Disney's Pixar Trims Workforce By 75: Is Lightyear's Box Office Disappointment To Blame?

Pixar Animation Studios, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company (NYSE: DIS), has recently undergone significant restructuring, resulting in the elimination of 75 positions.

As per Reuters, among those affected by the cuts were Angus MacLane, the director of "Lightyear," and Galyn Susman, the film's producer. MacLane had an extensive career as an animator, contributing to acclaimed films such as "Toy Story 4" and "Coco." Susman had been with Pixar since the release of the original "Toy Story" movie in 1995.

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Michael Agulnek, Pixar's vice president of worldwide publicity since 2015, was also laid off, but he has not provided any statements regarding the matter.

The job cuts are part of a broader cost-cutting initiative led by Walt Disney's Chief Executive, Bob Iger. The plan aims to eliminate 7,000 jobs and reduce costs by $5.5 billion. As part of this restructuring, the film and television groups were merged into a single Disney Entertainment unit, and a distribution division was eliminated.

The Reuters report hints that the dismissals are also related to the underperformance of "Lightyear" at the box office, as the film could not be screened in 14 Middle Eastern and Asian countries due to its depiction of a same-sex relationship.

The movie, which was released a year ago, had a reported budget of $200 million and garnered a modest worldwide box office revenue of $226.7 million.

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