Pixar is cutting jobs, as the studio struggles to rekindle the magic

Down

Pixar hasn’t been flying high for a while now, but yesterday marked a particularly low point for the animation house that gave us Up and Toy Story, as the company embarked on the biggest round of layoffs in its history, announcing cuts that will affect ~14% of staff, or roughly 175 workers.

The production company, which Disney acquired for $7.4B back in 2006, is reportedly switching back to focusing on films, rather than churning out shows for Disney+, as Bob Iger continues his efforts to ensure the House of Mouse focuses on quality over quantity.

The dimming lamp

For years, Pixar was the animation studio, revolutionizing what was possible in the world of 3D computer-animated feature films. For more than a decade, Pixar produced an almost unbroken string of movies that managed to do the rare quadruple: win acclaim from critics, make a lot of money, and land with kids and adults.

However, amidst a turbulent movie landscape which has seen a pandemic, the rise of streaming, a writers’ strike, and a shift in consumer taste, the storied production house has struggled to recreate the magic.

The commercial failures of some of Pixar’s recent releases obviously have a lot to do with Covid — 2020’s Soul and 2022’s Turning Red each scored 95% with critics on Rotten Tomatoes, despite being sent straight to Disney+ — but the company’s latest films haven’t set the world alight for moviegoers or reviewers. Last year’s Elemental was a financial improvement on 2022’s Lightyear, grossing $485M worldwide according to box office data site The Numbers, though still took almost $80M less than Cars 2, widely dismissed as the worst feature that Pixar’s ever produced.