> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.ceo.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Disney and the "Don't Say Gay" bill - URL: https://www.ceo.com/blog/disney-and-the-don-t-say-gay-bill/ - Published: 2026-02-18T03:03:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-19T03:05:28.000Z - Description: Chapek had spent decades inside Disney, most recently running its theme parks and consumer products division - Author: CEO.com - Tags: #blog On February 25, 2020, Bob Iger stepped down as CEO of the Walt Disney Company after fifteen years at the helm. His handpicked successor, Bob Chapek, assumed office immediately. Chapek had spent decades inside Disney, most recently running its theme parks and consumer products division. He was an operations executive inheriting a creative empire. The timing was terrible. Within weeks, a pandemic shut down Disney's theme parks, cruise ships, and film productions. Chapek spent his first two years managing crisis after crisis. By most financial measures, he did it well. Disney's fiscal first-quarter results in early 2022 [blew past analyst expectations](https://fortune.com/2022/03/21/disney-bob-chapek-bo-iger-ceo-feud-dont-say-gay-bill/?ref=ceo.com) on earnings per share, revenue, and Disney+ subscribers. But the crisis that would define and ultimately end Chapek's tenure had nothing to do with a balance sheet. --- ### The Bill In January 2022, Florida's legislature introduced the Parental Rights in Education Act, which opponents would come to call the ["Don't Say Gay" bill](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney%5Fand%5FFlorida's%5FParental%5FRights%5Fin%5FEducation%5FAct?ref=ceo.com). The bill prohibited classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity from kindergarten through third grade and restricted it in higher grades to what was deemed "age-appropriate." Critics argued the language was vague enough to extend the ban to all grade levels and would silence LGBTQ+ students and families. Florida is home to Walt Disney World, one of the company's most important properties. Disney employs over 75,000 workers in the state. It is among Florida's largest private employers. The [Orlando Sentinel reported](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney%5Fand%5FFlorida's%5FParental%5FRights%5Fin%5FEducation%5FAct?ref=ceo.com) that Disney had donated money to every one of the bill's sponsors and co-sponsors, totaling roughly $200,000. Pressure was building. AIDS Healthcare Foundation launched a [TV ad campaign in Orlando](https://www.queerency.com/a-timeline-of-disneys-response-to-floridas-dont-say-gay-bill/?ref=ceo.com) urging Disney to speak out. LGBTQ+ employees began posting public statements and videos expressing frustration. The Hollywood Reporter published a piece citing insiders who said Chapek ["is less willing than predecessor Bob Iger to take public political stands."](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/disney-florida-dont-say-gay-bill-1235103165/?ref=ceo.com) Meanwhile, Iger himself had already weighed in. On February 25, 2022, he [tweeted](https://fortune.com/2022/03/21/disney-bob-chapek-bo-iger-ceo-feud-dont-say-gay-bill/?ref=ceo.com): "I'm with the President on this! If passed, this bill will put vulnerable, young LGBTQ people in jeopardy." Disney heiress Abigail Disney piled on days later. ["When laws are being passed that are this hateful and dripping with prejudice, there is no neutrality,"](https://deadline.com/2022/03/disney-dont-say-gay-bill-florida-bob-chapek-lgbtq-ron-desantis-1234972655/?ref=ceo.com) she tweeted on March 3\. "Not saying anything is saying a lot." The current CEO's predecessor and his own family's descendants had taken public positions before the current CEO had said a word. --- ### The First Position: Silence On March 7, Chapek released an internal memo. Disney would not take a public stance on the bill. Corporate statements, he wrote, ["do very little to change outcomes or minds."](https://deadline.com/2022/03/disney-dont-say-gay-bill-florida-bob-chapek-lgbtq-ron-desantis-1234972655/?ref=ceo.com) Instead, they are "weaponized by one side or the other to further divide and inflame." He pointed to Disney's content as the real expression of its values, citing films like *Encanto*, *Black Panther*, and shows like *Modern Family* and *Pose*. "These and all of our diverse stories are our corporate statements," Chapek wrote, "and they are more powerful than any tweet or lobbying effort." Employees organized. A site called [WhereIsChapek.com](http://whereischapek.com/?ref=ceo.com) collected anonymous testimonials from Disney workers expressing disapproval. Pixar employees alleged in a public statement that Disney had been [actively censoring same-sex scenes](https://www.fatherly.com/news/disney-employees-wont-back-down-to-dont-say-gay-bs?ref=ceo.com) in their films. "Nearly every moment of overtly gay affection is cut at Disney's behest," the group wrote. Several longtime Disney employees told [Deadline](https://deadline.com/2022/03/disney-dont-say-gay-walk-out-lgbtq-staff-bob-chapek-florida-1234979311/?ref=ceo.com) it was "the worst week they've ever had working at the company." --- ### The Reversal Two days later, on March 9, at Disney's annual shareholder meeting, Chapek changed course. He told shareholders he had [called Florida Governor Ron DeSantis](https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/09/media/dont-say-gay-bill-disney-chapek-desantis/index.html?ref=ceo.com) that morning to express the company's "disappointment and concern." He acknowledged that Disney's behind-the-scenes approach had failed. "I understand our original approach, no matter how well intended, didn't quite get the job done," he said. By March 11, in another company-wide letter, Chapek went further. ["You needed me to be a stronger ally in the fight for equal rights and I let you down,"](https://deadline.com/2022/03/disney-dont-say-gay-response-sorry-bob-chapek-ron-desantis-1234976280/?ref=ceo.com) he wrote. "I am sorry." Disney pledged $5 million to organizations working to protect LGBTQ+ rights and signed the Human Rights Campaign's statement opposing the legislation. The Human Rights Campaign [refused the donation](https://www.npr.org/2022/03/08/1085130633/disney-response-florida-bill-dont-say-gay?ref=ceo.com), saying it wouldn't accept Disney's money "until we see them build on their public commitment." On March 22, Disney employees [staged a full-day walkout](https://www.fatherly.com/news/disney-employees-wont-back-down-to-dont-say-gay-bs?ref=ceo.com) at properties in Florida and California, including subsidiaries like Marvel, Pixar, and Lucasfilm. DeSantis signed the bill into law on March 28. --- ### The Retaliation According to DeSantis's own account in his book, published the following year, Chapek had called the governor as pressure mounted. "We get pressured all the time," Chapek told him. ["But this time is different. I haven't seen anything like this before."](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/27/disney-ex-ceo-chapek-called-desantis-over-dont-say-gay-book.html?ref=ceo.com) DeSantis says he replied: "Do not get involved with this legislation. You will end up putting yourself in an untenable position." He warned Chapek that critics would ask why Disney had never spoken out about China, where the company generates significant revenue. Chapek got involved anyway. Or, more precisely, his employees forced him to. Within weeks, DeSantis [called a special legislative session](https://commercialobserver.com/2022/04/desantis-ends-disneys-special-status-in-reedy-creek/?ref=ceo.com). In 72 hours, the Florida legislature introduced, passed, and sent to the governor's desk a bill stripping Disney of its self-governing status through the [Reedy Creek Improvement District](https://www.factcheck.org/2022/05/desantis-vs-disney-qa/?ref=ceo.com), a special tax district that had allowed Disney to manage its own zoning, sewage, transportation, and security on 25,000 acres since 1967. DeSantis signed it. "You're a corporation based in Burbank, California," he [said](https://www.factcheck.org/2022/05/desantis-vs-disney-qa/?ref=ceo.com), "and you're going to marshal your economic might to attack the parents of my state? We view that as a provocation, and we're going to fight back against that." The district was renamed the [Central Florida Tourism Oversight District](https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/27/politics/desantis-disney-reedy-creek/index.html?ref=ceo.com). DeSantis appointed a new five-member board to replace Disney's hand-picked supervisors, stacking it with conservative allies and campaign donors. "Today, the corporate kingdom finally comes to an end," [DeSantis said](https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/27/politics/desantis-disney-reedy-creek/index.html?ref=ceo.com) at the signing ceremony, held at a fire station inside the district itself. "There's a new sheriff in town." The move carried real consequences. Reedy Creek held an estimated [$1 billion in outstanding bond debt](https://commercialobserver.com/2022/04/desantis-ends-disneys-special-status-in-reedy-creek/?ref=ceo.com). The district operated at a loss of $5 to $10 million annually, which Disney had absorbed internally. Local taxpayers in Orange and Osceola counties suddenly faced the prospect of inheriting those obligations. Residents [sued DeSantis](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/florida-taxpayers-sue-gov-ron-desantis-for-eliminating-disneys-special-district-1235140609/?ref=ceo.com) in federal court, arguing the law violated Disney's First Amendment rights and would burden taxpayers. Some of DeSantis's own party balked. Former Vice President Mike Pence [said](https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/27/politics/desantis-disney-reedy-creek/index.html?ref=ceo.com) the conflict was "beyond the scope of what I as a conservative, limited government Republican would be prepared to do." New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu called it "the worst precedent in the world." --- ### The Firing On November 20, 2022, Disney's board fired Bob Chapek. [Bob Iger came out of retirement](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/disney-bob-iger-returning-ceo-bob-chapek-exits-1235266823/?ref=ceo.com) to replace him. The "Don't Say Gay" episode was not the sole reason for Chapek's firing. Disney's stock had dropped 40% that year. The company's streaming division had posted [$1.5 billion in quarterly losses](https://fortune.com/2022/11/21/bob-chapek-disney-ceo-bob-iger-tenure-replacement/?ref=ceo.com). Chapek had mishandled a public dispute with Scarlett Johansson over *Black Widow* compensation. His relationship with Iger had deteriorated badly, with Iger privately telling associates, as the New York Times reported, that [Disney "seemed to be losing its soul."](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/06/disney-succession-mess-iger-chapek.html?ref=ceo.com) But the "Don't Say Gay" crisis crystallized the broader critique: Chapek lacked the political instincts, creative relationships, and communication skills that the role demanded. He had tried silence. He had tried reversal. Both positions cost him. Within days of returning, [Iger fired Chapek's closest advisors](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/06/disney-succession-mess-iger-chapek.html?ref=ceo.com), including his former chief of staff, his assistant, and his de facto second-in-command. --- ### The Aftermath In April 2023, Disney [sued DeSantis in federal court](https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/disney-sues-ron-desantis-over-reedy-creek-control-rcna81587?ref=ceo.com), alleging a "targeted campaign of government retaliation" that violated the company's First Amendment rights. The DeSantis-appointed board countersued. The legal battle stretched for over a year. In March 2024, with DeSantis's presidential bid behind him, [both sides settled](https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/27/business/desantis-disney-fight-reaches-settlement?ref=ceo.com). Disney agreed to drop its lawsuits and accept that the development agreements it had rushed through before the state takeover were null and void. In return, the two sides would negotiate a new development agreement. Neither party admitted fault. By June 2024, Disney [dropped its federal appeal entirely](https://variety.com/2024/biz/news/disney-drops-appeal-desantis-florida-1236036533/?ref=ceo.com) after a new 15-year development agreement was approved, allowing Disney to invest up to $17 billion in expanding its Orlando parks. The fight was over. But the ruling that dismissed Disney's First Amendment claim still stands. The court found that Florida had the power to revoke the district, and that its motives for doing so were irrelevant. --- ### What This Case Reveals Bob Chapek faced a version of the problem that confronts every CEO who leads a large workforce during a period of cultural and political tension. The question is not whether leaders should take positions on social issues. The question is whether they can avoid it. Chapek tried. His initial instinct was the same as Brian Armstrong's at Coinbase and Jason Fried's at Basecamp: stay out of it. Let the work speak. Avoid the trap of making corporate statements that get "weaponized." The logic is defensible. But it assumes two things that turned out to be wrong. First, that a CEO's silence will be read as neutral. Abigail Disney called it immediately: "Not saying anything is saying a lot." Second, that the internal culture of a company can be separated from external political events. Chapek's employees didn't experience the bill as an abstract policy debate. They experienced it as a threat to colleagues and their families. For LGBTQ+ employees at Disney's Florida properties, this wasn't a "societal issue." It was their commute, their children's schools, their daily reality. But Chapek's reversal proved equally costly. Once Disney publicly opposed the bill, DeSantis treated it as an act of political aggression and responded with the full force of the state. A 55-year-old governing arrangement was demolished in 72 hours. A billion dollars in bond obligations were put at risk. A company that had been one of the state's most important economic engines found itself in a legal fight with the state itself. The case is sometimes framed as evidence that CEOs should stay out of politics. But the evidence points in the opposite direction: Chapek tried both positions, and both failed. His silence emboldened critics internally and let Iger claim the moral high ground publicly. His reversal was read as weakness rather than courage, since it came only after sustained pressure rather than from conviction. And the reversal triggered political retaliation that silence might have avoided. DeSantis himself described the trap perfectly when he warned Chapek: "You will end up putting yourself in an untenable position." The word was untenable. Not "wrong." The position was untenable regardless of which direction it faced. This is the [fragility](https://www.amazon.com/Antifragile-Things-That-Disorder-Incerto/dp/0812979680?ref=ceo.com) that Nassim Taleb describes: a system structured so that the leader absorbs all the risk. Speak up, and you alienate one constituency. Stay silent, and you alienate another. Either way, something breaks. The question is not whether to take a position. The question is whether you understand which breaks you can survive. Chapek didn't survive either one.