Bob Chapek’s upcoming memoir is already making headlines before its release. The New York Times obtained an early copy of “Behind the Castle Walls: My Thirty Years at the Happiest Place on Earth” and published details on what’s inside, and the book puts Chapek’s account of his Disney exit on the record for the first time.
The memoir publishes Tuesday, September 29, from Gallery Books.
Chapek’s Central Argument
According to the Times, the book’s throughline is that Chapek doesn’t accept responsibility for his 2022 firing. He instead points to Bob Iger, the man who both hired him and replaced him, as the driving force behind his removal. The Times reports Chapek uses the word “disrupter” or variations of it 30 times across the book, framing himself as someone who made hard calls that others were unwilling to make.
The Iger Relationship
The strained relationship between the two former CEOs has been public knowledge for years, but the Times reports the book adds new detail from Chapek’s side. Chapek claims Iger worked to undercut him with Hollywood executives and people inside Disney, including raising doubts about Chapek’s pandemic-era movie release decisions.
The Times also reports that Chapek questions the circumstances of Iger’s original departure in February 2020. Iger has said publicly he wanted to step back from parts of the job, including earnings calls, and remained at Disney for two more years overseeing creative work. The Times notes Chapek offers an alternate account, claiming unnamed sources in government and business told him Iger’s exit was tied to advance knowledge of the pandemic — a claim the Times reports comes with no evidence attached, and one Disney has previously denied applies to Iger’s decision.
Standing By the Price Increases
Chapek’s parks pricing changes drew significant criticism during his tenure, from higher annual pass costs to new charges for previously free perks like hotel parking. Apprentky, the book doesn’t walk any of it back. Chapek defends the shift toward dynamic, airline-style pricing and cites 18 percent compound annual profit growth during his years running the parks division as evidence it worked.
Credit for Josh D’Amaro
The Times reports Chapek also uses the book to claim credit for Josh D’Amaro’s rise at Disney. D’Amaro, who worked under Chapek in the parks division, was named Disney’s CEO in February 2026. Chapek writes that he pushed for D’Amaro’s promotion back when D’Amaro was still a relative unknown at the company.
His Indiana Roots
The Times says the book returns repeatedly to Chapek’s upbringing as the son of a machinist in small-town Indiana, framing it as the source of an outsider’s instinct that Hollywood underestimated. The Times points to his account of pushing for direct-to-video animated sequels in the 1990s, a strategy he credits with keeping the studio profitable despite internal resistance.
What’s Next
“Behind the Castle Walls” is out September 29. Based on what the Times has reported so far, the book looks set to be a direct, unfiltered account of Chapek’s three years running Disney, covering the pandemic shutdown, Walt Disney World’s reopening, the fallout from Florida’s HB 1557, and his eventual replacement by Iger.
Read the full article at The New York Times.
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