Bob Iger’s Disney wanted Apple, Twitter, and 007

Bob Iger’s tenure arsenic CEO of Disney came to an extremity a fewer months ago, aft 2 decades of starring the intermezo elephantine done immoderate of its astir pivotal transformations and acquisitions. Iger, successful an exit question and reply pinch The Financial Times, has now confirmed immoderate important efforts that didn’t cookware out, specified arsenic stepping distant from buying Twitter, being snubbed by Apple, and losing retired connected the James Bond franchise.

According to Iger, Disney came adjacent to buying Twitter from co-founder Jack Dorsey “at a very charismatic price,” sometime anterior to Elon Musk buying the societal media level successful 2022 and changing its sanction to X. Iger had plans to move Twitter into a world distribution level for Disney, but walked distant connected the greeting of the woody complete concerns that it would beryllium “a horrible distraction.”

Disney was besides astatine 1 constituent progressive successful early conversations regarding a imaginable merger pinch Apple, thing Iger thinks would person been “truly transformational.” In the end, Iger says these conversations “never went anywhere,” and that “Apple didn’t show that overmuch interest.” The 2 companies person a mixed history — Iger was an Apple committee member from 2011 to 2019, and notably a driving unit down Disney acquiring Pixar successful 2006, which was led by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs astatine the time. According to Iger, his first telephone pinch Jobs resulted successful an almost contiguous woody to put Disney contented connected the first video iPod.

“All of a sudden, I’m now personification Steve likes and respects,” Iger told The Financial Times. “The aged Disney that he knew was lumbering successful position of bureaucracy. And truthful he thought, this is simply a caller day.”

The Pixar acquisition spurred Iger to find much companies to bring nether Disney’s wing, though not each effort was successful. “We felt unstoppable. We put together a database of acquisition targets,” said Iger. “Marvel was one, Star Wars was another, James Bond was one. We had a database and I figured let’s conscionable tick them disconnected and bargain them all.” Iger provides nary specifications astir Disney’s effort to bargain the James Bond franchise, but we cognize it evidently grounded — Amazon bought the 007 distribution authorities erstwhile it acquired MGM successful 2022, and later paid much than $1 cardinal to take afloat imaginative control of the franchise successful February 2025.

Iger stepped down from his second tenure arsenic Disney CEO connected March 18th, pinch erstwhile Disney Experiences president Josh D’Amaro now starring the company. While Iger remains connected the Disney committee of directors, he’s besides expected to time off that domiciled successful December.