Netflix named Peter Rice as its chief content officer on Wednesday, hours after Bela Bajaria left the role she had held since January 2023, ending a decade at the streaming company.
Rice starts on October 26 and will oversee all Netflix content, including series, film and live events, Deadline reported. Variety reported the appointment, crediting Puck with breaking the news.
Bajaria joined Netflix in 2016, when co-CEO Ted Sarandos brought her in to build an unscripted division. She took over the global television operation in 2020 after Cindy Holland's departure and was promoted to chief content officer in January 2023. Her slate included "Bridgerton," "Squid Game," "Stranger Things" and "Wednesday," and she pushed the company into live events and sports, with deals for NFL games and WWE programming, according to Variety.
The change came a day after Netflix cut about 1,000 jobs, roughly 6 percent of its staff, in its largest layoff round since 2022. Film vice president Doug Belgrad and film director Sheroum Kim were among those let go, Variety reported. GlobeTV reported the layoffs on Wednesday.
"I want to thank Bela for a decade of dedication and leadership," Sarandos said in a statement. "She led enormous changes at Netflix."
Rice built his career at Fox before moving to Disney, where he ran the company's television and general entertainment businesses, with ABC, FX and Hulu among the units under him. Disney dismissed him in June 2022 and gave the job to Dana Walden, a decision Variety called a shock to the industry at the time. In July 2025 he was appointed to lead ceremonies and content for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Sarandos called Rice "one of the most effective at-scale operators in the entertainment industry." He said Rice's business acumen was sharp and his experience across television and film deep and broad.
Rice said Netflix had "fundamentally changed the way stories are made, shared and experienced around the world."
Business Insider reported that the shake-up followed a stock slump and viewership struggles. Netflix won 16 Primetime Emmy awards this year, down from 30 in 2025 and its lowest tally since 2016, Variety reported. The company is due to report third-quarter results on October 20.