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# Netflix cut about 1,000 jobs and replaced its content chief, days before its results
- URL: https://www.sharespective.com/stories/netflix-cut-about-1-000-jobs-2026-10-19/
- Published: 2026-10-18T21:15:01.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-19T19:29:56.000Z
- Description: Netflix fell 2.86% on Friday to US$70.53. That leaves the shares 43% below their 52-week high of US$124.86.
- Author: Shaun Botha
- Tags: Media, #story, #group-other, Netflix

Netflix fell 2.86% on Friday to US$70.53\. That leaves the shares 43% below their 52-week high of US$124.86.

**The week started with a memo.** On Wednesday, co-chief executives Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters told staff that about 1,000 jobs would go, roughly 6% of the workforce. It is the biggest round of layoffs in Netflix's history; the cuts in 2022 came to about 450 people.

Then came the bigger surprise. Bela Bajaria, the content chief behind Bridgerton and Squid Game, is leaving after nearly a decade. Peter Rice, who ran Walt Disney Television until 2022, takes over on 26 October.

[![Chart: Netflix's revenue rose every year. Its value didn't. Two scales: annual revenue on the left, market value at each year end and on 16 October on the right, both US$bn. Value fell from US$397.3bn to US$293.7bn.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/02/71/0271df32-cec6-421f-9f13-b06ab90e54c1/content/images/2026/10/chart-netflix-scales-annual-revenue-2026-10-19-wide-light.jpg)](https://www.sharespective.com/chart-netflix-scales-annual-revenue-2026-10-19/) 

This story’s chart of the day: the numbers, the dark version and the animated version are on its own page. [The chart’s page →](https://www.sharespective.com/chart-netflix-scales-annual-revenue-2026-10-19/)

The worry behind both moves is viewing. Time spent watching Netflix grew just 2% in the first half of 2026, and a subscription business needs people to keep watching to keep paying.

Netflix reports on Tuesday after the close in New York, which is 9am Wednesday in Auckland and 7am in Sydney. It has told investors to expect earnings of US$0.82 a share for the quarter.

What to watch 

the plan for viewing. Job cuts protect this year's profit margin. I'd want to hear how Netflix expects to get people watching more again, because viewing is what pays for the years after this one.

[ This story ran in The Great Rotation Monday 19 October’s edition, with the market snapshot, the other two stories, the numbers and the week ahead. Read the whole edition → ](https://www.sharespective.com/sharespective-2026-10-19/)