Dan Lin is named head of cinema at Netflix, which has been widely speculated for weeks. Streamer insiders have denied that Dan Lin and even Bela Bajaria are on the chopping block, but here we are.
Lin’s firing comes after Netflix generated 1,000 pink slips given its recent slow growth and minimal overall audience peak. Wall Street is bracing for what is expected to be a negative quarter for the OTT service. At the time of writing, Netflix shares were trading at $69.76, or -1%. The 52-week high price on Netflix was $124.86.
Many were shocked when the ax swung last week and missed Lin’s head, landing on his lieutenant co-head of the film, Doug Belgrade. Belgrade was found to be an extra layer at the top of Netflix’s cinematic hierarchy that could easily be abandoned, dollar-wise. Lin was expected to be safe until the arrival of Bajaria’s replacement on October 26, Peter Rice. That’s when the executive would assess the situation.
At Saturday night’s Academy Museum gala cocktails, we caught up with Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos and asked if more cuts were coming. In what seemed like a polite dodge, he just winked and walked away. Interpret this however you can.
What this all boils down to is: Netflix, what exactly do you want? All streaming has shifted to basic cable as we move away from Covid. They turned to Lin in April 2024 after Scott Stuber in order to reduce the amount of features and at a lower cost. Lin did exactly what he asked, moving away from overpriced $200M+ non-downstream features such as Red Notice, The Irishman And The Electric State. However, he had a pragmatic approach towards filmmakers. He would have had no problem fending off high-profile content creators like Greta Gerwig and Ben Affleck. Under the Lin regime, a source told us, relations with filmmakers deteriorated. Recently, The Misadventures of Cliff Booth filmmaker David Fincher has chosen not to renew his long-standing exclusive contract with the streamer.
During Lin’s tenure, Netflix saw its most-watched film of all time, Sony’s. Demon Hunters Kpop (325.1 million global views). However, this was given the green light under the previous Stuber administration. Lin and Belgrade’s bragging rights include War machine ($80 million production cost, 147 million views), animated film Exchange (144.9 million views, which puts the streamer in the top 10 of all time), The tear ($100 million production cost, 136 million views), Merry Gilmore 2 (135.1 million), Summit (129M), Discuss (100 million views) and People we meet on vacation (production cost of 14 million dollars, 77.1 million). There still hasn’t been a consistent reseeding of the Top 10 list like there was in Stuber’s era.
The Mike and Pam of it all
After being passed over by Skydance for top positions at the new Paramount Warner Bros. post-merger, we learn that former WB movie bosses Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy are in the home stretch this week to finalize payment for their WB contracts from David Ellison. Until they are closed, they cannot accept any job offers. Those close to De Luca tell us he would have no problem reporting to Rice if offered the job, however, Netflix would have to go all-in on the movie business. The idea of a 45-day theatrical window for streaming is not a prospect De Luca (and Abdy) could offer to the filmmakers they worked with, namely Ryan Coogler, Paul Thomas Anderson, Ridley Scott. The idea that the duo is obligated to raise capital for their own feature film operation seems like the most practical future for them.
All this smoke about De Luca and Abdy heading to Netflix is because of a friendly lunch with Sarandos. This turned into rumors that Sarandos was fully courting the duo.
If Sarandos and Rice bring in the filmmaking duo, the question is whether they will put in place safeguards. When De Luca and Abdy justified the high costs of Anderson’s project, One battle after another, Coogler Sinners, Tom Cruise’s Excavator and so on, David Zaslav did not blink. Will Sarandos grant them the same green-light independence he gave Stuber? Or will he expect them to count coins like Lin? Riddle us that, Mr. Sarandos.
“Netflix is not a place to talk about cinema,” says one creator who has worked with them. “They are only interested in the process, the algorithm and deciphering the code, which makes Lin a good workaholic for them, because he is also interested in the process.”
There’s a rumor, and despite the idea that De Luca and Abdy are always joined at the hip, they haven’t been historically. Some believe there is a world in which Abdy could accept a De Luca-free offer from Netflix once his WB contract is paid off. “Of course there is a world where this could happen,” says a source with knowledge of the situation.
Still, there is no firm word on who might fill Lin’s vacancy. No interview process is underway at this time.
A rival studio boss complimented this weekend: “I think you’ll be surprised who picks Peter Rice.”
But still, regardless of how the greenlighting process is improved at Netflix, there is a new sign of the times for the streamer.
“If you want to know where younger audiences are watching, Meta just introduced Muse. People are going back to theaters and streaming has become basic cable,” said one Netflix veteran, “They can change direction as much as they want, and it still won’t make a difference.”
Informed sources have confirmed Lin’s dismissal to us.
More…
Gn entert
