Disney CEO says he 'stood firm' amid 'barrage of attacks' over parental rights bill stance

Julia Johnson

September 12, 06:25 PM September 12, 06:25 PM

The Walt Disney Company's CEO, Bob Chapek, says he believes his staffers saw his "resiliency and consistency" as the company sustained attacks after entering the debate over Florida's Parental Rights in Education bill this past spring.

"I think our staff saw how I stood firm during the ultimate barrage of attacks from certain political constituencies and, frankly, I think it was much stronger and much longer and much harder than they ever could have imagined and we stood our ground," he said in a Monday interview with the Hollywood Reporter.

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"So I think it’s safe to say that actions speak louder than words, and they saw resiliency and consistency no matter how strong the attacks," he continued.

Of the controversy over the bill, Chapek said, "These are complex social issues where we absolutely, positively want to represent the needs and the expectations of our cast members." However, he said sometimes those needs are not consistent across groups of staff and consumers. "What we try to do is be everything to everybody," he explained.

Despite the company's previous actions, Chapek contended that "we certainly don’t want to get caught up in any political subterfuge, but at the same time, we also realize that we want to represent a brighter tomorrow for families of all types, regardless of how they define themselves."

In a March statement, the company said, "Florida’s HB 1557, also known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, should never have passed and should never have been signed into law," and vowed to work to have the law repealed.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) called the statement "fundamentally dishonest" at the time, adding that "they do not run this state. They do not control this state."

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By late April, the company lost nearly $50 billion in value following its feud with DeSantis. The Washington Examiner reported at the time that Disney's stock market cap declined by about $46.6 billion between March 1 and April 22.