Helene Hahn Loyd ran the business side of Disney's studio during its 1980s and '90s comeback, then helped Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen build DreamWorks from scratch. She died Oct. 24 in Park City, Utah.
Helene Hahn Loyd, a top business executive at Walt Disney Studios during its turnaround and one of the first executives at DreamWorks SKG, has died. She was 78.
Loyd "died peacefully in her sleep" on Oct. 24 in Park City, Utah, according to her management team, Deadline reported. The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Deadline and TheWrap reported her death Thursday, Nov. 5.
She worked alongside Jeffrey Katzenberg for nearly 30 years, at Paramount, Disney and DreamWorks. When she retired as DreamWorks' chief operating officer in 2004, Katzenberg called her "an invaluable partner and part of our brain trust," Variety reported at the time.
Who was Helene Hahn Loyd?
She was born Helene Burlakoff on July 13, 1948, in Westbury, New York, the youngest of three children, TheWrap reported.
She graduated from Hofstra University in 1970 and moved to Los Angeles. She took a temp job at Paramount Pictures while attending Loyola Law School, and she earned her law degree in 1975.
For most of her Hollywood career, she was known as Helene Hahn.
What did Helene Hahn do at Paramount?
She went back to Paramount in 1977 as a staff attorney. Two years later she moved to business affairs, where she was promoted to director in 1980, vice president in 1981 and senior vice president in 1983, Variety and the Associated Press reported in 2004.
That's where she met Katzenberg, Variety reported. She built a reputation there as a formidable dealmaker, according to this week's obituaries.
What did Helene Hahn do at Disney?
She followed Katzenberg to Disney in 1984, joining as senior vice president of business and legal affairs for Walt Disney Pictures. She became executive vice president of Walt Disney Studios in 1987 and rose to be the top business executive for the whole studio division, the AP reported in 2004.
That made her one of the highest-ranking women in the film business at the time, the trade obituaries said.
Her decade at Disney lined up with the studio's comeback, a run that included The Little Mermaid in 1989, Beauty and the Beast in 1991, Aladdin in 1992 and The Lion King in 1994.
Variety, THR and TheWrap all credited her with helping build Disney's partnership with Pixar. Disney's first feature deal with Pixar was signed in 1991 and led to Toy Story in 1995.
What did Helene Hahn do at DreamWorks?
She helped start it. DreamWorks SKG launched in October 1994, founded by Steven Spielberg, Katzenberg and David Geffen, and she was there from the beginning.
She worked with the three founders on the company's 10-year business plan and structured its equity investments, the AP reported. That plan became the blueprint for how DreamWorks set up production, distribution and marketing, Variety reported.
She started as co-chief operating officer with Ron Nelson. When Nelson left in January 2003, she became the sole COO.
She oversaw all of DreamWorks' business and legal affairs and handled negotiations for its major deals, including those with HBO, ABC and Universal, Variety reported in 2004.
Katzenberg also relied on her as his counsel during his lawsuit against Disney in the late 1990s, Variety reported.
"We started DreamWorks from absolute scratch," she told Variety when she retired.
Why did Helene Hahn leave DreamWorks?
She retired as COO in 2004, as DreamWorks prepared to take its animation division public. That move would split the COO job between two companies, Variety reported.
She had married in 1999 and was living in Park City while commuting to Los Angeles. "It's the right transition time for me," she told Variety. She agreed to stay on as a consultant for at least a year.
In Park City, she took up skiing. She "approached skiing with the same ferocity she applied to dealmaking," her official obituary said, according to Variety.
She also mentored many younger women executives, the obituaries said, and many of them went on to lead in their fields, TheWrap reported.
How can people honor Helene Hahn Loyd?
Her husband of more than two decades, Charles "Chuck" Loyd Jr., died in July.
The family asks that anyone who wishes to give make a donation in the couple's memory to U.S. Ski & Snowboard. The gift honors their shared love of skiing and their support for the next generation of athletes.
The trade obituaries did not list other survivors or service plans.
Article compiled and written by Kambrea Pratt (editor-in-chief), Derek Gibbs (beat editor) and the Pirates & Princesses newsroom. Pirates & Princesses is part of WebReef Media.
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Hat Tips:
The Hollywood Reporter (Nov. 5, 2026), the obituary, the Pixar partnership and the donation request
Variety (Nov. 5, 2026), the obituary, her birth name, the skiing quote from her official obituary and her husband's death
Deadline (Nov. 5, 2026), the management team's statement, date and place of death and her birth date
TheWrap (Nov. 5, 2026), her early life, mentoring and Park City home
Variety (Aug. 26, 2004), her DreamWorks role, deals, Katzenberg quote, retirement quotes and career timeline
Associated Press via Deseret News (Aug. 27, 2004), her Paramount, Disney and DreamWorks titles and dates
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