Disney’s top lawyer, Horacio Gutierrez, warned staff of “hard choices” in a memo reported Sept. 24, 2026. It’s the clearest sign yet that another round of Disney layoffs is close.
Disney’s top lawyer just put the next round of cuts in writing.
Horacio Gutierrez, Disney’s chief legal and global affairs officer, warned employees of “hard choices” ahead and a “much smaller organization,” according to a memo reported by Deadline on Sept. 24.
The memo doesn’t give a number. It doesn’t name the teams that will be hit, either, and Disney hasn’t announced any layoffs publicly.
What did Disney’s legal chief say in the memo?
The pieces of the memo that have come out are short and blunt.
Gutierrez wrote about “hard choices” and a “much smaller organization,” per Deadline. He also tied the changes to “automating certain workflows by leveraging the latest technologies.”
That last line is the one people inside the company will read twice. In plain English, some work people do now is going to be done by software instead.
Gutierrez has been Disney’s top legal executive since the company named him general counsel in December 2021. His title covers both the legal department and what Disney calls global affairs.
When are the next Disney layoffs expected?
Soon, if the reporting holds.
Puck‘s Matthew Belloni reported earlier this month that another round would land around the end of September. He wrote that these cuts would be “more limited and focused in H.R., product/tech, and other operations functions.”
Disney declined to comment on that report.
Gutierrez’s memo fits that timeline. It doesn’t confirm Belloni’s list of departments, though, and the memo and the Puck report shouldn’t be read as the same thing.
One is a warning from a named executive. The other is a report about where the cuts will fall.
How many Disney layoffs have there been in 2026?
If cuts come before October, it would be Disney’s third round of layoffs this year. Here’s the rest of the year so far:
April: about 1,000 jobs, mostly in marketing and brand teams, plus about 8 percent of Marvel Entertainment. CEO Josh D’Amaro told staff in a memo, “I know this is hard.”
July: hundreds of jobs across Pixar, ESPN and Disney Entertainment Television.
August: early-retirement offers to employees at the director level and above.
Are Disney World and Disneyland jobs affected?
Nothing reported so far points to the theme parks.
Belloni’s list was corporate: human resources, product and tech, and operations. Gutierrez’s memo, as reported, doesn’t mention the parks at all.
In fact, the parks side is heading the other way. Walt Disney World said earlier in September that it plans to add about 5,000 jobs in Central Florida over the next five years, as new lands and rides get built.
So in the same month, one part of Disney is hiring for construction-era growth and another is warning staff about a smaller headcount. For the people who work there, that’s two very different headlines about the same company.
Why is Disney cutting jobs now?
Disney hasn’t said publicly. The memo’s own answer is automation, and that’s about as far as the reporting goes.
D’Amaro, who took over from Bob Iger as CEO on March 18, has spent his first six months reshaping how the company is organized. Earlier this week, Disney moved its consumer products and licensing group out from under the parks division and named new leaders for it.
None of that tells anyone at Disney whose job is next. The memo says the organization is getting much smaller. It doesn’t say how small, and it doesn’t say when.
If Puck’s timing is right, employees won’t be waiting long to find out.
Article compiled with the help of the Pirates & Princesses newsroom.
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Hat Tips:
Deadline (Sept. 24, 2026), the Gutierrez memo and its “hard choices” and “much smaller organization” quotes
Free Independent News (Sept. 24, 2026), a copy of Deadline’s report carrying the “automating certain workflows” line
WDW News Today (Sept. 2026), Puck’s report on end-of-September cuts, the departments named and the 2026 layoff timeline
Variety (April 2026), the April round and D’Amaro’s memo
WDW News Today (Sept. 2026), Disney World’s plan to add 5,000 Central Florida jobs
Business Wire (Dec. 22, 2021), Gutierrez’s appointment as general counsel
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