Netflix Film Head Dan Lin Is Let Go After Company Layoffs

Dan Lin was removed from his job as Netflix's head of film, according to Variety. The news came after Netflix made a 6% cut to its workforce the previous week. Chief content officer Bela Bajaria was also among those affected by the layoffs.

Doug Belgrad, who worked as Lin's right-hand, was laid off too. Variety reports that Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos called Lin on Friday to tell him he had been dismissed, according to three sources.

Lin had a five-year deal with Netflix, but it ended after roughly half of its term. His predecessor, Scott Stuber, left the company in mid-2024. Under Lin, Netflix reorganized its film executives by their genre expertise.

Lin had also favored exclusive theatrical windows, which are periods when a movie plays only in cinemas, for family-driven intellectual property. One project under his watch was 'Narnia: The Magician's Nephew,' a $250 million theatrical-first film directed by Greta Gerwig.

Variety reports that Lin had tension with filmmakers Gerwig and Ben Affleck. Lin reportedly clashed with Affleck over the use of his AI platform, InterPositive. Lin and Gerwig also had a falling out during a Zoom call about 'Narnia' earlier this year. According to two sources, Gerwig's agent, Bryan Lourd, went to Sarandos directly over that call. Lin was then removed from the 'Narnia' project, and Belgrad stepped in as the primary Netflix executive overseeing it. No source suggested the Gerwig incident led to Lin's firing.

Before joining Netflix, Lin ran Rideback, a business he built himself. On Monday, he wrote a memo that quoted Bajaria's advice to 'Be yourself.'

Peter Rice will now oversee and reshape Netflix's content. Netflix's quarterly earnings report was due on Tuesday.