Report: After Top Exec’s Thursday Firing, Disney ‘Morale is Terrible’ as Company’s Stock Takes a Beating

According to a report released on Thursday, after a top executive was fired Thursday at Disney, “morale is terrible” as the company’s stock is also taking a beating.

The shakeup came as CEO Bob Chapek fired Peter Rice, who served as Disney’s chairman of entertainment and programming.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Rice’s unexpected firing has left employees stunned with one Hollywood executive telling them that “Chapek just made another massive mistake.”

“It’s horrendous. It’s not good for the company. Morale is terrible,” a Disney insider reportedly also told the magazine.

The Walt Disney Co. has seen its stock drop nearly 6 percent since the announcement and currently sits at under $100 per share.

Disney stock is the worst performer on the Dow Jones Industrial Average for the past 12 months and shares are down 36 percent for the year.

Another report pointed out that Rice was well-liked and his divisions – 20th Television, ABC Entertainment, ABC News, FX, and others – were doing well.

Despite that being the case, Chapek reportedly told Rice, who is a former Fox executive, that he was a bad fit in “the new Disney culture.”

Dana Walden, who had been serving as entertainment chair for Walt Disney Television, has now been promoted to take Rice’s spot.