Netflix Replaces Bela Bajaria with Peter Rice Amid 1,000-Job Layoffs

Key points

• Bela Bajaria, who served as CCO since 2023 and joined Netflix in 2016, has departed the company.
• Peter Rice, a former Disney and Fox executive, will replace Bajaria as CCO starting next week.
• The change coincides with Netflix laying off approximately 1,000 employees, its first major cuts in four years.
• Netflix’s viewership growth has slowed, and the company won only 16 Primetime Emmy awards in 2026, a significant drop from previous years.
• Other executives, including film VP Doug Belgrad and several TV leaders, were also let go during the restructuring.

Background

Bajaria joined Netflix in 2016 after leaving NBCUniversal, where she had produced shows like 'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.' She oversaw major hits such as 'Squid Game' and 'Bridgerton' before expanding into live sports and unscripted content. Her departure follows a period of strategic shifts, including a new live sports strategy and expanded licensing deals, but also concerns over weak second-season performance and a downgrade by Wells Fargo due to viewer engagement issues.

How outlets are covering it

The Hollywood Reporter and Variety emphasize the abrupt nature of the change and Sarandos’s positive framing of Rice’s appointment as a chance to scale content. The New York Times highlights the context of stalling engagement and slowing growth as the primary driver. A.V. Club offers a more critical view, suggesting Bajaria’s tenure saw a decline in content quality and that Netflix’s growth problems are self-inflicted due to an unsustainable expansion mindset. All sources agree on the facts of the layoff and the replacement, but differ in their assessment of the content strategy’s effectiveness under Bajaria.

Why it matters

The replacement of a long-serving CCO signals a strategic pivot for Netflix as it faces its first major layoffs in years. The move reflects pressure to reverse slowing viewer growth and declining awards performance, potentially reshaping the company’s content slate and creative direction in the US and Canada.

What to watch

Peter Rice will assume the CCO role next week, with expectations that he will focus on strengthening talent relationships and revitalizing the content slate. Netflix will likely continue to monitor viewer engagement and may implement further strategic adjustments to address growth concerns.