Pixar cuts staff in retreat from streaming

LOS ANGELES, United States — Animation studio Pixar is laying off about 14 percent of its staff as the Disney-owned studio retreats from making content for streaming.

The loss of about 175 jobs, first reported by The New York Times on Tuesday, was less than initially expected when Disney warned it would reduce costs at Pixar earlier this year.

In an internal memo cited by the Times, Jim Morris, the president of Pixar, told employees the studio would “return to our focus on feature films.”

Pixar, once Disney’s crown jewel, has struggled since the catastrophic release in 2022 of “Lightyear”, a spin-off of the “Toy Story” movies. Its following release “Elemental” was also disappointing at the box office.

In the same period, Pixar released an animated series meant for the newly launched Disney+ streaming service.

Disney+ content included “Cars on the Road,” based around characters in the “Cars” movie franchise, and “Dug Days,” a series featuring the dog from the movie “Up.”

Pixar’s upcoming film releases include next month’s “Inside Out 2” and “Elio,” which was delayed to 2025.

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Disney went through a massive round of cost-cutting last year after the return of longtime CEO Bob Iger, with more than 8,000 jobs lost, many from the media division, including Disney+.

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Last quarter, the company for the first time turned a profit in its entertainment streaming segment, a landmark since the 2019 Disney+ launch that piled up losses.