Disney's theme parks division is laying off 100 to 200 people, and Imagineering is reportedly taking a large share
Disney's earlier job cuts this year were reported in other parts of the company. On Wednesday, they reached the division that runs the parks.
Disney Experiences, the part of the company that includes the theme parks, Disney Cruise Line and Aulani in Hawaii, is laying off between 100 and 200 people, the Los Angeles Times reported on Wednesday, October 28. The paper's source is one unnamed person with knowledge of the cuts who was not cleared to speak publicly, so the range is not confirmed by Disney. Disney declined to comment. The Times says the cuts are limited to the Experiences division and that every affected employee was to be told by the end of the day Wednesday.
The entrance to Walt Disney Imagineering's headquarters at 1401 Flower Street in Glendale, California. Photo: WDWMAGIC
Imagineering is reportedly taking a large share
The Times report does not say which teams are affected. WDWMagic added that detail from its own sources, which it says told it that "a good number of these Disney layoffs are coming from Walt Disney Imagineering, including teams working on Shanghai." WDWMagic also reports that affected Imagineers have begun confirming the cuts on LinkedIn and other social media.
Imagineering designs and builds Disney's parks, rides and resorts, Walt Disney World's among them. For now, none of the reports ties a specific Walt Disney World role, project or timeline to the cuts. WDWMagic says plainly, "We don't yet know if any Walt Disney World projects are affected," and notes that Imagineering's headcount has always moved up and down with its project load.
Why now, according to the report
According to the Times' source, the layoffs grew out of a routine evaluation of the division's "priorities, investments and project timelines." The same report notes that Disney has more parks projects underway than ever before. Blog Mickey points out that CEO Josh D'Amaro visited three of the Florida ones (Monstropolis, Tropical Americas and Lakeshore Lodge) with Imagineering teams this month, and that nothing in the Times report says any of them are affected.
The Times says this round is not related to Disney's earlier cuts to human resources and technology teams. Separately, earlier this month Disney offered older workers early retirement packages. The paper describes those moves as part of D'Amaro's push to sharpen the company's focus.
The Partners statue and Cinderella Castle at Magic Kingdom. Photo: Disney, via Blog Mickey
The division still brings in most of Disney's operating income
The Times calls the Experiences division Disney's economic engine. In fiscal 2025 it brought in $36.2 billion in revenue and more than 56% of Disney's total operating income, the paper reports. Executives said on the August earnings call that the "international visitation headwinds" they had flagged at the U.S. parks had since "moderated," according to the paper.
The next look at the numbers is close. Blog Mickey notes that Disney reports its fiscal 2026 results on November 17, with a webcast at 8:30am ET.
We will update this story if Disney confirms the scope of the cuts or if any Walt Disney World projects are named.
Sources
- Los Angeles Times, "Disney's theme parks division lays off at least 100 employees" (October 28, 2026)
- WDWMagic, "Disney Layoffs Hit Walt Disney Imagineering as Parks Division Cuts Up to 200 Jobs" (October 28, 2026)
- Blog Mickey, "Layoffs Reach Disney Theme Park Division, More Than 100 Employees Impacted" (October 28, 2026)
- Inside the Magic, "Disney Experiences Hit by Job Cuts; Impacted Parks Unknown" (October 28, 2026)
Image credits: WDWMAGIC (Walt Disney Imagineering entrance), Disney, via Blog Mickey (Partners statue and Cinderella Castle).
