Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group is laying off approximately 10% of its global workforce as part of a sweeping restructure designed to transition the studio from a U.S.-centric model to a unified global operation. The move comes amid continued efforts by Warner Bros. Discovery to streamline operations, reduce costs, and reorient its film divisions for long-term sustainability and global competitiveness.

The cuts, which began rolling out this week, impact departments across marketing, distribution, production, strategy, operations, and live theater. While specific names and roles affected have yet to be confirmed, insiders say the layoffs affect roughly 100 employees out of a total staff of under 1,000.

In a memo sent Wednesday morning to employees, Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group co-chairs and CEOs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy described the layoffs as part of a broader shift away from a traditional U.S./International split and toward a fully integrated global structure — a move that mirrors similar strategies implemented by Disney and Universal in recent years.

“The future of how we run this business has required us to make some very difficult decisions, including staffing adjustments,” wrote De Luca and Abdy. “We are tremendously grateful to our departing team members whose contributions have made a lasting impact on Warner Bros. Pictures.”

The restructuring has been in the works for months, beginning with the January departure of longtime international distribution president Andrew Cripps, whose role was absorbed by domestic distribution chief Jeff Goldstein, now global president. Cripps later joined Disney in a similar role. Also exiting in January was global marketing head Josh Goldstine; interim leadership under Dana Nussbaum, Christian Davin, and John Stanford has since been made permanent following strong campaign performance — most notably the studio’s high-impact marketing rollout for Superman.

Despite the tough start to the year marked by box office disappointments, the studio rebounded with high-profile wins, including A Minecraft Movie and Sinners. That momentum, insiders suggest, gave the leadership team enough confidence to double down on structural change.

This latest move follows Warner Bros. Discovery’s broader corporate split announced in June, which will formally divide the company into separate Warner Bros. and Discovery Global divisions by mid-2026. CEO David Zaslav will continue to oversee the Warner Bros. entity, alongside a new leadership slate that includes Bruce Campbell as COO, James Gunn and Peter Safran as heads of DC Studios, and Casey Bloys as chairman and CEO of HBO and Max.

While the layoffs represent another difficult chapter for the storied studio, De Luca and Abdy signaled optimism for the future, promising that Warner Bros. will remain focused on delivering “world-class release campaigns” and “memorable in-theater experiences only the big screen can offer.”

As the global entertainment landscape continues to evolve, Warner Bros. appears determined to meet audiences where they are — and, increasingly, with fewer people behind the scenes.