Disney Names Smith Streaming Chairman, Earley to TV — SkimNews
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- Adam Smith was named chairman of direct-to-consumer for Disney Entertainment, with oversight of Disney+ and Hulu across product, engineering, advertising technology, programming strategy, partnerships and data & analytics.
- Joe Earley is moving into the newly created role of president of Disney Entertainment Television franchise and content strategy, overseeing international originals content and production, labor relations and creative talent development.
- Both executives will report to Dana Walden, Disney's president and chief creative officer, who announced the changes Thursday as part of a streaming-focused restructuring.
- Smith joined Disney in 2024 after 20-plus years at Google and YouTube and was promoted to co-president of direct-to-consumer alongside Earley in March.
- Earley joined Disney in 2019 to oversee global Disney+ marketing ahead of its launch, previously worked at Fox, and most recently served as co-president of direct-to-consumer and head of content strategy.
- Walden framed the restructuring as creating "a single, dedicated leader for the direct-to-consumer business as it continues to scale," with Disney+ positioned as the connection point for fans to engage with the broader Disney ecosystem.
Why it matters: Disney is splitting its streaming and TV franchise leadership into two sharper lanes: Smith runs Disney+ and Hulu operations with a single-chairman mandate, while Earley takes a newly minted role focused on monetizing Disney Entertainment's TV franchises. The change concentrates decision-making under one dedicated streaming leader as Disney+ scaling accelerates and separates franchise strategy into its own executive seat.
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