Peter Rice to lead Netflix content as Bela Bajaria departs
The leadership change comes alongside plans to cut about 6% of Netflix’s staff, or roughly 1,000 jobs.
Netflix has chosen former Walt Disney Television chairman Peter Rice to replace Bela Bajaria as chief content officer. The company said Rice would lead programming worldwide, with responsibility for movies, live events and series, both scripted and unscripted.
Bajaria’s exit ends nearly 10 years at Netflix, including her time in the top content job since January 2023. Puck first reported the departure. In a statement, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos credited her with leading major changes at the company.
Rice’s Disney responsibilities encompassed more than 300 shows a year across ABC, FX, Hulu, National Geographic and Disney Channel, Netflix said. He also previously served as president of 21st Century Fox and ran Fox Searchlight Pictures. Disney’s then-chief executive, Bob Chapek, ousted Rice in 2022.
Sarandos told staff he saw scope to improve the programming lineup, especially in the US and Canada, according to Variety. The content appointment follows Netflix’s announcement of roughly 1,000 planned job cuts, affecting about 6% of its workforce.
The reductions are concentrated in product, technology, legal and HR and represent Netflix’s largest round since 2022. In a memo obtained by CNBC, Sarandos and co-chief executive Greg Peters described the business as strong and growing and said it was on track to meet its full-year forecast.
