- Primary Subject: Marvel Studios Structural Reorganization
- Key Update: Disney’s layoffs of 1,000 employees have affected Marvel.
- Status: Confirmed
- Last Verified: April 15, 2026
- Quick Answer: Disney layoffs eliminated 8% of Marvel’s workforce, specifically targeting visual development. The studio is now shifting from in-house creative teams to a project-based freelance model.
Disney recently underwent layoffs that impacted 1,000 employees across multiple divisions, including Marvel. Here's how it is affecting the comic book studio moving forward.
The recently minted Disney CEO, Josh D'Amaro, explained that the layoff was due to finding "ways in which we can streamline our operations in various parts of the company to ensure we deliver the world-class creativity and innovation our fans value and expect from Disney."
With "the fast-moving pace" of the industry, he explained that it "requires [them] to constantly assess how to foster a more agile and technologically-enabled workforce to meet tomorrow’s needs."
How the Disney Layoffs Are Affecting Marvel
According to Deadline, both Marvel Entertainment's New York office and Marvel Studios' Burbank office have been affected by Disney's recent rounds of layoffs. Around 8% of the workforce has been let go.
Broad layoffs are sweeping through almost every department, spanning film and TV production, comics, franchise, finance, legal, and visual development.
The impact on the visual development team is reportedly the most severe. Marvel Studios is shifting toward a freelance model, retaining only a core group of internal leads to manage a shifting pool of outside contractors brought in specifically for individual projects.
So far, Marvel has not released an official statement regarding the layoffs, nor have they laid out their plans moving forward.
While the upcoming MCU movies and shows won't likely be affected, Marvel's usual system might significantly change as a result of the changes in the visual development team, which is usually a core part of the creative process since the beginning.
What to Expect in the Upcoming Avengers Movies
For now, fans can anticipate the release of the two upcoming Avengers movies, which are expected to feature several of our favorite Marvel characters.
The plot details regarding Avengers: Doomsday are still under wraps, but it is expected to feature a multiversal team-up between the heroes in Earth-616, the Fantastic Four from Earth-838, and the X-Men from the Fox universe against Doctor Doom.
The star-studded cast includes Robert Downey Jr., Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Paul Rudd, Letitia Wright, Simu Liu, Tom Hiddleston, Winston Duke, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Lewis Pullman, Hannah John-Kamen, Danny Ramirez, Tenoch Huerta Mejía, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, Kelsey Grammer, James Marsden, Rebecca Romijn, Alan Cumming, Channing Tatum, and Chris Evans.
The film is slated for release in theaters on December 18. Four teaser trailers were already released, giving fans an early glimpse of what to expect.
As for Secret Wars, the details are still under wraps since production will begin late this year. It is slated for release in theaters in December 2027.
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