Dan Lin has been fired as Netflix’s head of film after nearly three years, multiple sources say Variety.
Although expected, it’s a big shoe to drop after a firing bloodbath last week at the streamer. Around 1,000 employees were laid off, capped by the shock firing of content chief Bela Bajaria. Lin was fired earlier this weekend, two sources added, and will address his teams throughout the day Monday. The executive attended Saturday’s Academy gala and was spotted Sunday evening at a screening of “La Bola Negra” on the Netflix campus.
A Netflix spokesperson had no immediate comment on the matter. It is unclear who will replace Lin, although an announcement is expected in the coming days. Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy, former executives of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, have been widely speculated to be in discussions with the streamer about a possible role within the company.
Netflix is embarking on a major creative restructuring after months of headlines reporting engagement issues and stagnant inventory – all in the wake of its rejected bid for Warner Bros. – including hiring veteran film and television executive Peter Rice to replace Bajaria. In the days leading up to his ouster, Lin saw layoffs claim his right-hand man Doug Belgrad and independent film executive Sheroum Kim.
Lin’s rise to Netflix’s top filmmaking post turned heads in 2024. The accomplished producer sat atop a thriving self-made company in Rideback. This production house is best known for building the “Lego” animated film franchise, Stephen King’s “It” adaptations and the “Sherlock Holmes” films.
He left Rideback to replace the film’s longtime leading man, Scott Stuber. In a June interview with The New York Times, Lin said he had so far greenlighted or acquired 88 films for Netflix, the most notable being “Apex,” “Emelia Perez,” “Here Comes the Flood,” “The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth” and Greta Gerwig’s “Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew.”
More to come…
Jack Dunn contributed to this post.
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