Disney Layoffs 2026: Pixar, ESPN and National Geographic Among Divisions Affected by New Job Cuts

The Walt Disney Company began notifying employees on Tuesday, July 21, of a fresh round of layoffs affecting several hundred positions across Pixar Animation Studios, ESPN, National Geographic and other divisions under Disney Entertainment Television. The cuts mark the company's third wave of job reductions this year, following a marketing department restructuring in January and a broader round of roughly 1,000 layoffs across studios, TV networks and corporate functions in April.

Pixar Hit Hardest Among Studios

Pixar's Emeryville, California studio absorbed the deepest cuts within Disney's film division, with reports indicating around 100 to 116 employees affected, or under 10 percent of its roughly 1,100 person workforce. A person familiar with the matter said the reductions are concentrated in production and operations roles. Layoffs 2026: List of Companies That Laid Off Massive Workforce Due to AI.

The layoffs come despite a strong year at the box office for the studio, with "Toy Story 5" and the original film "Hoppers" together grossing well over a billion dollars (roughly Rs. 8,700 crore) globally. A source familiar with the changes said the cuts reflect a shift in Pixar's strategy toward fewer, higher quality theatrical releases rather than a larger volume of content, including streaming series. This is expected to be Pixar's largest round of layoffs since 2024, when the studio cut about 175 jobs, or 14 percent of its staff.

National Geographic and ESPN Also Affected

Within Disney Entertainment Television, National Geographic is understood to be among the hardest hit, with cuts spanning its cable network as well as editorial and operations staff. A small number of ABC News employees were also affected. Is Intel Planning More Layoffs After Cutting 14,000 Jobs This Year? Here's What Report Says.

At ESPN, the layoffs are largely tied to the integration of the recently acquired NFL Network. Most of those affected are behind the scenes staff, though the cuts also included some on air personalities, among them longtime SportsCenter anchor Karl Ravech and football analyst Ryan Clark. ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a memo to staff that the network had spent recent months evaluating its teams and organizational structure following the NFL Network integration.

Part of a Broader Restructuring

Tuesday's cuts follow a pattern set earlier this year under new Disney CEO Josh D'Amaro, who has pushed the company toward what has been described internally as a "One Disney" structure aimed at streamlining operations. A Disney spokesperson said the changes were part of the company's continual evaluation of how it manages resources and reinvests across the business as the industry evolves.

The company employed roughly 230,000 people worldwide as of late 2025. Disney has not issued an official breakdown of the layoffs by division.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 22, 2026 10:58 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).