Since Josh D'Amaro took the helm as chief executive, Disney has now initiated its third major round of workforce reductions. Back in August, the company signalled to investors that it was considering labour reductions as a means to unlock capital for expansion initiatives.

According to reporting by Thomas Buckley at Bloomberg, which cited unnamed sources with knowledge of the situation, Disney intends to eliminate thousands of positions while instructing certain managers to identify cost reductions totalling up to 20%. These financial targets could be achieved through a combination of headcount reductions and cuts to other operational expenses. CNBC subsequently corroborated the reporting using its own sources, indicating that Disney expects to eliminate several thousand roles, with some leaders required to achieve cost reductions of up to 20%. The Next Web has not independently confirmed these accounts.

The company operates across multiple business segments including amusement parks, broadcast networks and motion picture production. Bloomberg's sources indicated that different divisions will experience varying degrees of impact from the restructuring. D'Amaro has indicated that a portion of the recovered funds will be redirected toward investments in film, television, technology infrastructure, parks and cruise operations.

Disney layoffs under D'Amaro

This represents the most recent in a series of reductions that have occurred since D'Amaro assumed his position earlier this year. During April, the company announced plans to eliminate up to 1,000 positions, predominantly affecting the marketing function. In September, Disney disclosed plans for approximately 300 additional job eliminations, with a significant concentration in human resources and technology roles, as reported by CNBC.

The company had already communicated its intention to pursue additional cost management measures in correspondence sent to shareholders on 5 August.

We remain highly focused on reducing costs across the enterprise to create incremental capacity to invest for growth. […] We are mid-stream in this work

Josh D'Amaro and Hugh Johnston, in a letter to shareholders

The letter identified labour expense reductions and overhead cuts as potential avenues for achieving these objectives.

In addition to the layoff announcements, Disney rolled out an early retirement programme during August. Chief people officer Sonia Coleman communicated to staff that month, according to CNBC reporting, noting that "involuntary staff reductions" had commenced in certain business areas and would extend through the following year.

At the conclusion of its 2025 fiscal year, Disney maintained a workforce of approximately 231,000 employees. The August shareholder communication reiterated the company's guidance for adjusted earnings per share expansion. The company projects earnings growth of roughly 12% during the current fiscal year, excluding the impact of an additional calendar week. Financial results for the fourth quarter are scheduled for release on 17 November.

Cuts across Hollywood

The entertainment sector more broadly is experiencing workforce contraction. Netflix is conducting its own staff reductions, and Skydance has extended severance packages to employees following its combination with Warner Bros Discovery.

According to Bloomberg, conventional television revenue streams are contracting while the pace of new subscriber additions to streaming services is decelerating. Disney president Dana Walden addressed these industry dynamics during remarks at Bloomberg's Screentime conference in October.

There is a need to constantly evaluate how you're structured and how big is the organization

Dana Walden

Source: The Next Web