"Weren't They Supposed to Be at Their Peak?... This Company Lays Off Hundreds for the Third Time This Year"

Disney Announces Third Round of Layoffs This Year
ESPN Star Anchors and Talent Also Dismissed

Walt Disney Company (hereafter referred to as Disney) has carried out another large-scale round of layoffs at its studios and TV channels, just three months after the previous one in April.

The photo is unrelated to the specific content of the article. Pixabay

According to a report by Yonhap News Agency, citing the U.S. daily Los Angeles Times (LAT), Disney has notified employees at Pixar, National Geographic, ABC News, and ESPN of their dismissal as of July 22.

The division hit hardest is Pixar, which is responsible for animated films such as Toy Story and Inside Out.

At Pixar, approximately 100 employees in the production and operations divisions are set to lose their jobs out of a total workforce of 1,100. The layoffs have drawn particular attention because they come at a time when Pixar is being hailed as having entered a new heyday thanks to the recent success of titles like Hoppers and Toy Story 5.

The photo is unrelated to the specific content of the article. Pixabay

National Geographic, ESPN, and ABC Hit by Consecutive Layoffs... Third Round This Year

At National Geographic, dozens of employees, including senior executives, have been notified of their dismissal. Among those departing the company in this round are Charlie Parsons, Executive Vice President and Head of Documentary Development, who has been with the organization since 2010, as well as Vice President of Casting, Terry Danuser.

Well-known ESPN anchors Karl Ravech and David Lloyd, as well as former NFL player-turned-analyst Ryan Clark, have also been included in the list of those laid off. As ESPN recently acquired a 10% stake in the NFL and faced increased burden of broadcast rights fees, the layoffs are seen as a move to streamline ESPN's operations.

Additionally, at ABC News, more than 10 employees have been targeted in this round of restructuring.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, this is Disney's third round of layoffs so far this year. In January, the company reduced some staff, and in April, it shocked the industry by announcing plans to cut around 1,000 positions—mainly in the marketing division. The current restructuring primarily targets the editing, production, and operations divisions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.