Kristina Schake, whose duties as Disney‘s communications head encompass the company’s closely watched CEO succession process, has been given a two-year contract extension.
In an SEC filing, Disney said it had extended the agreement with Schake to continue as Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Communications Officer through June 30, 2027. Her annual base salary is being bumped up to $875,000, though the amount of Schake’s annual bonus and equity award are remaining unchanged, the filing noted.
CEO Bob Iger has told the company’s board of directors that he will step down when his current contract expires at the end of 2026. A committee of the board tasked with identifying his successor has said it is aiming to finalize its pick by early next year in order to enable the incoming CEO to co-ordinate the handoff with Iger.
Along with the corporate exec transition, Schake has been called upon to handle crises like the recent fight over Jimmy Kimmel Live! The late-night show was suspended by Disney after Kimmel made a jab at Donald Trump supporters in the wake of the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Major station groups Nexstar and Sinclair pulled Kimmel off the air and Trump’s appointee leading the FCC, Brendan Carr, stepped up his attacks, saying Disney’s broadcast licenses should be revoked over Kimmel’s comments.
Schake joined Disney in 2022 after leading the Biden administration’s Covid vaccination education efforts. She had previously served as communications director for First Lady Michelle Obama and later in a top role in Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
When she arrived, Schake reported to Geoff Morrell, who was the company’s chief corporate affairs officer. Morrell, a former BP exec who was appointed by former Disney CEO Bob Chapek, departed after a series of snags that ultimately doomed Chapek’s tenure as CEO. Iger, who had passed the CEO baton in early 2020 and wrapped his affiliation with Disney at the end of 2021, ended up being asked to return to the corner office by the board amid flagging confidence in Chapek.
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