The Walt Disney Company has released a statement confirming Chief Operating Officer Tom Staggs, a Disney veteran with more than 25 years with the entertainment giant, is leaving his position.

Staggs was widely perceived as the successor to Chairman and CEO Bob Iger, leaving many in the industry shocked by the announcement. Iger was expected to stay in his role for two years, but some are speculating the departure of Staggs will lead to him staying on. The Disney board said it will now identify a “robust slate of candidates for consideration”.

Staggs will finish his role as COO on 6 May, just six weeks before the opening of Shanghai Disney Resort, but will remain as fiscal advisor to Iger to the end of the fiscal year.

Staggs’ career at Disney started in strategic planning and rose to CFO, but he made a name for himself in the attractions industry when he led the parks and resorts division from 2010, leading a team of 130,000 cast, crew and Imagineers around the world and delivering record revenue, profit and attendance levels.

During this time, Staggs managed some of Disney Parks & Resorts biggest projects, including the upcoming Shanghai resort and an Avatar-themed land, three new lands at Hong Kong Disneyland and Cars Land and Buena Vista Street at Disneyland in Anaheim.

“Tom has been a great friend and trusted colleague for more than 20 years,” Iger said. “He’s made important contributions to this company, earning wide respect across the organisation for his achievements and personal integrity. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished together, immensely grateful for the privilege of working with him, and confident that he will be enormously successful in whatever opportunity he chooses.”

During his time as CFO, a role he took up in 1998, Staggs is credited with playing a pivotal role in Disney’s buyouts of Pixar Animation Studios and Marvel Entertainment – moves that have had a huge impact on the recent success of the company.

Staggs was made COO in February 2015. Disney gave no reasons for his decision to step down.

“Disney truly stands alone, not only because of the company’s phenomenal creativity, but also because of the thousands of remarkable people who make it such an extraordinary place,” Staggs said. “It’s been a privilege to work with them and be inspired by their creativity and commitment. It’s also been a great experience to work with Bob during this dynamic era of unprecedented growth and transformation. I remain grateful for that opportunity, and I’m confident that Disney’s future will be just as exciting as its legendary past.”