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Pixar has laid off 75 people, including director Angus MacLane and producer Galyn Susman, who both worked on Lightyear. This is the first time in a decade that Pixar has laid off so many employees.
Disney: three waves of layoffs
At the end of May, Disney announced a third wave of layoffs, following two other waves in the previous months. In total, about 7.000 employees have been fired. This move is part of a broader plan and also involves the removal of content from Disney’s streaming platforms. Disney hopes this overhaul will save around $5.5 billion per year.
As a reminder, Disney has been hit pretty hard by the pandemic. Theme parks, in particular, were heavily impacted.
Another factor to consider is the rise of streaming platforms.
At this stage, Disney has not been able to regain its pre-COVID financial levels, hence the cost-saving measures. The company is profitable, though.
Pixar affected by the layoffs
We have learned that Pixar is also affected by these layoffs. 75 people are going to leave the studio. Among the list of people who have lost their jobs, two names have not gone unnoticed: director Angus MacLane and producer Galyn Susman, who worked onLightyear, wich was released last year and was a commercial failure.
Angus MacLane had been working at Pixar since 1997 on numerous animated features such as Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo, WALL-E, Up, Finding Dory, Coco… He had climbed the studio ranks and held various positions within the company.
Galyn Susman, on the other hand, had been working at Pixar since Toy Story on movies such as Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Ratatouille, Toy Story 4…
In other words, two big names are leaving the Pixar team. While the studio has not officially explained why they were part of the layoffs, it seems likely that the commercial failure of Lightyear played a major role. We will soon have the opportunity to discuss why this movie didn’t manage to become a success in an interview with Jim Morris, General Manager and President of Pixar Studios, which will be published on our YouTube channel.
In the meantime, here is our interview with Angus MacLane and Galyn Susman on Lightyear. It was shot during the Annecy Festival 2022.
