Pixar announces largest layoff in animation studio’s history

Disney CEO Bob Iger demanded Pixar return to making quality theatrical releases instead of focusing in generating content for streaming, which resulted in Tuesday's reduction in Pixar's workforce

May 21 (UPI) -- Pixar Animation Studios laid off 14% of its workforce, about 175 of its 1,300 workers, and has no plans to rehire them, the studio announced Tuesday.

The workers affected by the layoffs were notified Tuesday, Pixar's president Jim Morris said in a note to employees.

The downsizing was expected since the start of the year but was less than predicted. Prior estimates placed the percentage of affected workers at 20% and about 260 workers.

The layoffs are the largest in Pixar's history but don't affect its upper management.

Lucasfilm created Pixar in 1979 to serve as its graphics wing, but Apple's Steve Jobs helped spin it off into its own corporation in 1986 and was its majority shareholder.

Disney bought Pixar in 2006 and recently used it to create content for the Disney+ streaming platform while under the leadership of Bob Chapek, who was Disney's CEO for about three months toward the end of 2022.

When Disney tried to return to the big screen, its $200 million spinoff of "Toy Story" called "Lightyear" flopped at the box office.

So did the 2020 theatrical release of "Onward," which partly suffered due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Current Disney CEO Bob Iger returned to his former leadership position in November 2022.

Iger said there's too much competition among streaming services and demanded quality theatrical releases over quantity intended for Disney's streaming service.

The lone bright light in Pixar's recent past is "Elemental," which generated about $500 million in box office receipts last year and is popular on Disney's streaming platform.

Pixar is releasing "Inside Out 2" on June 14 and has plans to release "Elio" in 2025 and "Toy Story 5" in 2026.