Hollywood is seeing a wave of staff reductions from the corporate suites to the theme park turnstiles as entertainment giants including the Walt Disney Co. and Endeavor implement layoffs and furloughs in response to the Chinese coronavirus pandemic.
Just how bad is the carnage? In Los Angeles County alone, 14,000 entertainment-related workers saw their jobs evaporate in less than two months, according to a new report from tech news outlet dot.LA. Meanwhile, Tinseltown could see even more bloodshed in the second quarter, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Endeavor — the largest Hollywood talent agency, as well as a studio — recently said that it will lay off or furlough up to a third of its staff. Disney has furloughed more than 100,000 employees worldwide, mostly in the company’s parks division.
Hollywood has been hit on multiple fronts, including the closure of cinemas and the suspension of live sports, which is usually a cash cow for broadcasters. The L.A. office of Fox Sports Productions saw 3,595 people temporarily laid off at the end of April, according to dot.LA.
Twice-Deported Illegal Alien Triggers Hijack Alert on United Flight After Rushing Cockpit: DHS
French novelist who wrote about Muslim-leftist takeover charged with hate speech for ‘Great Replacement’ comments
Democrats Are Turning on Each Other After Bizarre Absences Cause Hegseth Impeachment Effort to Fail
Wes Moore’s military record under renewed scrutiny after Army supervisor disputes his Afghanistan combat claims
Trump 45 alumni get behind a new name for press secretary
Hegseth could face new impeachment push over Ukraine aid, lawmakers warn
Ilhan Omar appears clueless on basis for federal probes: ‘You probably have more details on that’
Cruise Ship Returns to Texas Port Shortly After Departure When Murder Victim Is Discovered On Board
Multiple Kennedy family members seek to join legal battle against Trump’s triumphal arch
10 Serial Killers Among Those Whose Sentences Were Commuted by Gavin Newsom
‘He blamed the Jews’: GOP congressman levels explosive accusation against JD Vance over election postmortem
Russia and Ukraine settle on large prisoner swap after no major developments from talks
Secretary Scott Bessent moved to military base over Iran threats and more top headlines
Slain New Jersey mom’s bedroom furniture removed by investigators months after unsolved stabbing
FIRST ON FOX: Supreme Court justices confront what it will take to keep America’s founding freedoms alive
Some of the biggest job losses have come from the production sector, which consists of below-the-line crew members who typically toil year round on crowded movie and TV sets. Hollywood’s trade unions have seen their members idle without work as soundstages around the country remain empty.
Breitbart News reported last week that Hollywood studios are currently working on ways to make sets safe when production ultimately resumes. While no major studio has yet to announce a timetable, one source told Breitbart that U.S. production may resume in June at the earliest.
But L.A. County’s decision to prolong its stay-at-home order for an additional three months is only creating more uncertainty.
Tyler Perry recently announced that his Atlanta studio will resume limited production in July. Countries including New Zealand, Poland, the Czech Republic have also announced that shooting can resume.
The Hollywood Reporter noted that individual studios are remaining vague about potential future layoffs. But some executives have spoken about coronavirus-related cost savings.
Twice-Deported Illegal Alien Triggers Hijack Alert on United Flight After Rushing Cockpit: DHS
French novelist who wrote about Muslim-leftist takeover charged with hate speech for ‘Great Replacement’ comments
Democrats Are Turning on Each Other After Bizarre Absences Cause Hegseth Impeachment Effort to Fail
Wes Moore’s military record under renewed scrutiny after Army supervisor disputes his Afghanistan combat claims
Trump 45 alumni get behind a new name for press secretary
Hegseth could face new impeachment push over Ukraine aid, lawmakers warn
Ilhan Omar appears clueless on basis for federal probes: ‘You probably have more details on that’
Cruise Ship Returns to Texas Port Shortly After Departure When Murder Victim Is Discovered On Board
Multiple Kennedy family members seek to join legal battle against Trump’s triumphal arch
10 Serial Killers Among Those Whose Sentences Were Commuted by Gavin Newsom
‘He blamed the Jews’: GOP congressman levels explosive accusation against JD Vance over election postmortem
Russia and Ukraine settle on large prisoner swap after no major developments from talks
Secretary Scott Bessent moved to military base over Iran threats and more top headlines
Slain New Jersey mom’s bedroom furniture removed by investigators months after unsolved stabbing
FIRST ON FOX: Supreme Court justices confront what it will take to keep America’s founding freedoms alive
ViacomCBS has indicated that it will take more cost-cutting steps in addition to the ones already realized from the re-merger of Viacom and CBS.
Chief financial officer Christina Spade said the company was “taking additional cost-cutting actions and implementing initiatives to reduce discretionary expenses” amid the pandemic. “We are learning from this crisis and finding ways that we can operate more efficiently,” she said during a recent earnings call.
Meanwhile, Disney has begun the gradual process of re-opening its theme parks and resorts. Disney Springs in Orlando is set to partially re-open on May 20, though the adjacent Walt Disney World remains closed. Shanghai Disney Resort recently opened again with visitors required to take special precautions, including social distancing and masks.
Story cited here.
