The Walt Disney Company has found its replacement for longtime chief communications officer Zenia Mucha, sources tell Variety.
Geoff Morrell, currently the executive vice president of communications and advocacy at oil and gas company BP, has landed the job. After nearly 20 years in the role at Disney, Mucha announced this summer she would be stepping down at the end of the year (in line with executive chairman Bob Iger’s exit from the media giant).
In addition to Mucha’s duties, sources said Morrell will also take on government relations. Under the current regime, that was a function of the Walt Disney Company chief counsel’s office. Alan Braverman, current chief counsel and senior executive vice president, is also departing Disney at the end of the year.
The Walt Disney Company did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A timeline for a formal announcement was not immediately clear.
Morrell, who will report to Disney CEO Bob Chapek, ticks several boxes for such an important role at a post-Iger Disney. On the crisis front, he is credited as “instrumental in rebuilding BP’s reputation following the Deepwater Horizon accident” — an oil spill considered one of the biggest environmental disasters in modern history.
Popular on Variety
Prior to BP, Morrell spent four years at the Pentagon as chief spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Defense under the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama. He’s also worked as a journalist, covering the White House for ABC News.
Morrell’s extracurriculars include seats on the Georgetown University Board of Regents, The National Council of The White House Historical Association and the board of directors of The American Ditchley Foundation.
