The Walt Disney Company will cut around 1,000 roles across marketing, brand and other functions, as confirmed in an internal memo sent by CEO Josh D’Amaro to staff on April 14.
The layoffs will affect Disney’s studios, TV networks, ESPN, product and technology, and corporate divisions.
"Over the past several months, we have looked at ways in which we can streamline our operations in various parts of the company to ensure we deliver the world-class creativity and innovation our fans value and expect from Disney," D'Amaro said in the memo.
D'Amaro framed the move as a response to the accelerating pace of change across the media and entertainment landscape. "Given the fast-moving pace of our industries, this requires us to constantly assess how to foster a more agile and technologically-enabled workforce to meet tomorrow's needs," he added.
In January 2026, veteran executive Asad Ayaz was elevated to the newly created role of chief marketing and brand officer. That same month, Ayaz had confirmed in an internal memo the establishment of the Enterprise Marketing team to unify Disney's global marketing operations across Disney Entertainment, Disney Experiences, and ESPN.
The restructuring had been referred to internally as 'Project Imagine,' an initiative under Ayaz designed to consolidate marketing functions, reduce duplication, and reallocate spend toward digital and streaming-first priorities, per The Wall Street Journal.
Disney's linear TV advertising revenues fell 20% YoY as of Q3 2025, with overall entertainment ad revenues, spanning ABC, Freeform, and Disney Channel, dropping 16% to US$2.06 billion. Meanwhile, former CEO Bob Iger previously said in 2024 that Disney+ marketing expenses were "too high" and would be cut, as the company began pivoting toward personalised, data-driven audience targeting over broad-reach TV buys.
At least 20 publicity staff were affected by the job cuts, including the entire home entertainment team under Chris Bess, executive director of global publicity and marketing communications, according to The Wrap. The Electronic Press Kit team, led by director of creative content Natalie Clunis, was also laid off. In addition, digital marketing SVP Dustin Sandoval, who ran campaigns for some of Disney's biggest theatrical releases, including the Avatar and Avengers series, and director Mike Reeder, were also let go.
Disney reported some 231,000 full- and part-time employees as of September 2025, meaning the roughly 1,000 roles represent less than 1% of the total workforce. The company has shed more than 8,000 workers since 2023.
At the time of publication, Disney did not respond to Campaign's request for clarification on APAC impact.
Source: Campaign Asia-Pacific
