Josh D'Amaro

Josh D'Amaro
Born	2/10/1971
Birthplace	Medfield, Massachusetts, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Business executive
Title	CEO-elect of The Walt Disney Company
Employer	The Walt Disney Company
Known for	Chairman of Disney Experiences, CEO-designate of The Walt Disney Company
Alma mater	Georgetown University (BBA)

Josh D'Amaro (born February 10, 1971) is an American business executive who has spent more than 27 years at The Walt Disney Company, rising through its parks and resorts division to become one of the most prominent figures in the global theme park industry. He has served as chairman of Disney Experiences (formerly Disney Parks, Experiences and Products) since 2020, overseeing the company's worldwide portfolio of theme parks, cruise lines, resorts, and consumer products. In January 2026, The Walt Disney Company announced that D'Amaro would succeed Bob Iger as chief executive officer of the company, effective March 18, 2026. His career at Disney has encompassed leadership roles at both Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort, and he guided the company's theme park operations through the significant disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Born and raised in Medfield, Massachusetts, D'Amaro's ascent through Disney's ranks represents a career built primarily within the company's parks and experiences segment, a business unit that has grown into one of Disney's largest revenue generators.

Early Life

Josh D'Amaro was born on February 10, 1971, in Medfield, Massachusetts, a town located southwest of Boston. He grew up in the suburban community, which would later take note of his rise through one of the world's largest entertainment companies. Details about his family background and childhood have remained largely private, though his New England upbringing placed him far from the Orlando and Anaheim locales where he would eventually build his career.

D'Amaro's path to the upper echelons of The Walt Disney Company began with his education and an early interest in business. His roots in the small Massachusetts town were later highlighted in local and national media coverage following his appointment as Disney's next CEO in early 2026.

Education

D'Amaro attended Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., where he earned a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree. His undergraduate education at Georgetown provided the foundation for a career in business management that would take him through a series of progressively senior operational roles at The Walt Disney Company. Georgetown University, a Jesuit institution known for its programs in business and international affairs, counts D'Amaro among its notable alumni in the corporate world.

Career

D'Amaro's career at The Walt Disney Company has spanned more than 27 years, during which he rose from operational roles within the parks and resorts division to the highest levels of company leadership. His trajectory within Disney has been defined by deep expertise in the company's theme park and resort operations, a business segment that generates tens of billions of dollars in annual revenue.

Early Career at Disney

D'Amaro joined The Walt Disney Company in the late 1990s, working within the company's parks and resorts operations. Over the ensuing years, he held a variety of roles across multiple Disney properties, gaining experience in resort operations, guest services, and business management. His career progression was marked by a steady accumulation of leadership responsibilities within the parks division, building the operational knowledge and institutional relationships that would later prove central to his ascent to the company's top leadership positions.

During his earlier career, D'Amaro developed expertise in the day-to-day management of Disney's theme park operations, a complex business that involves hospitality management, entertainment production, food service, retail, and large-scale construction and engineering projects. His rise through the ranks was consistent with Disney's tradition of cultivating leaders from within its parks organization, a pipeline that has produced several of the company's senior executives over the decades.

President of Disneyland Resort

D'Amaro served as president of Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, where he oversaw operations at the original Disney theme park property, which includes Disneyland Park, Disney California Adventure, and the Downtown Disney shopping and entertainment district. In this role, he was responsible for overseeing the resort's operations, guest experience, and strategic development at a time when the Anaheim property was undergoing significant investment and expansion.

His tenure at Disneyland provided D'Amaro with direct experience managing one of the world's most visited and culturally significant theme park properties. The Disneyland Resort role placed him in charge of a complex operation serving tens of millions of guests annually, requiring coordination across numerous business functions and close engagement with the Anaheim community and local government stakeholders.

When D'Amaro departed the Disneyland Resort presidency, he was succeeded by Rebecca Campbell, who took over leadership of the Anaheim-based resort.

President of Walt Disney World Resort

In early 2020, D'Amaro was named president of Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, succeeding George Kalogridis in the role. Walt Disney World, encompassing four major theme parks, two water parks, over 25 resort hotels, and numerous dining and shopping venues across approximately 25,000 acres, is the largest and most complex theme park resort operation in the world.

D'Amaro's arrival at Walt Disney World coincided with one of the most challenging periods in the resort's history. Within weeks of his assuming the presidency, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the unprecedented closure of Walt Disney World and all other Disney theme parks worldwide. The closure, which began in March 2020, represented the first extended shutdown in Walt Disney World's history since its opening in 1971.

The pandemic's impact on Disney's theme park business was severe. In April 2020, Disney furloughed approximately 100,000 employees across the company, with a significant portion of those furloughs affecting the parks and resorts division. In September 2020, Disney announced that it would lay off approximately 28,000 employees, primarily within its theme park operations, as the pandemic continued to suppress attendance and revenue. The layoffs disproportionately affected part-time workers at Disney's domestic theme parks and represented one of the largest workforce reductions in the company's history.

D'Amaro's tenure as Walt Disney World president was brief, as he was elevated to a more senior corporate role later in 2020. He was succeeded as Walt Disney World president by Jeff Vahle.

Chairman of Disney Experiences

In May 2020, D'Amaro was named chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products (later renamed Disney Experiences), succeeding Bob Chapek, who had been elevated to CEO of The Walt Disney Company. In this role, D'Amaro assumed responsibility for the global portfolio of Disney theme parks, including Walt Disney World, Disneyland Resort, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland, Shanghai Disney Resort, and Tokyo Disney Resort, as well as Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, and Disney's consumer products and retail operations.

D'Amaro's elevation to the chairman role came at a critical juncture for the division. The COVID-19 pandemic had shut down Disney theme parks across the globe, and his first major challenge was overseeing the phased reopening of these properties under new health and safety protocols. The financial impact was substantial; in fiscal year 2020, Disney's parks segment experienced dramatic revenue declines as parks operated at reduced capacity or remained closed entirely.

Under D'Amaro's leadership, Disney's parks division undertook a recovery effort that involved not only reopening parks with new safety measures but also implementing new operational strategies. The division adopted reservation systems, mobile ordering technologies, and modified guest capacity management approaches during the pandemic period. As conditions improved and restrictions eased, D'Amaro oversaw the gradual return to normal operations across Disney's global portfolio of parks and resorts.

D'Amaro also expressed optimism about the recovery of Disney's international parks, including Disneyland Paris, which faced significant pandemic-related disruptions in its European market. His communications to Disney employees and the public during the pandemic period sought to maintain morale and convey a forward-looking vision for the parks division.

As chairman of Disney Experiences, D'Amaro oversaw a period of significant investment in the parks division. The segment became one of Disney's most consistent and robust revenue generators, often outperforming the company's media and entertainment divisions in terms of operating income. Under his tenure, Disney announced and advanced major capital expenditure plans for its theme park properties, signaling confidence in the long-term growth potential of the experiences business.

Appointment as CEO-Designate of The Walt Disney Company

On January 30, 2026, The Walt Disney Company announced that D'Amaro had been selected to succeed Bob Iger as chief executive officer of the company, effective March 18, 2026. The announcement ended a closely watched succession process that had been one of the most scrutinized leadership transitions in corporate America.

The selection of D'Amaro represented a significant strategic choice by Disney's board of directors, choosing a leader whose career had been built primarily within the company's parks and experiences division rather than in media, entertainment, or technology. The decision reflected the growing importance of Disney's experiences business to the company's overall financial performance and strategic direction.

D'Amaro's appointment came after Iger had returned to Disney as CEO in November 2022, replacing Bob Chapek, with a mandate to stabilize the company and identify a long-term successor. The CEO succession question had long been a sensitive topic for Disney; Iger's own retirement had been announced and delayed multiple times over the preceding decade, and the company's previous succession from Iger to Chapek in 2020 had ultimately been reversed. The selection of D'Amaro was intended to provide clarity and continuity in the company's leadership.

Following the announcement of D'Amaro's appointment as CEO-designate, the question of his successor as chairman of Disney Experiences became a subject of industry attention. His departure from the parks division leadership created a significant vacancy atop one of Disney's largest business segments.

Personal Life

Josh D'Amaro is from Medfield, Massachusetts, a town with a population of approximately 13,000 located about 20 miles southwest of Boston. His hometown roots received renewed attention following his appointment as Disney's next CEO in January 2026, with local and regional media outlets highlighting his connection to the Massachusetts community.

D'Amaro has maintained a relatively private personal life throughout his career at Disney. His public communications have largely focused on professional matters related to Disney's theme park and resort operations. During his tenure as chairman of Disney Experiences, he became a visible figure within the Disney fan and enthusiast community, making appearances at company events and delivering messages to Disney employees and guests about the direction of the parks division.

Recognition

D'Amaro's career at Disney has been marked by his steady ascent through the company's leadership ranks, culminating in his selection as CEO-designate in January 2026. His appointment to succeed Bob Iger was covered extensively by major news outlets including The New York Times, The Hollywood Reporter, CNBC, BBC News, and CBS News, reflecting the significance of the Disney CEO role in American corporate life.

As chairman of Disney Experiences, D'Amaro led a business segment that is one of the largest theme park operations in the world, encompassing six resort destinations across three continents, a fleet of cruise ships, and a global consumer products business. His leadership of the division through the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent recovery period was a defining element of his corporate biography and was cited as evidence of his crisis management capabilities when he was named as Disney's next CEO.

D'Amaro's selection as CEO was notable within the context of Disney's corporate history for several reasons. He represented a choice rooted deeply in the company's operational core — the parks and resorts business — at a time when the broader entertainment industry was undergoing rapid transformation driven by streaming, artificial intelligence, and changing consumer behavior. His appointment signaled that Disney's board valued operational expertise and institutional knowledge alongside the need for strategic vision in navigating the company's future.

Legacy

As of March 2026, D'Amaro's legacy is still being written, with his tenure as CEO of The Walt Disney Company set to begin on March 18, 2026. However, his impact on Disney's parks and experiences division during his time as chairman is already substantial. He guided the division through the most significant operational crisis in its history — the COVID-19 pandemic — which forced the closure of all Disney theme parks worldwide for the first time, resulted in the furlough of approximately 100,000 employees, and led to the layoff of 28,000 workers.

The recovery of Disney's parks division under D'Amaro's leadership saw the segment emerge as a financial pillar of the company, generating significant operating income at a time when other Disney business units, particularly the direct-to-consumer streaming segment, were experiencing substantial losses. This performance helped elevate the parks division's strategic importance within the company and, by extension, enhanced D'Amaro's profile as a candidate for the CEO position.

D'Amaro's appointment as CEO also carries significance in the broader narrative of Disney's corporate governance and succession planning. The company had experienced turbulence in its prior CEO transitions, and D'Amaro's selection was designed to provide a smoother path forward. His more than 27-year tenure at the company made him one of the longest-serving Disney employees to be appointed CEO, and his deep institutional knowledge was seen as an asset in maintaining continuity while charting a new direction for the company.

His career trajectory — from operational roles within the parks division to the chief executive office of one of the world's largest entertainment companies — reflects the growing centrality of experiences-based businesses in the modern entertainment industry, where physical destinations and immersive experiences have become increasingly important complements to content creation and distribution.