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Alisa Bowen, who has served as president of Disney+ since September 2022, is leaving that role to become CEO of Fubo, the internet TV streaming service that is majority-owned by Disney.
Fubo announced Thursday that its
board of directors appointed Bowen as chief executive officer, effective as of July 10. She succeeds David Gandler, co-founder of FuboTV who led the company as CEO for more than a decade. Gandler is also leaving the Fubo board.
The CEO change-up comes after Disney and Fubo last fall closed their deal merging Hulu + Live TV operations with Fubo, with Disney owning a 70% stake in the new company.
It’s not clear that Disney will appoint a direct replacement for Bowen at Disney+. The media giant now operates a unified streaming business, led by Joe Earley and Adam Smith as co-presidents of Disney’s direct-to-consumer business, sharing responsibility for strategy and financial performance across Disney+ and Hulu. Earley also serves as head of content strategy for DTC, while Smith also continues as chief product and technology officer for Disney Entertainment and for ESPN.
Bowen has held leadership positions at Disney for nearly 10 years, most recently serving as president of Disney+. Previously, Bowen was a founding member of Disney’s streaming leadership team, spearheading the strategy, buildout and scaling of Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+. Prior to joining Disney, Bowen held leadership positions at News Corp, Dow Jones and Thomson Reuters.
“Following the combination with Hulu + Live TV last year, Fubo has reached a pivotal moment in its strategic evolution, with a compelling pay TV platform, strong content portfolio and unique integration in the Disney ecosystem,” said Andy Bird, chairman of Fubo’s board, the British media exec who was formerly chairman of Walt Disney International and CEO of publisher Pearson.
Bird continued: “Alisa’s appointment is the culmination of a thoughtful process led by the independent directors of the Board to find the next leader to advance Fubo’s strategy and performance. Alisa is a proven operator who brings nearly 30 years of product, digital and operational experience, including leadership across Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+. She has an established track record of driving global subscriber growth and profitability, and we look forward to benefiting from her experience and expertise as Fubo enters its next chapter.”
Bowen said in a statement, “I am excited to lead Fubo in its next phase as we sharpen its strategy across sports, news and entertainment, accelerate growth and drive profitability, while delivering even greater value to Fubo and Hulu + Live subscribers, our advertisers and our content partners. I look forward to working closely alongside this talented leadership team to strengthen Fubo as an industry leader and create significant value for all of our shareholders.”
Gandler said in a statement provided by Fubo, “It has been an honor to lead Fubo since co-founding the company, and I am incredibly proud of everything our team has accomplished over the past 11 years…. I look forward to following the Company’s continued growth and success in the months and years ahead.”
Bowen also is expected to join Fubo’s board subject to approval by the board following the company’s annual meeting of stockholders on July 28.
Bowen, 53, received a bachelor’s degree in public relations from Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and an MBA with distinction from London Business School.
According to an SEC filing by Fubo, Bowen’s annual base salary will be $1.575 million, and she will be eligible to receive an annual performance bonus, with her target bonus being 120% of her base salary and her bonus for 2026 to be pro-rated to reflect the portion of the year during which she is employed with the company.
In addition, her employment agreement also provides that Bowen will be granted an award of company restricted stock units upon the commencement of her employment valued at $3.5 million. That will be scheduled to vest over three years following the grant date and “is intended to compensate Ms. Bowen for her unvested equity awards that were forfeited upon her separation from employment with Disney,” per Fubo’s filing. Bowen also will be granted an annual equity award for 2026 valued at $8 million plus a one-time bonus of $1.1 million if she remains employed with the company through Dec. 31, 2026.
