More layoffs are underway at The CW, Variety has confirmed.
Sources say that over a dozen people have been let go from the network, mostly in the marketing and finance divisions. According to an individual with knowledge of the situation, those released this time were supposed to be part of an initial round of cuts that took place late last year, but ongoing projects or remaining time on their contracts meant they were not let go until today.
This marks the latest layoffs at the broadcast network since Nexstar acquired a majority stake in it in October 2022. As Variety exclusively reported in November, between 30-40 staffers were laid off shortly after the deal closed, including longtime network communications head Paul Hewitt. Those came after network head Mark Pedowitz stepped down along with several other senior executives.
Nexstar has made it clear that they are planning to revamp programming at the network, focusing on low-cost unscripted fare and things like the LIV Golf tournaments rather than the scripted programming like “Riverdale” and The CW’s suite of DC shows of the past decade.
Nexstar’s goal is to make The CW profitable by 2025. To that end, they are pitching advertisers on a package that includes The CW, NewsNation, TheHill, and local stations going into this year’s upfront market.
“We are taking a very customer-centric approach and we will tailor the [advertising] program to best fit the marketers’ objectives,” Michael Strober, Nexstar’s chief revenue officer, previously told Variety.
Deadline first reported the most recent layoff news.
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