In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit the world hard, causing significant damage to many industries, and Pixar Animation was no exception. During this time, Pixar's major works struggled with theatrical releases, transitioning to Disney+ streaming services or receiving poor audience reactions in theaters. However, despite this, some works achieved long-term success, recording results that exceeded expectations.

1. (2020)

was a highly anticipated Pixar project that garnered great expectations among animation fans. However, in early 2020, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, theaters across the United States closed, and the film had to end its screening after just two weeks. It was difficult to maintain proper box office performance due to the restrictions on theatrical releases.

2. , ,

Subsequently, works like , , and were also affected by COVID-19. These films were released exclusively on Disney+ instead of traditional theatrical releases. Without receiving proper audience reactions in theaters, interactions with fans took place online. As a result, Pixar's major works could not expect box office success.

3. (2022)

marked Pixar's return to theaters after a long time. The film received good reviews, but audience reactions were not very positive. With a production budget of $200 million, it grossed $220 million at the box office, resulting in a box office failure. Consequently, Disney initiated a large-scale restructuring, leading to the dismissal of the film's director and producer.

4. (2023)

Released in June 2023, recorded a significant box office failure contrary to initial expectations. It achieved the worst opening weekend performance in Pixar's history, leading many to predict it would fail at the box office. However, thanks to long-term success and strong performance in regions outside North America, especially in South Korea, it unexpectedly surpassed the break-even point, proving that Pixar's films still have a strong global fan base.

5. (Scheduled for 2025)

Originally scheduled for release in 2024, has been postponed to June 2025. Fans still have high expectations for Pixar's next project and are watching closely to see how its performance will unfold.

6. (2024)

Finally, in June 2024, was released and achieved great box office success. The film surpassed $1 billion within three weeks of its release, surpassing Frozen 2 and Incredibles 2 to become the highest-grossing animated film of all time. It truly established itself as a major hit for Pixar.

On May 21, 2024, Disney's Pixar Animation Studios notified 175 employees, about 14% of its total workforce, of their layoffs.

In a message to employees, Pixar President Jim Morris explained that the layoffs were due to the studio's decision to refocus on producing theatrical feature animations and move away from creating content for the streaming platform Disney+.

This decision is part of Disney's cost-cutting plan, which follows CEO Bob Iger's goal of reducing costs by $7.5 billion across the company, resulting in a workforce reduction of over 8,000 employees.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Pixar attempted to transition to streaming platforms due to declining box office revenues, but the subsequent poor performance of theatrical releases necessitated this restructuring.

This layoff is interpreted as part of Pixar's strategy to focus more on producing theatrical feature animations and move away from creating content for streaming platforms like Disney+.