Doug Belgrade is leaving Netflix the place he was vp of cinema for greater than two years. His departure, confirmed by the streamer, is likely one of the main layoffs at Netflix at the moment.
Mockingly, Belgrade was cinema govt Dan Lin’s first rent after a sequence of layoffs when Lin changed Scott Stuber and restructured Netflix’s movie division.
There have been rumors not too long ago that there will likely be a shake-up in Netflix’s movie division. That is because of the decline in audiences for his or her movies, that’s to say that throughout the first half of 2026, characteristic movies recorded 23 billion hours of viewers, or -3.1% in comparison with earlier cycles. In a bid to additional curb its movies, Netflix is committing for the primary time to extending the run time (on sure titles) in theaters and can usher in income on movies such because the Cannes winner. The black ballthat of David Fincher The Different Misadventures of Cliff Sales space, That of Peter Berg Mosquito bowl, Danny Boyle’s Ink, Greta Gerwig Narnia: the magician’s nephew and animated title Charlie and the Chocolate Manufacturing unit. This all occurred after they misplaced their bid to purchase Warner Bros. Studios. There have been quite a few rumors that former Warner Bros studio execs Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy can be shifting to the streamer. Nonetheless, sources say their current lunches with CEO Ted Sarandos had been merely amongst friends. Netflix ought to decide to displaying hearth in cinema so De Luca and Abdy can transfer to the streamer; the duo was not too long ago handed over by Skydance co-CEO David Ellison for high jobs throughout the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger.
When Belgrade got here to Netflix, there have been 4 challenges: there wasn’t sufficient product within the works, the streamer was recognized for overspending, post-production dragged on, and filmmakers weren’t all the time supported with editorial suggestions. Lin and Belgrade have resolved these points and there’s now a full slate of titles by way of 2028. Belgrade has spent a lot of its time guiding filmmakers by way of post-production.
At Netflix, Belgrade oversaw a group of 35 manufacturing managers. Belgrade additionally took care of Sony’s output take care of Netflix. Along with being a billion-dollar deal, the deal additionally requires Sony to deliver a variety of movies on to streaming to Netflix (the Culver Metropolis batch was chargeable for the streamer’s most-watched movie ever). Kpop Demon Hunters, which was additionally the primary Netflix movie to open on the high spot on the weekend field workplace in late August 2025)
Earlier than becoming a member of Netflix in Could 2024, Belgrade spent 25 years at Sony Photos and in the end served as co-president beneath Amy Pascal. He joined Culver Metropolis in 1989 and was promoted to co-president of manufacturing at Columbia in 2003 and president in 2008. He led the Males in black franchise, Adam Sandler’s canon at Sony and Oscar nominee American unrest And Captain Phillipssimply to call just a few.
After leaving Sony as chairman of the Movement Image Group in 2016, he created 2.0 Leisure, which performed a key position within the manufacturing and co-financing of Sony movies akin to Grand Tourism and the final two Dangerous boys, 2024 Dangerous Boys: Experience or Die And Dangerous boys for all times, the latter an enormous pre-Covid hit, grossing $426.5 million and the very best within the franchise.
Belgrade continues to be the president of two.0. He has no rapid plans to reunite together with his former colleagues there, however a productive future isn’t out of the query.
Extra to return.