Netflix Chief Content Officer and Film Head Depart After Layoffs of 1,000 Employees
Netflix announced last Wednesday that it would lay off about 1,000 employees, approximately 6% of its global workforce, primarily affecting product, technology, legal, and human resources teams. Laid-off employees lost access to their work email that afternoon.
On the same day, Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria was informed of her departure. She joined the company in 2016 and was promoted to this position in 2023, overseeing global content, live, and sports operations. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos stated in an internal memo that Bajaria had been with the company for nearly a decade. Former Disney executive Peter Rice will take over.
Film head Dan Lin also departed shortly after. He took on the role in April 2024, previously serving as an executive at Warner Bros. and involved in projects like "The Lego Movie." Reports indicate that he attended events with Sarandos over the weekend and participated in screenings at headquarters, but the company announced his departure on Monday.
Netflix was previously known for its "keeper test": whether the company would try to retain an employee who chose to leave and whether it would rehire them based on current information. This principle is used for individual assessments, and the large-scale layoffs are set against a backdrop of slowing growth and declining stock prices.
Variety reported that Lin had disagreements with director Greta Gerwig during a Zoom meeting regarding the "Narnia" project, with his comments perceived as dismissive. Bajaria later contacted producer Amy Pascal to mediate, and Gerwig's agent Bryan Lourd directly reached out to Sarandos. Lin subsequently withdrew from the project's daily management.
Company revenue and profits continue to grow, but viewing hours in the U.S. are slowing. Sarandos stated in the earnings call that the focus is shifting to enhancing content execution.
Source: Public Information
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Netflix has long been characterized by a culture of freedom and responsibility, high salaries, and high standards. Bajaria has been with the company for nearly a decade, driving content expansion and live sports initiatives. Lin, as an external producer, was tasked with controlling budgets, reducing quantity, and improving quality.
On the capital front, the company is adjusting content spending and personnel structure following a slowdown in subscription growth. The layoffs are concentrated in support teams, with simultaneous changes in content leadership. Peter Rice, a former Fox and Disney executive, brings traditional media operational experience.
This is similar to the path taken by streaming platforms to cut content spending after user growth peaks, with increased friction between externally hired executives from the early expansion phase and internal culture. The current phase is shifting from quantity-first content production to prioritizing hit rates.
Essentially, this reflects a transfer of pricing power: as the return on content investment declines, the company reassesses leadership's ability to manage budgets and creator relationships. Mechanically, executives must simultaneously execute cost control and maintain external partnerships; when internal conflicts escalate to the CEO level and key project authority shifts, the authority of positions declines, making replacement costs lower than maintaining the status quo.
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The principle is used for individual screening, and scale adjustments expose systemic gaps.
The power to say "no" depends on whether the other party still needs to go through you.
Those who execute cost control are often the first to be subjected to cost control.