Disney Cuts Hundreds of Jobs Even as Pixar Scores Blockbuster Hits

Disney announced a new round of workforce reductions affecting several divisions, with Pixar absorbing the largest share. At least 116 employees were let go at Pixar’s Emeryville, California headquarters, according to TheWrap. Disney Entertainment Television, Disney Studios and ESPN also saw cuts, and ESPN’s on-air talent such as longtime SportsCenter anchor Karl Ravech and analyst Ryan Clark were among those affected.

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The latest cuts follow two earlier waves this year. In April, roughly 1,000 employees across Disney’s television and film units were dismissed after newly appointed CEO Josh D’Amaro said the company needed to “streamline” operations amid rapid industry change. Earlier in January, Disney consolidated its marketing departments under Chief Brand Officer Asad Ayaz, prompting additional staff reductions, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.

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The layoffs come despite Pixar’s recent box-office triumphs. “Toy Story 5” has grossed about $962 million worldwide and is on track to surpass $1 billion, while “Inside Out 2” became the highest-grossing animated film of all time with $1.69 billion in 2024. Conversely, the studio’s original film “Hopper” reportedly finished slightly below break-even under Hollywood accounting, and “Elio” earned roughly $154 million against a $200 million production budget, marking Pixar’s lowest-grossing release since the pandemic-era “Onward.”

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• “Over the past several months, we’ve made significant progress integrating the NFL assets that we acquired into ESPN. Throughout this process, we have taken the time to carefully evaluate our collective teams, resources and organizational structure to best position us for the future. As a result, we had to make some difficult decisions about job impacts that we will be communicating today,” — Jimmy Pitaro, THREATENED ESPN chairman

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