Entertainment

Netflix and Paramount end animation deal, but two films stay on track

Jonah VillalbaPublished 5d ago2 min readBased on 14 sources
Netflix and Paramount end animation deal, but two films stay on track
Photo by The Conmunity - Pop Culture Geek from Los Angeles, CA, USA / CC BY 2.0

Netflix and Paramount have mutually agreed to end their animated film deal, Deadline reported on 14 September 2026.

The pact began in 2023 between Netflix and Skydance Animation, before Skydance Animation came under Paramount in the merger, according to the same report. It was a streaming-first arrangement, with Skydance developing and making animated features to premiere on Netflix.

Two films will still reach viewers under that old deal. Ray Gunn, an upcoming animated feature from Brad Bird, remains set for Netflix, as does an untitled Jack and the Beanstalk project directed by Rich Moore, Deadline reported.

The partnership has already delivered big numbers for the streamer. Swapped, from Skydance Animation, recorded 144.9 million global views on Netflix and ranks as one of the service’s most-watched films of all time, according to Deadline. Earlier titles trace the studio’s path to that deal: Luck, directed by Peggy Holmes, premiered in 2022 with Apple Original Films, while Spellbound, directed by Vicky Jenson, was released on Netflix in 2024.

Skydance Animation now sits inside Paramount as a standalone label under Paramount Pictures, operating independently from Paramount Animation. The unit is led by John Lasseter alongside president Holly Edwards, and Paramount plans a cinema release for its Cosmic Motors from Lasseter and co-director Louie Del Carmen, Deadline reported.

The split does not end business between the two companies. Paramount will continue licensing television series including Matlock, The King of Queens, Seal Team, Watson and NCIS to Netflix, according to the same report.

For fans, this means less change than it sounds. Two high-profile animated films are still on the way to Netflix, while future Skydance Animation features are being lined up for cinemas under Paramount.

The timing underlines how central animation has become to Netflix. KPop Demon Hunters stands as the streamer’s most-watched film ever with 325.1 million global views, and it became Netflix’s first film to reach No. 1 at the domestic weekend box office, the United States and Canada, with $19 million in ticket sales in late August 2025, Deadline reported.

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