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Netflix, looking to boost its viewing engagement as revenue growth cools off, made a major overhaul of its executive leadership overseeing content.
Last week, amid its layoff of 1,000 employees, Netflix ousted chief
content officer Bela Bajaria and has tapped veteran TV exec Peter Rice to replace her. The company also let go head of film Dan Lin and his top lieutenant, Doug Belgrad, as well as director of original series Carolina Garcia.
On the streamer’s Q3 2026 earnings call, co-CEO Ted Sarandos — who had previously led Netflix’s content operations for over 20 years — explained the decision to install a new team overseeing its programming lineup led by Rice.
“I know that we could do better, and we want to build on that momentum,” Sarandos said, when asked about the leadership change on the content side.
Sarandos started by praising Bajaria “for all of her incredible contributions to Netflix. Bela had an incredible decade-long run here. She put a lot of great hits on the board. She led the teams through a lot of expansions of new types of content. She also did the hard work of building this incredible international team, who’s been making local content around the world, which has become a great competitive differentiator for us over the last decade.”
That said, Sarandos continued, “Now we’ve seen an opportunity to take our slate to the next level, especially in the U.S. where we can have an outsized impact when we create a big buzzy show that members love and talk about all over the world.”
Sarandos said he has known Rice, a former Disney and 21st Century Fox television and movie exec, for about 15 years. At Disney, he was chairman of Walt Disney Television before he was ousted by former CEO Bob Chapek in 2022.
“And I’ve got to tell you the outpouring of excitement about him coming to Netflix from across the industry and from the creative community has been nothing short of overwhelming. He’s one of the really rare people in the industry who’s led TV networks, movie studios, streaming services,” Sarandos said. “His creative instinct and his business acumen are remarkable. He’s really an at-scale quality and volume operator, and he does it across every imaginable form of entertainment. You know, network [television], prestige cable, streaming, theatrical and TV films, and live sports.”
Sarandos said, “most importantly… Peter Rice understands talent relations, and in a competitive market, creative talent have choices of where they want to work, and we want Netflix to always be the place that they love to do the best work of their life. Peter is the exact right person to lead those efforts in the U.S. and around the world. Now, that’s a key aspect of what I believe Peter can improve on looking forward.”
A bit later in the call, Sarandos again sang Rice’s praises.
“Peter brings expertise in both art and commerce, television and film. It’s kind of that exact balance skill set that will help guide us through our next chapter,” Sarandos told Wall Street analysts. “Now, there’s a ton to be excited about in our Q4 slate, and a ton to be excited about in 2027. And I believe that Peter will actually be able to have an impact on those projects that are in the works, even in the short term.”
