What is the name of the Buy n Large CEO who gave the directive to never return to Earth?

The Buy n Large CEO who ordered humanity never to return to Earth was Shelby Forthright.

Forthright, played by Fred Willard, was the corporation’s CEO and President of Earth. In the film’s recorded announcements, he proposes evacuating humanity aboard massive Axiom-class starliners while WALL-E robots clean the polluted planet. The original plan was for people to return after roughly five years.

That plan collapses when Earth remains too toxic for recolonization. Forthright therefore issues Directive A113, instructing the ships to remain in space. The Axiom’s autopilot, AUTO, continues obeying that order centuries later, even after Captain McCrea discovers that a plant could allow humanity to return home.

A common mix-up is confusing Forthright with Fred Willard. Willard is the actor; Shelby Forthright is the character. Another frequent error is spelling the surname “Forthwright,” but the film’s character is Forthright. Forthright is also unusual in Pixar history: he is the only major live-action character with a speaking role in a Pixar feature.