EXCLUSIVE: There is a round of layoffs at William Morris Endeavor today, Deadline has learned. Affected are 30 people, or 3% of the staff, across multiple offices, departments and levels of the talent agency.
The staff reduction, which will be completed by the end of the week, is not believed to be predicated on an event, like the layoffs that followed the CAA-ICM merger, but a case of the proverbial rightsizing stemming from the cumulative effect from years of industry consolidation, cost-cutting across the media companies, shrinking marketplace post-Peak TV and the end of packaging.
WME co-chairmen Christian Muirhead and Richard Weitz addressed that in a company memo about the cuts this morning.
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“Our industry is undergoing profound change — from consolidation and shifting economics to new technology and evolving client needs,” they said. “At the same time, new platforms are creating more opportunities than ever for talent and creators to reach audiences around the world.”
WME’s last round of layoffs was in the early months of the pandemic in May 2020. While there have been isolated cases of staffers being let go or agents’ contracts not being renewed, WME is believed to be the only major Hollywood agency not to have group layoffs since the pandemic.
Today’s staff cuts come a year after WME went private, becoming part of WME Group. WME co-chairs Muirhead and Weitz serve as co-Chairmen of WME Group, leading the representation-focused company alongside WME Group President and Managing Partner Mark Shapiro.
“Since going private nearly one year ago, we’ve been working diligently to strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing responsibilities, and removing bureaucracy, in a singular effort to stay out in front,” Muirhead and Weitz wrote in their note to staff. “Looking ahead, we’re focused on shaping the agency for the future by building on our scale and experience and capitalizing on our industry-best capabilities and client strategy.”
Here is their full memo:
Our industry is undergoing profound change — from consolidation and shifting economics to new technology and evolving client needs. At the same time, new platforms are creating more opportunities than ever for talent and creators to reach audiences around the world.
Since going private nearly one year ago, we’ve been working diligently to strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing responsibilities, and removing bureaucracy, in a singular effort to stay out in front.
As such, today we have made the difficult decision to reduce a number of roles across the agency. We expect conversations with impacted individuals to be complete by the end of this week. WME is committed to supporting our colleagues during this transition.
Looking ahead, we’re focused on shaping the agency for the future by building on our scale and experience and capitalizing on our industry-best capabilities and client strategy.
Thank you for continuing to show up for one another and for our clients. We appreciate your professionalism and commitment.