In what turned out to be his final full year as CEO of The Walt Disney Co., former CEO Bob Chapek earned $24.2 million in total compensation during the company’s fiscal 2022 year (ending Sept. 30), down slightly from 2021, according to Disney’s preliminary proxy filing, which it submitted on Tuesday morning.
In addition, Disney revealed that Chapek should receive a severance package valued at $20.4 million, though the exact number will depend on Disney’s share price over time. Chapek was terminated by the Disney board after Disney’s last fiscal year ended. That severance package includes Disney stock currently valued at $12.6 million, with the rest in cash.
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Meanwhile, current Disney CEO Bob Iger, who stepped down from the company at the end of 2021, earned $15 million in compensation during Disney’s last fiscal year (he worked for the company as executive chairman for part of that period). Disney CFO Christine McCarthy was paid $20.2 million in fiscal 2022.
Iger, of course, re-joined Disney in November, with a pay package valued at about $27 million in annual target compensation, including a $1 million salary, a $1 million target bonus, and the rest in equity.
Chapek was paid $32 million in fiscal 2021, while Iger received $46 million.
The Disney preliminary proxy filing comes as the company prepares to fight activist investor Nelson Peltz, who is seeking a seat on Disney’s board of directors. Peltz is asking Disney shareholders to vote for him in lieu of one of Disney’s existing directors. The company on Tuesday laid out its argument for why that it believes that is not a good idea.
The company has not yet set a date or location for its 2023 annual meeting, with that information set to be disclosed in its final proxy. A letter from the Disney board says that Iger is currently “assisting the Board in identifying, developing and mentoring a successor CEO, a process which has already begun.”
