Mr. Skipper admitted that his cocaine use had caused “a missed plane and a few canceled morning appointments,” but said that it otherwise never affected his professional work. “I judge that I did a very good job and that it did not get in the way of my work,” he said. “I worked hard, I worked smart. I worked all the time.”

He did not say how long he had been using cocaine, or whether he reported the extortion plot to law enforcement. In December, at the time of his resignation, Mr. Skipper said he was entering rehabilitation. The police departments in Bristol, Conn., and Wilton, Conn., the Connecticut State Police and the New York City Police Department all said then that there were no records of any incidents involving Mr. Skipper.

Mr. Skipper’s resignation, which came on Dec. 18, a Monday, took everybody, even high-level ESPN employees, by surprise. The previous Wednesday, he had presided over a mandatory all-hands meeting on ESPN’s Bristol, Conn., campus. Facing an audience nervous after layoffs, management changes and a very public battle with President Trump, Mr. Skipper projected an aura of calm and stability. He expressed optimism about the company’s future, according to attendees.

Two days later, according to the account he gave The Hollywood Reporter, he met with Mr. Iger and the two mutually decided he should resign. “I have struggled for many years with a substance addiction,” Mr. Skipper said when announcing his resignation. “I have decided that the most important thing I can do right now is to take care of my problem.”

It was a problem almost nobody, including those who have spent extensive time with Mr. Skipper, knew he had.