(ConservativeSense.com) – Pixar, the animation studio behind Toy Story and its spin-off Lightyear, is laying off staff as profits fall. Disney owns the company and has sacked 75 staff, including the executives behind 2022’s flop Lightyear. They are the first job cuts at the studio in ten years.
Angus McLane, who has worked at the studio for 26 years and was involved in major hits including Toy Story 4, was one of the executives to face the axe. Also gone is Galyn Susman, the producer of Lightyear. Susman had worked at Pixar since 1995.
Michael Agulnek, Pixar’s vice president of worldwide publicity, was also laid off. He started work at the company in 2015.
Disney said the cuts are part of its planned overall restructure that will slash 7,000 jobs and reduce costs by more than $5 billion.
Lightyear, one of the most prolific recent failures from the studio, was released in 2022 as part of Disney’s Pride celebrations. It features a gay relationship and could therefore not be shown in the Middle East. It was made on a budget of $200 million and barely covered its costs at the box office, where it took in just $226 million. The film also dropped Tim Allen, who voiced the Lightyear character in the Toy Story franchise.
Producers erased a gay kiss from the final cut, but Pixar staff reacted furiously, so the scene was restored. The kickback by staff followed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ Parental Rights in Education legislation, which celebrities mischaracterized as a “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Outraged staff and other leftists pushed Disney to go into battle with DeSantis. Activists were particularly angered when it was revealed that Disney continued donating to politicians who backed the controversial bill.
Disney initially resisted pressure to condemn the legislation but an online boycott, encouraged by celebrities and left-leaning politicians, caused CEO Bob Chapek to cave in. The company pledged $5 million to pro-LGBTQ+ groups.
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