When Disney Decided to Dump Its CEO, Change Happened Fast (2)

Bob Iger was adamant that he was done.

On the evening of Nov. 5, the former chief executive officer of Walt Disney Co. dined alongside Hollywood royalty at a gala hosted by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. His retirement stubble was on show at the black-tie affair, and when asked between courses of beef tortellini and steamed cod whether he missed being CEO of the world’s largest entertainment company, Iger answered emphatically: “No.”

Bob Iger, right, and his wife Willow Bay at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art on Nov. 5.

Photographer: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Elsewhere in the Disney empire, however, loyalists were missing him. Within days, Iger, 71, would be back at the helm of the company he ...