Sponsored message
Logged in as
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen
Arts & Entertainment

One Year After Mass Layoffs In Hollywood, Competition For Jobs Has Only Gotten More Fierce

People hold signs that say "Writers Guild on Strike!" during the daytime while forming a picket line.
Picket signs during the Hollywood strike pointed to possible scenarios.
(
Mandalit del Barco
/
NPR
)

One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.

Topline:

A year ago, three major Hollywood studios — Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Global — made major staff reductions. What’s happened to the people who were laid off? How are they navigating the current job outlook?

Why it matters: Many of the people who lost their jobs last year were rank-and-file employees or mid-level executives. As one recruiter who specializes in entertainment notes, “Just because you were a fabulous executive during the last 10 years, doesn't necessarily mean you're the right person to be leading a company or division for the next 10 years.” 

Waiting for the tide to turn: This headhunter expects things to improve next year or 2026, so many people are trying to live more simply to survive until then. If they are able to find employment, it’s often a significant pay cut, sometimes as much as 50%.

Doing their own thing: Historically, starting your own business in Hollywood had a bit of a stigma attached to it. No more. Many laid-off executives are launching independent ventures to control their own destiny.

For more . . . read the full story on The Ankler.

This story is published in partnership with The Ankler, a paid subscription publication about the entertainment industry.

One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.

You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.

If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Make your tax-deductible donation today