Pixar animation studios, a Disney subsidiary, began laying off 14% of their employees on Tuesday, announcing in the process to abandon the production of content for the Disney+ streaming platform in order to concentrate on the production of animated films.
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In total, around 175 people are affected, which is less than what was initially anticipated when the American group, at the start of the year, explained that it wanted to reduce Pixar’s costs.
In an internal letter consulted by the New York TimesPixar Chairman Jim Morris told employees that the studio wanted to “get back to focusing on movies.”
Pixar, long untouchable in the Disney galaxy, found itself in difficulty after the failure of Buzz Lightninga film released in 2022, which focused on one of the films main characters Toy Story (Toy story). It ultimately only generated $226 million at the box office, on a budget of $200 million.
Photo provided by Walt Disney Pi
The next year, Elementary had also disappointed, with just under $500 million in box office revenue, for a roughly identical budget.
At the same time, Pixar produced several animated series in order to strengthen the Disney+ offering, during the launch of the platform, such as Cars: On the roadfrom the eponymous trilogy, or Welcome to Dougwhich features the dog from the film Up there.
The studio hopes to regain success with the release of Vice versa 2which will allow the viewer to once again follow the tribulations of Riley’s emotions, becoming a teenager, then Eliostory of a little boy struggling to integrate into his school who finds himself ambassador of the Earth to extraterrestrial civilizations, scheduled for 2025.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY DISNEY/PIXAR
Disney embarked on an all-out cost hunt last year, with the return of its former boss, Bob Iger, leading to the layoffs of more than 8,000 people – mainly in its media arms, including Disney +.
In the second quarter of its staggered financial year, the group announced that, for the first time, its streaming service was generating profits, after having only experienced losses since its launch in 2019.
Disney’s net profit, however, fell to $216 million, compared to $1.5 billion over the same period in 2023, mainly due to asset depreciation and despite a production of its turnover.
