The cuts announced by Netflix in mid-October have also reached the United Kingdom, impacting a central figure in the platform's European production pipeline. Anna Mallett, Vice President of physical production for the UK and local language productions in EMEA, is among those affected by the workforce reduction at the London office.
The local scale of the cutbacks is more contained compared to the global plan, yet not insignificant: according to reporting by The Hollywood Reporter, the operation affects approximately 2–3% of staff at the London hub, which employs several hundred people. The departures also encompass roles in communications and other functions. Netflix has not released a public breakdown of the restructuring by country or department.
Mallett's name, however, lends particular weight to the news. Having joined Netflix in November 2020, the former CEO of ITN took on a remit that combined oversight of production in the British market with the coordination of local-language productions across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It is a scope that touches on one of the most delicate challenges for a global streamer: turning an international editorial strategy into tangible sets, schedules, budgets, vendors, and deliveries within individual territories.
A departure that impacts the production machinery, not just the org chart
In industry parlance, physical production refers to the work that moves a title from development into operational execution: filming logistics, relationships with physical production companies, infrastructure management, and execution oversight. While distinct from creative greenlighting, it directly dictates timelines, costs, and the ability to bring projects to market as planned.
During her tenure at Netflix, Mallett worked across UK and EMEA film and television, including globally resonant titles such as Baby Reindeer, Adolescence, and the latest seasons of La casa di carta. Prior to joining the streamer, she served as CEO of ITN and held the roles of group chief operating officer and managing director, production at BBC Studios—a career built across broadcasters, studios, and production entities in one of Europe's most established audiovisual markets.
For Netflix, London is not simply a commercial office outside the United States. The United Kingdom is an essential base for accessing talent, production companies, studios, and crews, as well as being a market capable of generating English-language titles with immediate global appeal. The EMEA region, on the other hand, requires a more distributed model built on local productions, diverse languages, and non-overlapping industrial conditions. A leadership change in production within this scope should therefore be seen primarily as an organizational transition to be managed without slowing down ongoing projects.
The British piece of a broader move
The workforce reduction in the United Kingdom is part of the plan announced in mid-October, when Netflix cut approximately 1,000 jobs globally, equivalent to about 6% of its workforce. This marks the group's largest round of layoffs since 2022.
In the United States, the shake-up also affected the content structure. Among the highest-profile figures involved are Bela Bajaria, chief content officer, and Dan Lin, head of film. Bajaria was replaced by Peter Rice, an executive with extensive experience in the Hollywood industry. The picture that emerges is not one of a contraction confined to administrative functions: the company is also intervening at the levels governing the decision-making chain and the execution of its audiovisual offering.
Based on the available information, this does not amount to an announced shift in Netflix's international strategy. In discussions with investors on third-quarter earnings, co-CEO Ted Sarandos maintained that the business model is working and that no fundamental overhaul of the group's approach is needed. He did, however, point to a need for better execution in the United States, where growth is not progressing at the desired pace.
His words help distinguish two distinct levels. On one hand, Netflix continues to view the contribution of content produced across the rest of the world as effective; on the other, it expects its titles to have a greater ability to travel across territories. Sarandos noted that solid results are not always enough: other markets also rely on titles capable of becoming global hits. It is a criterion that puts pressure on programming, but also on those tasked with making the production of those projects sustainable on an international scale.
What could change for the European market
For British and European productions, it would be premature to infer direct consequences for individual series, films, or future orders. There are no reported cancellations linked to Mallett's departure, nor has Netflix announced changes to its production commitments in the region. The immediate priority will be ensuring continuity for titles currently in production and redistributing expertise and responsibilities within the organization.
However, it remains a signal for the industry. In recent years, streaming platforms have built increasingly robust local organizations, necessary to compete for talent, comply with regulatory constraints across various markets, and deliver consistent production standards across many countries. When a restructuring reaches roles of this caliber, independent producers, studios, and vendors look not only at the number of jobs cut, but at the future chain of command: who will hold the mandate to approve, negotiate, and oversee the execution of projects.
For Netflix, the challenge lies in reconciling internal efficiency with the ability to maintain a credible operational presence in territories where it seeks exportable local stories. The UK and the EMEA region remain key hubs of this ambition, but Anna Mallett's exit shows that not even departments tied to international production are exempt from the ongoing review. The next indicators to watch will be who assumes responsibility for physical production and the potential impact of the revamped structure on the pace of investments and commissions in the region.
