Ted Sarandos Praises Axed Bela Bajaria On Eve Of Peter Rice’s Netflix Debut

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos praised former Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria during the company’s Q3 earnings call, five days after she was dismissed and replaced by Peter Rice. He credited her with building the international content operation and delivering hits, while saying Netflix saw an opportunity to improve its slate under Rice.

The change follows a period of job cuts and senior executive departures, including the exit of film chief Dan Lin, whose replacement has not been announced. Netflix reported solid quarterly results, but its shares fell more than 5% in after-hours trading and were down 40% over the year; Sarandos and co-CEO Greg Peters highlighted upcoming titles, engagement, partnerships and live sport.