Disney chief Bob Iger signals he won't run for president in 2020

It seems President Donald Trump would have one less possible 2020 challenger.

Disney chairman and CEO Bob Iger said today he is extending his contract with the company through 2021.

The timing would effectively put off any 2020 presidential run, the subject of speculation for some time.

Iger appeared to put that to rest during an appearance on "Good Morning America" today when he announced the planned acquisition of 21st Century Fox assets by Disney, which owns ABC News.

"I'm sticking around until the end of 2021 so you do the math," he said.

Iger's contract had been set to expire in 2019.

"I am going to stay until the end of 2021. You know, I've got one of the greatest jobs in the world; I've enjoyed doing it for 12 years," Iger said, noting the proposed Fox deal "makes it even more exciting and I'm looking forward to the future at Disney."

When asked whether the deal takes a presidential run off the table, Iger said, "I hadn't made any decisions about what my future was going to be. ... I enjoy this job immensely and I'm looking forward to doing it for a few more years."

So Trump appears to be less of a target for now than the likes of Netflix. In light of the proposed 21st Century Fox acquisition, Iger said, Disney "aim[s] to be an able competitor to" that streaming service.

Iger, 66, has fielded questions about his political aspirations for years, but has never given a firm confirmation or denial of specific plans.

In a June 2016 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he said that he's "interested in politics... but I'm not exploring a run for governor or senator or anything along those lines."

"A lot of people - a lot - have urged me to seek political office. All kinds of different jobs. Everybody has got a different idea for me, except all roads lead through my wife," he said at the time.

Iger was one of 16 CEOs and business leaders who initially joined the Trump administration's President's Strategic and Policy Forum that was created during the presidential transition, but he resigned from the council in June over Trump's withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement.