Sky exec Karl Holmes has been tapped to lead Disney+ EMEA.
Holmes, who will take on the role from January, will be based in Londo. He was most recently COO for Europe at Sky as well as chief consumer revenue officer for the U.K., CFO for the U.K. and Ireland and group chief data officer.
At Disney+ he will take on the role of SVP for direct to consumer and general manager for EMEA. He replaced Luke Bradley-Jones, also an ex-Sky exec, who was at Disney+ between 2020 and 2024. He left earlier this year to become president at the Economist publishing group.
At Disney+ EMEA, Holmes will lead the regional teams, reporting to Walt Disney EMEA president Jan Koeppen and president of direct-to-consumer at Disney Entertainment, Joe Earley.
“Karl Holmes will join Disney+ in EMEA at a time when our DTC business goes from strength to strength across our region,” said Koeppen. “With its award-winning shows and movies, Disney+ has something for everyone. Karl has a proven track record for building long-term success in consumer-facing businesses and I know under his leadership the team will flourish.”
Holmes said: “For years I’ve admired Disney’s unique position as a business. As a long-time fan of the brand, I couldn’t be more excited to be joining the company to lead direct-to-consumer in EMEA, after a fantastic decade at Sky. I look forward to working with Jan, Joe and their brilliant teams as we head into the fifth year of Disney+ and bring Disney’s incredible storytelling to even more people.”
