John Skipper was forced to resign at ESPN after , the ex-network presiꦗdent revealed in🎐 a bombshell interview with the Hollywood Reporter.
Skipper’s departure from ESPN in December sent shockwaves through the industry, and the abrupt nature of it is now clear.
“They threatened me, and I understood immediately that threat put me and my family at risk, and this exposure would put my professional life at risk as well,” Skipper told the magazine. “I foreclosed that possibility by disclosing the details to my family, and then when I discussed it with [Disney CEO] Bob [Iger], he and I agreed that I had placed the company in an untenable position and as a result, I should resign.”
Skipper said he had always been cautious about his drug use, but “not this time. It turned out I wasn’t careful this time.”
Skipper said he had never done cocaine at work at ESPN and only had used infrequently over the past 20 years, with it never affecting his work performance. ESPN announced earlier this month that Disney exec Jimmy Pitaro would replace Skipper.
Skipper said his problem with the drug led to his going outside his normal avenue of purchasing it, which opened himself up to the risk that he feared. The 62-year-old was asked if he considered another course of action that allowed him to stay at ESPN, si൲milജar to what David Letterman did when the CBS late-night host was being extorted over an extra-marital affair.
“I wish that had been the outcome,” Skipper said. “I didn’t ask for that outcome, though. I was overwhelmed by the circumstance. I simply just disclosed the facts, and it became clear in my conversation with Bob what I needed to do. Everything happened very quickly.”
Skipper spent what he described an “agonizing weekend” after his talk with Iger and before his resignation became official.
“I don’t think I ate for the 48 hours,” Skipper said. “I was filled with great regret and tension. My stomach was churning. I wasn’t sleeping. I was despondent. I was panicked. But, no, I never thought about trying to reverse course.”
Skipper strongly denied any inappropriate behavior toward ESPN’s female employees, one of the many rumors that was floating around at the time of his sudden exit. Skipper’s resignation letter left many questions unanswered, given there was no indication he had plans on exiting ESPN before it was announced.
This interview could be seen as Skipper’s first step back toward a role in the industry.
“Right now, I enjoy the great luxury of time and being able to only do things I want to do, with people I want to do them with,” Skipper said. “But I find myself impatient. I’d like to get back in and do some things that matter. I’d like to work with some people who are doing exciting things. I think, when you step back, I was in the maelstrom of a day-to-day job in which I was concerned about trying to get things done every minute, and it was an extraordinarily large job. Now, as I take time to look at the world of sports and media and things I care about —basketball and soccer and culture and media — there are a lot of really fun things to do.
“I’m actually quite excited. In some ways I have no choice but to make the best of it. And I do intend to make the best of it. I’ve been meeting with people, and that has gotten me even more excited. I’m healthy, and I’m ready to plunge back in. I don’t know exactly what form that will take. I don’t think it will take the form of a large corporate job, managing a lot of people and running a big company. I think it will take the form of helping a few smart people; people I like and respect and who do things that matter.”