Netflix's Ted Sarandos Elected Chair of the American Film Institute Board
Ted Sarandos, co-CEO of Netflix, has been elected chair of the board of directors of the American Film Institute. The Hollywood Reporter reported the election on 22 October 2026.
He was chosen by acclamation, meaning the board approved him by general agreement rather than a formal ballot. He takes over from Bob Daly, a former Warner Bros. head who had chaired the board for the past 17 years. Sarandos has run Netflix alongside co-CEO Greg Peters since July 2020.
The board of directors works as the executive committee of the AFI board of trustees, which is chaired by Kathleen Kennedy. So the chair leads the group that handles much of the institute's day-to-day governance.
The institute has a busy calendar ahead. Tom Cruise will receive the 52nd AFI Life Achievement Award, the institute's highest honour for a career in film. The tribute gala will be held at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on 24 April 2027, according to AFI.
Earlier in the year's cycle, AFI FEST 2026, presented by Canva, will hand out short film awards. Winners of the Grand Jury Prize in the live action, documentary and animated short categories will be eligible for consideration at the 2027 Academy Awards, AFI said.
The institute is also known for its lists. AFI twice ranked Citizen Kane as the greatest American film ever made, and the line "Rosebud" from that film sits at number 17 on its list of memorable movie quotes. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975) appeared on AFI's greatest films lists twice, on the original list and on the 10th anniversary edition. McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971) was named one of cinema's greatest westerns, according to AFI's movie club notes.
For a general reader, the news is simple. A leader of one of the world's biggest streaming services now chairs a body that honours film careers, runs a festival and keeps a long record of what Hollywood has valued. The board will meet the new chair's first year with a Cruise gala on the calendar and a festival season still to come.
