The Week Ahead: Disney on a roll but without a clear future

Replacing Han Solo and Rey with an earnest rabbit and a streetwise fox looks easy when you consider Disney's need to find a boardroom successor.

The media giant is scheduled to report its fiscal second-quarter results Tuesday after the closing bell. The company is coming off a record quarter thanks to the blockbuster "Star Wars: The Force Awakens." That movie alone brought in more than $2 billion, helping reignite interest in the entire "Star Wars" franchise and boosting profits 86 percent for Disney's studio division, its second-most profitable, behind only its TV networks like ABC and ESPN.

This past quarter, Disney's "Zootopia" film -- featuring the aforementioned critters -- was a big hit, bringing in more than $800 million globally. The studio has been on a streak, further bolstered by "The Jungle Book," and has captured a quarter of the box office market so far this year. This weekend's "Captain America: Civil War" looks like it'll keep the Disney movie business booming.

But the fictional characters are no match for the big personalities vying to run the business. Longtime CEO Bob Iger will retire in 2018 -- eons away in media time, but frighteningly close for shareholders hoping for a smooth transition.

Tuesday's earnings report is the first since the surprise departure of Thomas Staggs, who, as chief financial officer, was the No. 2 at Disney and widely seen as the natural successor to Iger. His exit has set off a parlor game of, "Who will be the boss?"

So, while the animated gags and computer-generated stunts keep bringing in paying audiences, for Disney shareholders, the real drama is inside the executive suite and boardroom.

Financial journalist Tom Hudson, host of "The Sunshine Economy" on WLRN-FM in Miami and vice president of news, can be followed on Twitter@HudsonsView.

This story was originally published May 6, 2016 at 11:58 PM with the headline "The Week Ahead: Disney on a roll but without a clear future ."