Netflix Lays Off 30 From Animation Team After Leadership Restructuring

In the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's accession to the throne, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle reportedly want to delay the release of their Netflix documentary series and the duke's memoir.  The Duke and Duchess of Sussex hope to make last-minute edits to portions of both projects that talk about Harry’s brother, Prince William, and his wife, Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, as well as the king and his wife Camilla, the queen consort, the New York Post reported.  Both the Netflix series and Harry’s memoir were set to be released by the end of the year, the newspaper reported, but will likely now be pushed until next year.  "A lot of conversations are happening," a source told the Post. "I hear that Harry and Meghan want the series to be held until next year, they want to stall.

Good afternoon Insiders, Max Goldbart here. Our crack team of reporters and editors brought you the news from Zurich to Singapore to London this week, and I’m here to help you digest. Read away.

EXCLUSIVE: Veteran film executive David Kosse is leaving his post as VP of International Film at Netflix amid a restructure of the company’s European content business. Kosse joined the streamer in 2019, overseeing all international film production and acquisitions with a focus on making and acquiring significant non-English language films with global appeal. He is expected to continue to produce for Netflix and others.

wrote Eric Perry, the brother of Rita Isbell, whose brother Errol Lindsay was killed by the murderer. Her impassioned testimony in court was iconic and is replicated, almost exactly, in the series.

Zack Sharf Netflix has removed the LGBTQ tag from its Ryan Murphy-created Jeffrey Dahmer limited series, “Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.” The show, starring Evan Peters as the notorious serial killer, launched Sept. 21 on the streaming platform and was categorized under the LGBTQ tag for at least two days. A source with knowledge of the situation confirmed to Variety the LGBTQ tag was officially removed by Friday, Sept. 23. The decision to categorize “Dahmer” as LGBTQ content ignited controversy on social media, with many subscribers condemning Netflix for the decision (via the Los Angeles Times). The tag is normally used to spotlight shows such as “Heartstopper” and “Sex Education,” both of which include LGBTQ characters and subject matter in a positive light. “Dahmer” technically does feature an LGBTQ character since the serial killer was a gay man, but as one subscriber wrote on TikTok, “This is not the representation we’re looking for.”

controversial Dave Chappelle special. Gadsby’s new deal includes her own hour-long comedy special as well as a multi-comic special, according to Deadline. She will also host and produce the multi-comic special, which is expected to feature international jokesters.

Lookism.On September 25, the streaming platform premiered the trailer on its YouTube channel, at the same time revealing that Lookism will begin streaming on November 4.The trailer follows an overweight high school student named Park Hyeong-seok, who is frequently bullied and harassed by his peers who consider him unattractive. One day, Hyeong-seok wakes up and discovers that he has received a new, conventionally attractive body, which he can use while his original body is asleep.With his days spent split between the two different bodies, Hyeong-seok begins to realise just how differently the world treats him based on his physical appearance.The trailer is soundtracked by a snippet of an original song performed by K-pop boyband ATEEZ.

Brent Lang Executive Editor Illumination, the studio behind the “Despicable Me” franchise, has tapped Mike Moon to form a new label, Moonlight. The goal is to broaden the range of films that Illumination makes beyond the kid-friendly fare that’s been its stock in trade. Moon most recently served as the head of adult animation at Netflix, a post he stepped down from in July to “pursue other opportunities.” His exit came as the streamer, battered by a swooning stock price, was laying off animators and dialing back its ambitions in the space. In addition to his new role as president of Moonlight, the company said that Moon will serve as a senior creative advisor to Illumination. Moonlight’s films will be distributed under Illumination’s distribution partnership with Universal Pictures. Illumination said the goal is for Moonlight to “produce animated films that push beyond the family genre.”

The “Despicable Me” animation studio Illumination is launching a new label that will help it expand beyond family films and into more adult animated fare, and they’ve tapped Mike Moon, previously the head of Adult Animation at Netflix, to lead the new label.Moon will serve as the president of the label titled Moonlight, and he will also come aboard as a creative advisor to Illumination. His role will at Moonlight will be to augment Illumination’s existing slate and produce animated films that push beyond the family genre.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Netflix’s recently hired principal accounting officer, former EA finance exec Ken Barker, has resigned after about three months on the job. Barker, who reported to CFO Spencer Neumann, submitted his resignation on Thursday and will depart the company on Oct. 7, Netflix disclosed in an SEC filing. “Mr. Barker’s resignation was a personal decision and is not the result of any disagreement with the company on any matter relating to the company’s financials, operations, policies or practices,” Netflix said in the filing. With Barker’s exit, Neumann will assume the role of principal accounting officer (and he will not receive any additional compensation for those duties) while the company searches for a permanent replacement. Previously, the primary accounting exec at Netflix was JC Berger, VP of finance and global controller, who left the company in June after 15 years.

Michaela Zee editor The U.S. premiere of Jordan Peele and Henry Selick’s “Wendell & Wild” will kick off the fifth edition of Animation Is Film (AIF) on Oct. 21. The screening of the forthcoming Netflix feature will be followed by an in-person Q&A with Selick. “I’m delighted my new film ‘Wendell & Wild’ — co-written and produced with Jordan Peele — will have its U.S. premiere at Animation Is Film, a festival that celebrates the non-traditional and ground-breaking in animated movies,” Selick said in a statement. “Our made-in-the-USA stop-motion feature is many things: scary, funny, creepy, sad, and empowering, but most of all, it’s very very original so I can’t think of a better place for its U.S. premiere than Animation Is Film. Hope you enjoy the show.

Ryuichi Sakamoto has shared two new songs that were made for the Netflix anime series Exception – listen below.The two songs – ‘Opening for ‘Exception’’ and ‘Oxygen’ – soundtrack the new space horror anime series, which is based on a new story by Hirotaka Adachi.The series is due to launch globally on October 14, with ‘Exception (Soundtrack From the Netflix Anime Series)’ out on the same day via Milan Records.The official synopsis of the series reads: “In the distant future, humanity has been forced to leave Earth and migrate to another galaxy. A spacecraft is sent to a planet to terraform it and the crew is created one by one by a biological 3D printer.“However, a fatal error occurs during the creation of one of the members.

Ethan Shanfeld Netflix Animation has laid off 30 employees, Variety has confirmed. The news comes after recent executive shakeups, with Netflix earlier this year appointing Karen Toliver vice president of animated film content and Traci Balthazor vice president of animated film production.

EXCLUSIVE: The Netflix Animation overhaul continues with the exit of 30 employees, Deadline has confirmed. This comes after Netflix set new leadership for the Animation Film team with Karen Toliver (VP Animation Film Content) and Traci Balthazor (VP Animation Film Production). They have been tasked with streamlining the animation team, which explains the attrition.

Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi and EP Kenya Barris have released the official trailer and key art to Entergalactic, an original animated story about a young artist named Jabari — voiced by Mescudi — as he attempts to balance love and success.

Clayton Davis Almost 30 years after “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (1993), Henry Selick returns with “Wendell & Wild,” another stop-motion animated sensation that’s sure to generate acclaim throughout the industry. Co-written by Oscar-winning screenwriter Jordan Peele, the Netflix feature film debuted at the Toronto Film Festival and may have asserted itself as the new frontrunner for best animated feature. Based on Selick and Clay McLeod Chapman’s unpublished book of the same name, the film tells the story of two scheming demon brothers, Wendell (Keegan-Michael Key) and Wild (Peele), who enlist the aid of a 13-year-old Kat (Lyric Ross) to summon them to the Land of the Living. It also features the voice talents of Angela Bassett, James Hong and Ving Rhames.

EJ Panaligan editor “Key and Peele” co-creators Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele reunite for leading voice roles in the new teaser for Netflix’s “Wendell & Wild.” The new stop-motion animated comedy horror film from Netflix is director Henry Selick’s first since 2009’s “Coraline.” Based on Clay McLeod Chapman’s unpublished book of the same name, the film follows two demon brothers with scheming tendencies, Wendell and Wild, voiced by Key and Peele respectively, who enlist the help of a 13-year-old named Kat, voiced by Lyric Ross, to summon them back to the Land of the Living. Selick and Peele co-wrote the adapted screenplay. In addition to Key, Peele and Ross, additional cast in the film include Angela Bassett, James Hong, Sam Zelaya, Tamara Smart, Seema Virdi, Ramona Young and Ving Rhames in supporting roles.

Wendell & Wild.Directed by filmmaker Henry Selick, and written by Selick and Jordan Peele, Wendell & Wild followsscheming demon brothers Wendell (Keegan-Michael Key) and Wild (Peele), who enlist the aid of Kat Elliot (Lyric Ross) -- a tough teen with a load of guilt -- to summon them to the Land of the Living. But what Kat demands in return leads to a brilliantly bizarre and comedic adventure like no other.The animated fantasy defies the law of life and death, all told through the handmade artistry of stop motion.Angela Bassett, James Hong, Tamara Smart, Natalie Martinez, Tantoo Cardinal, Gabrielle Dennis, Igal Naor, David Harewood, Maxine Peake, Ramona Young, Sam Zelaya, Seema Virdi, Gary Gatewood and Ving Rhames also star in the film.Wendell & Wild is one of several titles coming to spook Netflix viewers this year, along with Mike Flanagan's new series The Midnight Club, season two of , the previously teased and more. Wendell & Wild premieres Oct.

Henry Selick, the wildly original mastermind behind such extraordinarily conceived feature film animations as “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “James And The Giant Peach,” marks his first feature film since 2009s unsettling creeper, “Coraline,” in “Wendell & Wild.” Debuting on Netflix later this year, the stop-motion animation, billed as a dark fantasy comedy horror, “Wendell & Wild” is based on a screenplay penned by Selick and Jordan Peele, who also produces and stars in a voice role alongside long time collaborator Keegan-Michael Key.

“Coraline,” since it was the last feature project that Selick completed, is as good a place as any to start when it comes to explaining where the director has been for the past decade. Based on the novel by Neil Gaiman, “Coraline” was released in February 2009.