Disney May Rewire ABC, Hulu Originals and Freeform Around Streaming, With Hundreds of Jobs Potentially Affected
Disney is weighing a TV reorganization involving ABC, 20th Television, Hulu Originals and Freeform as more job cuts remain possible.
One of Disney’s biggest 2026 changes may happen far from the parks and screens fans see every day. The company is exploring a television restructuring that could pull several familiar brands closer together as streaming becomes the center of its entertainment strategy. The proposal is not final, but it could affect hundreds of employees and reshape how some of Disney’s TV business is organized.
What Disney is considering
Disney is said to be evaluating a broad reorganization of its television operations. The areas tied to the possible overhaul are ABC Entertainment, 20th Television, Hulu Originals and Freeform.
Debra O’Connell, chairman of Disney Entertainment Television, is reportedly leading the effort. The goal would be to organize the business less around legacy cable channels and separate brand lines, and more around streaming audiences and Disney’s major entertainment franchises.
In practical terms, that points to teams and responsibilities being brought closer together where duties overlap. The company has not finalized the plan, and the process may not be completed before the end of 2026.
Disney also has not announced any permanent closure of ABC Entertainment, Freeform or the other divisions linked to the possible restructuring. What has surfaced so far is a potential reworking of how those units operate behind the scenes, not a confirmed shutdown of the labels themselves.
Who it affects, and when other changes hit
The immediate group watching this most closely is Disney’s workforce. Hundreds of positions could be affected if the company moves ahead, although that does not mean hundreds of additional layoffs have already been approved.
The uncertainty lands after multiple rounds of cuts this year. Disney recently eliminated several hundred jobs, mainly in human resources and technology, and about 1,000 employees were affected by layoffs in April. Those reductions were described as part of a wider push for efficiency as viewers continue moving from traditional cable to streaming platforms.
Subscribers are already seeing that shift play out in pricing. Disney raised the monthly cost of the ad free versions of Disney+ and Hulu by $2.50, taking each standalone plan to $21.49. For customers who signed up before September 23, the higher price takes effect with billing cycles on or after October 21, 2026. At that monthly rate, a year of either premium plan totals $257.88 before fees or applicable taxes.
The financial backdrop helps explain why Disney is leaning harder into streaming. The company said its streaming business produced $712 million in operating income in its fiscal third quarter, more than double the result from the comparable period. For fans, the clearest change right now is structural: Disney appears to be reorganizing the teams behind its TV brands to better match where its audience is watching.
