Disney vs Substack: Founders, CEOs and History
Disney was founded in 1923 by Roy O. Disney, Walt Disney and is led by Josh D'Amaro. Substack was founded in 2017 by Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie, Jairaj Sethi and is led by Chris Best.
Company facts
Founders
Disney
Roy O. Disney
The Walt Disney Company possesses arguably the most well-known, mythologized founding story in American corporate history, rooted in an artistic ambition and the desperate, scrappy origins of early animation.
Walt Disney
Walt Disney co-founded Disney Brothers Studio in 1923 and became the company's central creative force.
Substack
Chris Best
Chris Best is the co-founder and CEO of Substack. Before Substack he co-founded Kik.
Hamish McKenzie
Hamish McKenzie co-founded Substack in 2017. A former tech journalist (and early Tesla employee), he was deeply frustrated by the catastrophic collapse of the traditional media business model, which relied entirely on highly toxic, clickbait advertising.
Jairaj Sethi
Jairaj Sethi co-founded Substack in 2017. As the absolute critical technical architect (and former lead developer at Kik Messenger), he built the incredibly robust underlying email and payment infrastructure required to reliably deliver millions of newsletters…
CEOs and their tenures
Disney
- Roy O. Disney1966–1971
Chief Executive Officer
Roy O. Disney served as chief executive of The Walt Disney Company from 1966 to 1971.
Source - Donn Tatum1971–1980
Chief Executive Officer
Donn Tatum served as chief executive of The Walt Disney Company from 1971 to 1980.
Source - Card Walker1980–1983
Chief Executive Officer
Card Walker served as chief executive of The Walt Disney Company from 1980 to 1983.
Source - Raymond Watson1984–1984
Chief Executive Officer
Raymond Watson served as chief executive of The Walt Disney Company from 1984 to 1984.
Source - Michael Eisner1984–2005
Chief Executive Officer
Michael Eisner served as chief executive of The Walt Disney Company from 1984 to 2005.
Source - Bob Iger2005–2026
Former Chief Executive Officer
Iger turned Disney into a franchise owner with Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar at its core and moved it into direct-to-consumer streaming. His second term focused on making streaming profitable, defeating Trian's 2024 proxy fight and completing CEO succession.
Source - Bob Chapek2020–2022
Former Chief Executive Officer
Disney+ subscriptions grew rapidly during his tenure, but streaming losses, a dispute with Scarlett Johansson over Black Widow and Disney's conflict with Florida officials weighed on his standing. The board replaced him with Bob Iger in November 2022.
Source - Hugh Johnston2023–present
Senior EVP and Chief Financial Officer
As CFO, he executed aggressive cost-cutting measures that helped Disney's streaming division reach profitability ahead of initial timelines.
Source - James Gorman2025–present
Chairman of the Board
He stabilized the board during ongoing activist proxy battles and focused the company on finding a long-term successor to Bob Iger.
Source - Josh D'Amaro2026–present
Chief Executive Officer
Became CEO on March 18, 2026 after serving as chairman of Disney Experiences, where he oversaw parks, cruises and consumer products.
Source - Dana Walden2026–present
President and Chief Creative Officer
She significantly expanded Disney's adult-oriented programming on Hulu and navigated the aggressive shift from linear television revenue to direct-to-consumer streaming models.
Source
Substack
- Chris Best2017–present
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
As Co-Founder and CEO, he acts as the absolute driving force behind the platform's fierce, uncompromising defense of free speech, despite massive internal and external backlash.
Source - Hamish McKenzie2017–present
Co-Founder and Chief Writing Officer
As Co-Founder and Chief Writing Officer, he directly recruits massive literary talent and heavily shapes the company's deeply philosophical stance on the future of independent media.
Source - Jairaj Sethi2017–present
Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer
As Co-Founder and CTO, he ensures the platform remains incredibly fast, reliable, and deeply integrated with Stripe for seamless creator payouts.
Source
Timeline: Disney and Substack side by side
1923Disney
Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio is founded
Walt Disney and Roy O. Disney formed the studio after Walt arrived in California with the Alice Comedies.
1928Disney
Mickey Mouse debuts in Steamboat Willie
Steamboat Willie introduced Mickey Mouse to a broad audience with synchronized sound. The short helped Disney turn a technical change in cinema into a character asset that could be repeated, licensed, and expanded.
1937Disney
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is released
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs proved that feature-length animation could work as a premium theatrical event. Its success gave the studio credibility and capital for more ambitious animated films.
1955Disney
Disneyland opens in Anaheim
Disneyland moved the company beyond screens and into physical entertainment. The park created a second economic model built on admission, food, merchandise, hospitality, and repeat family visits.
1996Disney
Capital Cities/ABC brings ESPN to Disney
Disney stockholders approved the Capital Cities/ABC merger in 1996, bringing ABC and ESPN into the company. ESPN later became central to Disney's television economics and is now central to its cord-cutting risk.
2005Disney
Robert A. Iger becomes CEO
Iger became CEO in 2005 after serving as Disney president and chief operating officer. His tenure reshaped the company through Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, 21st Century Fox assets, international expansion, and direct-to-consumer streaming.
2006Disney
Pixar Animation Studios is acquired
The $7.4B Pixar deal ended a strained distribution relationship and brought creative leadership, computer-animation expertise, and a strong story process into Disney. It helped restore animation momentum and set the template for later franchise acquisitions.
2009Disney
Marvel Entertainment is acquired
Disney agreed to acquire Marvel in a transaction valued at about $4B. The deal added more than 5,000 characters and expanded the company's reach in theatrical films, consumer products, streaming, and parks.
2012Disney
Lucasfilm joins Disney
The Lucasfilm acquisition was valued at $4.05B and brought Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Industrial Light & Magic, and related production assets. It gave Disney a global franchise with theatrical, streaming, merchandise, games, and parks potential.
2017Substack
Substack founded in San Francisco
Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie, and Jairaj Sethi founded Substack to build subscription publishing for writers.
2017Substack
Bill Bishop Launches Sinocism as First Substack Publication
China analyst Bill Bishop moved his Sinocism newsletter to Substack, proving that writers could earn six figures directly.
2019Disney
Disney signs amended 21st Century Fox acquisition agreement
The amended Fox agreement valued the equity consideration at about $71.3B and expanded Disney's content library, international assets, and Hulu position. It was a scale move made as Disney prepared for a streaming-centered media market.
2019Disney
Disney+ launches
Disney+ launched in the United States, Canada, and the Netherlands with nearly 500 films and 7,500 television episodes. The service moved Disney closer to consumers and made streaming economics a core investor question.
2019Substack
$15.3M Series A led by Andreessen Horowitz
a16z led a $15.3 million Series A.
2020Disney
Bob Chapek leads through pandemic disruption
Chapek became CEO shortly before COVID-19 disrupted parks, cruises, theaters, and production. The period exposed Disney's dependence on physical attendance while accelerating demand for direct-to-consumer streaming.
2020Substack
The Great Media Exodus & COVID-19 Newsletter Boom
Prominent journalists (Matt Taibbi, Andrew Sullivan, Glenn Greenwald) left corporate media to build independent Substack empires.
2021Substack
$65M Series B at $650M Valuation Led by a16z
Valuation surged to $650 million, crossing 1 million paid subscriptions and launching Substack Pro.
2022Substack
Launches Substack Reader Mobile App and Substack Chat
Debuted dedicated consumer mobile reading app and subscriber-only chat rooms.
2023Substack
Launches Substack Notes & Raises $7.8M Community Crowdfund
Debuted Substack Notes to rival Twitter/X, raising $7.8M from 6,700+ community investors on Wefunder.
2024Substack
Passes 3 million paid subscriptions
Substack said in 2024 that creators had passed 3 million paid subscriptions.
2025Disney
$94.425B revenue and $12.404B net income
FY2025 results showed the scale of Disney's current base across Entertainment, ESPN, and Experiences. The figures shift the analysis from simple revenue recovery to the quality of earnings, streaming profit, and park capital returns.
2025Substack
$100M Series C at $1.1B valuation
BOND and The Chernin Group led the round, with a16z, Rich Paul and Jens Grede participating.
2026Disney
Josh D'Amaro becomes CEO
Disney's board unanimously elected Josh D'Amaro CEO effective March 18, 2026, with Robert A. Iger moving to senior advisor and Dana Walden becoming President and Chief Creative Officer.
2026Substack
Data breach disclosed
Substack disclosed on February 5, 2026 that user emails, phone numbers and internal metadata were accessed in October 2025.
Acquisitions
Disney
- Comcast's 33% stake in Hulu2023$8.6B
- 21st Century Fox entertainment assets2019$71.3B
- BAMTech2017$2.6B
- Lucasfilm2012$4B
- Marvel Entertainment2009$4.2B
- Pixar Animation Studios2006$7.4B
Substack
- Yem2022Undisclosed
- People & Company2021Undisclosed
- Letter2021Undisclosed
Questions about Disney vs Substack
Who is the CEO of The Walt Disney Company and Substack Inc.?
The Walt Disney Company is led by Josh D'Amaro and Substack Inc. is led by Chris Best. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was The Walt Disney Company founded vs Substack Inc.?
The Walt Disney Company was founded in 1923 — 94 years before Substack Inc., which was founded in 2017. The Walt Disney Company's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Substack Inc..
How many employees does The Walt Disney Company have compared to Substack Inc.?
The Walt Disney Company employs approximately 231,000 people. A verified employee count for Substack Inc. is not currently available.
Where are The Walt Disney Company and Substack Inc. headquartered?
Both The Walt Disney Company and Substack Inc. are headquartered in United States. Their local rules and tax obligations may still differ.
Who founded The Walt Disney Company and Substack Inc.?
The Walt Disney Company was founded by Roy O. Disney, Walt Disney. Substack Inc. was founded by Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie, Jairaj Sethi.
Which company has a longer operating history — The Walt Disney Company or Substack Inc.?
The Walt Disney Company has been operating for approximately 103 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Substack Inc. has been in operation for around 9 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Disney vs Substack overview