book also reportedly raises questions about Iger’s sudden decision to step down as CEO in February 2020, shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic brought much of Disney’s business to a halt. Chapek writes that others have told him they believed Iger anticipated the pandemic, but the Times notes that Chapek provides no evidence for that claim. Disney has previously denied that COVID-19 had anything to do with Iger’s decision to step down.
For Disney Parks fans, one of the more interesting revelations may be Chapek’s defense of the pricing strategies that made him an especially controversial figure among guests.
According to the Times, Chapek stands behind bringing more dynamic pricing into Disney’s theme parks and the company’s efforts to generate additional revenue from its guests. During his leadership of the Parks division and later Disney itself, guests saw higher prices and charges introduced for some things that had previously been complimentary, including shorter attraction queues and Walt Disney World Resort hotel parking.
Rather than expressing regret over that strategy, Chapek reportedly argues in the book that increased prices helped manage crowds while improving guest satisfaction. He also points to the financial performance of the Parks business during his time leading the division as evidence that the strategy worked.
There’s another familiar Disney name in the book as well: current Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro.
Chapek reportedly describes D’Amaro as one of his protégés and says he repeatedly advocated for D’Amaro’s advancement within Disney. D’Amaro ultimately succeeded Chapek as chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products in 2020 and became CEO of The Walt Disney Company in 2026. A spokesperson for D’Amaro declined to comment to the Times.
Chapek spent nearly 30 years at Disney before his departure, beginning with the company in 1993 and eventually becoming chairman of its Parks business before succeeding Iger as CEO in February 2020. His time at the top lasted less than three years before Disney’s board removed him in November 2022 and brought Iger back. Gallery Books says Behind the Castle Walls is Chapek’s opportunity to tell his version of those years and address what he believes his Disney legacy should be.
Based on what the Times has revealed from its advance copy, it doesn’t sound like Chapek intends to tiptoe around what happened.
Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth will be released Tuesday, September 29, 2026.
