75 positions have been terminated at Walt Disney’s Pixar Animation Studios, including those of the two executives behind the box office flop “Lightyear.”
According to Reuters, sources stated on Saturday that this is the studio’s first sizable layoffs in ten years.
The cuts included “Lightyear” director Angus MacLane, a 26-year animator who worked on critically acclaimed movies like “Toy Story 4” and “Coco.” Producer of “Lightyear,” Galyn Susman, also left. Susman had worked for Pixar since the 1995 debut of the first “Toy Story” film.
It was impossible to contact MacLane or Susman for comment.
The employment layoffs, which were implemented on May 23, are a part of Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) Chief Executive, Bob Iger’s previously declared strategy to cut $5.5 billion in expenses and 7,000 positions.
In that reorganization, a division responsible for distribution was dissolved while the film and television groups were consolidated into a single Disney Entertainment business.
The studio is a creative engine that develops franchises and characters that drive income across Disney, so the layoffs at Pixar are significant.
Pixar is well known for the film series “Toy Story,” “The Incredibles,” and “Cars.” However, “Lightyear,” which was released a year ago with a $200 million projected budget, only made a meager $226.7 million in international ticket sales and earned mixed reviews.
Due to its depiction of a same-sex relationship, “Lightyear” was prohibited from screening in 14 Middle Eastern and Asian nations. This affected how well it did at the box office.
