Disney’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Leaves After Three Months on the Job

Geoff Morrell, the chief corporate affairs officer for The Walt Disney Co., has announced plans to depart from his role. The news was broken in a statement from Morrell and Disney CEO Bob Chapek (via The Hollywood Reporter), which was released on Friday. This news comes just three months after Morrell, who was formerly an executive at BP and a Bush-era Pentagon spokesman, initially joined on for the job, which saw him oversee Disney’s communications government relations and public policy efforts. According to Chapek, Kristina Schake will lead global communications, and Disney general counsel Horacio Gutierrez will lead government relations and public policy.

“After three months in this new role, it has become clear to me that for a number of reasons it is not the right fit,” Morrell said in the employee email.

“Team — I am writing to share the news that Geoff Morrell, our Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, is leaving the company to pursue other opportunities,” Chapek’s statement reads in part. “Fortunately, the strength and experience of our existing leadership team-including relatively new all-star hires-means there is no shortage of talent to guide our reputation-driving functions.”

“I am incredibly confident in this team, and look forward to working with them and all of our leadership to set Disney’s course for the next 100 years of extraordinary entertainment and experiences,” Chapek’s statement concludes.

Morrell’s short-lived tenure in the role included the company’s response to Florida’s controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The bill, and Disney’s reaction or lack thereof to components of it, made headlines multiple times over, and eventually provoked an official response from the company and its subsidiaries, such as Marvel Studios.

“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,” Disney’s statement read last month. “Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts, and we remain committed to supporting the national and state organizations working to achieve that. We are dedicated to standing up for the rights and safety of LGBTQ+ members of the Disney family, as well as the LGBTQ+ community in Florida and across the country.”

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