Dan Lin Takes The Reins At Netflix

Apr
1,
2024

Netflix is heading into a new era with their brand new head of film, Dan Lin at the helm.

Netflix has discussed in the news several times about loosing money, and its stock has been wavering in the past couple of years. Enter Dan Lin. Dan Lin is a veteran executive in the entertainment industry and he has said his plan for the massive streamer includes higher quality and fewer projects. Dan Lin was not looking for a new job, but then came an incoming call in early February from Netflix’s chief content officer, Bela Bajaria. According to two people familiar with the meeting that followed, Lin was blunt in his assessment of Netflix’s output: The movies were not great and the financials didn’t add up. Bajaria appreciated the honesty and, shortly after, she asked Lin if he would be open to leaving Rideback, the company the producer had spent the better part of two decades building and joining Netflix in a new role for himself and his vision for entertainment output within the streamer.

At Netflix, Dan Lin will run a division that makes far more titles than any traditional studio, and he will command a budget far superior to anything available in contemporary Hollywood. “He is in charge of film for the biggest film supplier in the world” says one producer. Then there’s the pay. Though salary details were not available, as the source from The Hollywood Reporter notes, “ The money would be hard to replicate, even for a successful producer,” even if the job ends up only lasting a few years. The offer on the table was enough for Lin to take the job. He is retaining a stake in Rideback but otherwise leaving things to partner Jonathan Eirich and Rideback COO Michael LoFaso as the new co-CEOs.

What do you think of these changes? What do you hope to see come out of Netflix’s film division?