AYESHA RASCOE, HOST:
Netflix has had a tough couple of weeks. The streaming giant laid off workers and fired some of its top executives. The reorganization comes as Netflix reported slower quarterly revenue growth and engagement in the U.S. NPR's Mandalit del Barco joins us from Los Angeles to round it all up. Thanks for being with us.
MANDALIT DEL BARCO, BYLINE: Sure, Ayesha.
RASCOE: Let's start with those layoffs and firings. What happened?
DEL BARCO: Well, It was actually a surprise move. A thousand people were laid off. That's 6% of Netflix's workforce. And after handing them their pink slips, the chief content officer was fired. Then the chair of Netflix film and six other top executives were let go. The company's leaders said that they had to make some tough decisions about where to trim or redirect their investments. And even though they beat Wall Street expectations in this latest quarter, Netflix's growth has slowed. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos told investors this week that viewer engagement in the U.S. is slowing down.
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TED SARANDOS: We do need better execution in the U.S. It's just not growing as fast as it could or as fast as we'd like.
RASCOE: OK. So growth is slowing in the U.S. But Netflix is global, right?
DEL BARCO: Yeah. Netflix is actually available in 190 countries, and Sarandos credited the outgoing chief content officer Bela Bajaria for expanding the company's global reach. Her replacement, Peter Rice, is by all accounts beloved in Hollywood. He's the former president of 21st Century Fox, and when he headed Fox Searchlight, he greenlit films like "Slumdog Millionaire," "Juno" and "Little Miss Sunshine."
RASCOE: Can you tell us more about this new leadership and the reboot at Netflix?
DEL BARCO: It will be interesting to see if and how Netflix's content changes, eventually. The streamer hasn't had a water-cooler hit in a while. And as for the layoffs and firings, here's what Natalie Jarvey, who covers the creator economy in Hollywood, had to say on "The Ankler Agenda" podcast.
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NATALIE JARVEY: It was messy. It was sloppy. It shocked a lot of people, but it still approaches strategy and decision-making very different than a lot of Hollywood companies.
DEL BARCO: So, Ayesha, there's a lot of nervousness and unease as the TV and film companies consolidate and reorganize.
RASCOE: Well, yeah, that's the thing. I mean, layoffs and firings seem to be happening a lot in Hollywood. What's going on?
DEL BARCO: Yeah. Well, just a few weeks ago, Disney had its third wave of layoffs in six months, and a lot of people are bracing for massive layoffs since Skydance, the recent merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. And remember, Skydance outbid Netflix to acquire Warner Bros. and all its assets. Meanwhile, you've got TikTok and YouTube, which has more revenue and a bigger audience than Netflix. Just ask the kids what they watch. Netflix seems to be playing catch-up by signing up digital content creators.
RASCOE: Well, what else is in the works for Netflix?
DEL BARCO: Well, Sarandos continues to insist that Netflix is a streaming company first. But this week, he was tapped ahead the board of directors of the American Film Institute, and Netflix continues to release some movies in theaters before streaming them. This Thanksgiving, Netflix will release a film on IMAX, "The Further Mis-Adventures Of Cliff Booth," starring Brad Pitt. It's a sequel to Quentin Tarantino's "Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood." And beyond films, Netflix execs once said that they would never do sports. Now they're livestreaming them, including NFL games and next summer, the Women's World Cup.
RASCOE: That's NPR's Mandalit del Barco in Los Angeles. Thank you so much for joining us.
DEL BARCO: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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