Netflix’s film division has lost its leader. Dan Lin has been dismissed after almost three years as head of film, Variety reported, citing two sources. The move comes days after a broader layoff removed roughly 1,000 employees and chief content officer Bela Bajaria left the company.
A creative reset is moving through film
Lin will address his teams on Monday, according to the report. He was still visible over the weekend, attending the Academy Gala on Saturday and a Netflix campus screening of ‘La Bola Negra’ on Sunday evening. A Netflix spokesperson had no immediate comment.
The departure is part of a wider overhaul. Netflix has faced months of public attention on engagement problems and stock stagnation after its failed bid for Warner Bros. The company is bringing in Peter Rice, an experienced film and television executive, to replace Bajaria. Lin’s exit shows the restructuring is reaching the film group itself, not just the corporate layer.
The film vertical was already exposed. In the days before Lin’s firing, layoffs claimed his right hand Doug Belgrad and indie head Sheroum Kim, Variety’s sources said.
An 88-film slate changes hands
Lin took the top film job in 2024 after Scott Stuber’s run. He came from Rideback, the producer behind the animated Lego films, Stephen King’s ‘It’ adaptations and the ‘Sherlock Holmes’ movies. In a June interview with The New York Times, Lin said he had greenlit or acquired 88 movies for Netflix. The titles he cited as standouts included ‘Apex,’ ‘Emelia Perez,’ ‘Here Comes the Flood,’ ‘The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth’ and Greta Gerwig’s ‘Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew.’
- What happened: Lin was let go at the start of the weekend after nearly three years as film chief.
- Context: The exit follows roughly 1,000 layoffs and Bajaria’s removal, with Peter Rice arriving to lead creative.
- What’s at stake: An 88-film slate, including franchise bets such as Narnia, now moves to new leadership.
For ScreenStat readers, this story is about more than one executive. When a platform reorganises around engagement and stock performance, its film group starts to be measured differently. Lin was a producer-led hire; Rice is a platform-level operator. The next Netflix film slate is likely to be judged as much by how efficiently it drives viewing as by the awards and director relationships it can buy.
The 88-film number is a useful benchmark. It covers a high-volume period when Netflix was working to prove it could supply movies at scale. The leadership change does not erase those films; it changes who will sequence, market and greenlight what follows. Producers and media buyers should watch whether Netflix leans harder into existing franchises or keeps funding mid-budget originals that need real marketing support to find an audience.
Source: Variety
