Disney CEO Bob Chapek returned to his alma mater, Indiana University Bloomington, this weekend to deliver a deliver a commencement speech, in which he botched the Disney World motto, referring to the theme park as “the happiest place on earth” rather than “the most magical place on earth.”
“Driving through the gates of ‘the happiest place on earth’ was like nothing I’ve ever done before,” Chapek said about driving into Disney World. Disney World’s motto is “The Most Magical Place on Earth.”
“There was no greater contrast to the region. It was sunny, warm, and impossibly green.”
Watch Below:
Elsewhere in his speech, the Disney CEO compared himself to Iron Man, noting that he was “in for a rude awakening” when he first arrived at the university, because “it seemed everybody I knew had taken something called an AP class, and I hadn’t even heard of them.”
“So despite graduating near the top of my high school class, I was still amongst the least prepared for the adventure that lies ahead,” Chapek said. “So I was kind of desperate — desperate to demonstrate my worthiness, and desperate not to waste a dime of my parents’ money on a school that was, frankly, testing my limits at the time.”
“But that desperation turned into determination, and my dream of defying expectations and the odds took over,” the Disney CEO added. “And just like Iron Man draws his energy from that arc reactor, I get a thump from my drive to prove myself every single day.”
During his speech, Chapek tiptoed around the political battle his woke company is in, insisting that “for many people, Disney represents some of that common ground that brings us all together.”
“And it’s one of the reasons I’m so proud to lead this find company,” Chapek said. “We believe in acceptance. And we believe in a welcoming spirit — and when guests walk through our gates, the points of division just seem to evaporate away.”
Chapek also noted that “people feel the way they do about Disney because of the stories that we tell.”
Recently, a flood of families have canceled their Disney memberships — from amusement parks to Disney+ streaming — over the company’s leftist, LGBTQIA+ agenda, with one parent noting, “Walt would turn over in his grave” if he saw what Disney has become.
Meanwhile, The Walt Disney Co. is the worst performing stock in the Dow Jones Industrial Average for the past year, plummeting 31 percent in the last 12 months.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.