Bob Chapek was the short-lived CEO of The Walt Disney Company from February 2020 through November 2022. This marked the end of a three-decade career with the House of Mouse. This fall, he will be releasing a memoir that includes his time at Disney. Called Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth, this will give a behind-the-scenes look at his career that began at Disney in 1993.
The book is an attempt by Chapek to shape his own legacy with The Walt Disney Company. It will chronicle Chapek’s “tenure at the company, including as The Walt Disney Company’s CEO. In it, he reveals for the first time the high-stakes maneuverings that unraveled behind the scenes from his 2020 appointment to his subsequent dismissal in 2022.” The official description reveals that Chapek is still a fan of Disney, despite how his tenure ended at the company. Judging by the official description, Chapek is not a fan of his former boss Bob Iger, who ended up returning to run Disney after his two-year stint in the top spot.
Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth is currently available for pre-order on Amazon. It is set to be released on September 29, 2026. It will be released in hardcover, Kindle, and audiobook formats. It is being published by Gallery Books, a Simon & Schuster division.
Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth Official Description
For the first time ever, Bob Chapek breaks his silence on his tenure as the Walt Disney Company’s CEO, offering a behind-the-scenes account of the challenges he faced—from getting the job just weeks before a worldwide pandemic, to the shifting political landscape, to his ousting given Bob Iger’s apparent desire to return.
In 1993, Bob Chapek began his career at the Walt Disney Company as the marketing director for home video. After twenty-seven years of hard work, climbing the corporate ladder, and garnering respect across the wide variety of businesses that Disney has, he earned the most coveted (and scrutinized) position of all: In 2020, he was named CEO of the Walt Disney Company.
Born and raised in small-town Indiana by a World War II–veteran father, Chapek learned early in life that grit, resilience, and curiosity can take you far. These values are what got him to Disney. However, within weeks of starting at the top, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down parks, resorts, cruise ships, live sporting events, and film and television production, forcing Chapek to steer the billion-dollar empire through unprecedented times. The stakes were high, the decisions unforgiving, and the backlash often inordinate, leaving him wondering whether he had become the corporate scapegoat of it all. In 2022, he got his answer—Chapek was out, Iger was back in.
Was he really given a fair shot or was he set up to fail? What drove his ousting and Bob Iger’s return? What happened behind the scenes at Disney during COVID, and how did those decisions impact what we see today? Four years later, after reflection and healing, Chapek is ready to tell his story, sharing what he hopes will be his true legacy.
Even now, after everything, he’s still a lifelong fan, and wants the magic of Disney to endure for generations.
Behind the Castle Walls is a revealing and thrilling memoir of ambition, power, and corporate intrigue in the happiest company on earth.
Official Author Description
Bob Chapek is an American media executive who served as the CEO of the Walt Disney Company from February 2020 to November 2022. Before his tenure as CEO, he had a long career at Disney, which started in 1993 and led to him holding positions such as chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences, and Products and president of Disney Consumer Products. Today, Bob is engaged in a variety of advisory, consulting, and board positions. He divides his time between Florida and Los Angeles with his wife, Cindy.
Don Yaeger is a New York Times bestselling author, longtime associate editor at Sports Illustrated, and one of the most in-demand public speakers on the corporate circuit. He is the host of the highly rated Corporate Competitor Podcast. He lives in Tallahassee, Florida, with his wife and two children. Visit DonYaeger.com for more information.
Bob Chapek was the seventh CEO of The Walt Disney Company. He was succeeded by Bob Iger, who has since retired. Josh D’Amaro now leads Disney. Bob Iger previously released his own memoir, The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company. It is unknown at this time if Iger will update this book after three more years running the company.
What do you think about this book being written by Bob Chapek? Do you want to read it? What do you expect to learn from it? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!
