#251: Peter Cuneo, Former CEO and Vice Chairman of Marvel Entertainment – Embrace the unfamiliar

How Leaders Lead with David Novak

David Novak Leadership

Entrepreneurship, Business, Management

4.8 • 596 Ratings

🗓️ 7 August 2025

⏱️ 34 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Every leader faces the unknown. The best ones lean into it. When Peter Cuneo became CEO of Marvel, the company had just emerged from bankruptcy. But under his leadership, it became one of the most valuable entertainment brands in the world. By the time it was sold to Disney, Marvel’s stock had risen from just 96 cents to over $50 a share. In this episode, Peter shares the bold, practical leadership moves behind that remarkable turnaround—and how embracing the unfamiliar helped him spark innovation, make big bets, and unlock his team’s full potential. You’ll also learn: Why your “outsider” status is a secret weapon What to protect at all costs if you want a creative culture The strategic thinking behind hiring Robert Downey, Jr. as Ironman The two culture shifts every turnaround needs Take your learning further. Get proven leadership advice from these (free!) resources: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The How Leaders Lead App⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠: A vast library of 90-second leadership lessons to stay sharp on the go ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Daily Insight Emails⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠: One small (but powerful!) leadership principle to focus on each day Whichever you choose, you can be sure you’ll get the trusted leadership advice you need to advance your career, develop your team, and grow your business.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Never assume you've seen it all before.
0:02.8	This is one of the biggest contributors to leadership failure.
0:06.7	You have to go in assuming there'll be surprises.
0:09.8	We all have these prejudices that we build up based on success elsewhere.
0:15.1	You know, and they may work in this new situation.
0:18.4	They may be wrong.
0:20.8	Welcome to How Leaders Lead. I'm David Novak, and every week I have conversations. work in this new situation. They may be wrong.
0:25.7	Welcome to How Leaders Lead. I'm David Novak, and every week I have conversations with the very best leaders in the world to help you become the best leader you can be. Today I'm talking
0:30.5	with Peter Cuneo, the former CEO and vice chairman of Marvel Entertainment and the man behind
0:35.3	one of the most remarkable turnarounds in recent years.
0:38.6	When Peter stepped in as CEO, Marvel had just come out of bankruptcy.
0:42.8	But under his leadership, it became one of the most valuable entertainment brands in the world.
0:47.7	By the time it was sold to Disney, Marvel stock had risen from 96 cents a share to over $50.
0:54.8	In this conversation, you're going to see the leadership principles that drove those results.
1:00.2	And let me tell you, a big reason is Peter's ability to embrace the unknown.
1:05.1	See, for most people, uncertainty breeds fear.
1:08.4	But for Peter, unfamiliar territory is an opportunity to innovate,
1:13.4	to grow, and to find out what you and your team are really capable of. Great leaders develop
1:18.5	that ability to embrace uncertain situations. And today, you'll see exactly what it looks like in
1:24.6	action. So here's my conversation with my good friend and soon to be yours, Peter Cooney.
1:36.0	I got to tell you, I'm happy to have you here.
1:38.3	And one of the things that I got to ask you is that what's something that you learned about real leadership by being around
	...

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