Ten ex-Pixar employees opened up about the struggles of this year’s layoffs, the intense pressure during the crunch, and broader cultural issues within the studio in the new IGN report. The report further uncovers numerous problems within the studio during the production of Inside Out 2, now the highest-grossing animated film ever, along with concerns about the upcoming release of Elio. The Walt Disney Company did not respond to the allegations raised by former employees.
The studio went through an intense crunch period to complete Inside Out 2, with animators reportedly working seven days a week for an extended stretch. One former employee called it “the largest crunch in the studio’s history.” Said another source: “I think for a month or two, the animators were working seven days a week. Ridiculous amounts of production workers, just people being tossed into jobs they’d never really done before… It was horrendous.” Another insider mentioned the crunch lasting months, from the end of the WGA strike in September 2023 until production wrapped, with some employees working weekends for the final four months.
"You're just working 24/7. And so after a while, your body just starts breaking down."
- Morale at Pixar has deteriorated, and there's a noticeable creative bottleneck, with all decisions filtering through Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter to an "unhealthy degree." One employee said, "You can’t do anything without Pete. Literally nothing." Another noted the worsening culture, adding, “There’s a huge number of people feeling, ‘I just can’t do this anymore.”
- Leadership at Pixar is reportedly more concerned with self-preservation than the well-being of employees. According to one insider, "The overwhelming feeling before and after the layoffs is that executives are just acting out of fear, doing everything to protect their own power and jobs. Morale is low because employees no longer trust their leaders to act in their best interests."
- Following the box office failure of Lightyear, Pixar has become more conservative in promoting younger talent and taking creative risks. Disney internally attributed the film's poor performance to a same-sex kiss, leading Pete Docter to shift toward "universal stories" — interpreted by some as stories that are overly homogenized. This decision prompted major edits to Inside Out 2, beginning in September 2023, to remove any "romantic chemistry" between characters Riley and Val and ensure they were portrayed as straight. Several sources reported that Disney leadership felt "uncomfortable" about what they perceived as "queer themes" in the film.
- Pixar’s profit-sharing model, which rewards employees when films hit a certain financial threshold, has also become a source of frustration. Although Inside Out 2 achieved the bonus mark, many workers who were laid off after the film’s completion won’t receive it. This is especially disappointing since Pixar promotes bonuses as a key reason for not unionizing with The Animation Guild. "We work all year for that bonus. It’s part of what makes working at Pixar worth it," said one employee. Another described the decision not to offer bonuses to laid-off workers as "the ultimate slap in the face from Disney."
- While Kelsey Mann is credited as the director of Inside Out 2, Pete Docter reportedly acted as an uncredited co-director. “I mean, you saw the end result of that. [Inside Out 2] made a billion dollars at the box office. That was a direct result of Pete’s involvement. Pete’s a genius. Nobody can dispute this,” said one employee. Despite the studio's issues, most employees don’t hold negative feelings toward Docter. According to IGN, "Many sources don’t blame Docter. He has years of experience and a proven track record." It seems Docter is balancing the creative direction of the studio with the demands from Disney and the high expectations placed on Pixar.
- A new production approach called "Long and Lean," aimed at creating films with less staff over a slower timeline, has backfired. The process slows down the development and writing stages while intensifying production deadlines in the final phases.
The production of Elio, Pixar's upcoming film, has also been rocky. Original director Adrian Molina was replaced by Madeline Sharafian and Domee Shi. "It was rushed work, paranoid leadership, and mixed messaging," said one employee. Some claim that the studio is repeating past mistakes with Elio. "They’ve learned nothing," said one former employee. “And that’s the feedback I’m still getting when I’m just reaching out to [current employees]. …Right now, everyone’s on Elio. Things are exactly the same as they were before. Everybody’s working crazy hours to get Elio fixed.”
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