A new report from Puck News says that Disney has hired pitbull lawyer Charles Harder to represent the company in a fight against an upcoming unauthorized Bob Iger biography. The biography, with the working title The House of Mouse: Bob Iger and the Fight for the Soul of Disney, is being written by Robbie Whelan of the Wall Street Journal. Here’s the latest.
Disney Fights Unauthorized Bob Iger Biography
Back in 2023, Matthew Belloni of Puck News revealed that an unauthorized biography from Wall Street Journal reporter Robbie Whelan was on the way. Now, as the book nears an unannounced release date, Disney has reportedly hired pitbull attorney Charles Harder to fight back. Harder has had a number of high-profile clients, including current United States of America President Donald Trump. Harder also bankrupted Gawker while representing Hulk Hogan. Other clients include a number of celebrities, First Lady Melania Trump, and more.
The Puck News report says that Harder “as sent multiple threatening letters to publisher Harper Collins, seeking information about the book’s contents and slamming Whelan”. Harper reportedly claims that Whelan is biased against Iger and is committing a hit job against the former Disney CEO.
While Disney is technically Harder’s client, it is said that Iger is the driving force behind “what certainly smells like a campaign of intimidation”.
Iger, it is said, has repeatedly expressed concern about the potential contents of the book to others at Disney. Many within Disney reportedly believe that Whelan’s sources include former Disney CEO Bob Chapek, along with others who left Disney and may be disgruntled toward Iger.
The report says that the upcoming book from Whelen is positioned within the publishing world as “a thorough and unvarnished portrait of one of the most famous CEOs of the past 50 years, including his abrupt Disney exit as the pandemic began in 2020 and his return to power less than two years later”. Disney has reportedly refused to participate at all.
Iger himself is working on a book after Random House acquired the rights back in 2022 to a nonfiction book described as a “playbook on leading in times of crisis and disruption that takes readers behind the scenes for crucial decisions at the highest levels of business, entertainment, and politics.”
The Puck News report says that a source close to Iger says that Iger views his upcoming book as a chance to counter the unauthorized biography from Whelan, along with other non-approved media narratives.
Back in 2022, Whelan was one of the reporters who published a gripping tale of the coup by Iger to reclaim The Walt Disney Company and oust Chapek. At the time, it was the most thorough report about the inside workings at Disney that led to Chapek being fired, and Bob Iger returning to the top spot.
A release date for The House of Mouse: Bob Iger and the Fight for the Soul of Disney has not been announced. Iger’s untitled nonfiction book does not have a release date, and it was reportedly delayed due to his return to Disney in 2022.
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