Netflix has appointed former Disney executive Peter Rice as its new chief content officer, replacing Bela Bajaria, who is leaving the streaming company after nearly a decade. Rice will take over the role on October 26.
Rice will lead Netflix’s global content organisation, overseeing scripted and unscripted series, films and live events across regions. He previously served as chairman of Walt Disney Television and chairman of General Entertainment at The Walt Disney Company, where his remit included ABC, FX, Hulu, National Geographic and Disney’s television studios.
Before Disney, Rice held senior positions at 21st Century Fox and ran Fox Searchlight Pictures, whose releases during his tenure included Slumdog Millionaire, Juno and Little Miss Sunshine.
Bajaria joined Netflix in 2016 and became chief content officer in January 2023. During her tenure, the platform expanded its international programming and produced global hits including Squid Game and Bridgerton, while moving more aggressively into live programming through partnerships with WWE and the NFL.
The leadership change comes amid a broader restructuring at Netflix. A day before announcing Bajaria’s departure, the company told employees it would cut around 1,000 jobs, or 6% of its workforce, its largest round of layoffs since 2022.
Netflix is also facing greater competition for viewing time from platforms such as YouTube and TikTok, whose largely user-generated content models carry significantly different cost structures. Engagement has consequently become an increasingly important metric as Netflix looks beyond subscriber additions to advertising, live events and sports to drive growth.
The appointment puts Rice in charge of Netflix’s content strategy at a point when the streamer is broadening what constitutes “content” itself — from traditional films and series to sports, live entertainment and other appointment-viewing formats — while simultaneously tightening costs across the business.
