Paramount Animation president Ramsey Naito exits amid Skydance layoffs

Paramount Animation president Ramsey Naito, is departing the studio following its acquisition by Skydance. According to Variety, her exit is part of a wider round of redundancies that saw 1,000 jobs cut on Wednesday. The newly appointed chairman and chief executive David Ellison, has signalled further reductions are on the way with around 2,000 roles in the US and additional layoffs expected internationally.

Naito was appointed Paramount Animation president and Nickelodeon Animation president in 2021, following her promotion to the latter role in 2020. She joined Nickelodeon Animation in 2018 as EVP of animation production and development, where she played a key role in expanding the studio’s output through project approvals and partnerships with talent and creators.

During her tenure, she spearheaded the largest animation slate in Nickelodeon’s four-decade history, with more than 70 projects in development. She was responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of franchises including SpongeBob SquarePants and its spin-offs (The Patrick Star Show, Kamp Koral), as well as newer titles such as Dora the Explorer, Baby Shark, Blue’s Clues & You, Santiago of the Seas, The Loud House, and the rebooted Rugrats.

During her tenure, Paramount Animation released several commercially successful titles. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem grossed over US$182 million worldwide in 2023 and reportedly generated more than US$ 1 billion in retail sales. Other releases included Paw Patrol: The Movie (US$ 144.3 million globally), its sequel Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie (US$ 205.1 million), Transformers One (US$ 129.7 million), and Smurfs, which earned US$ 120.7 million this summer.

Before joining Nickelodeon, Naito received an Oscar nomination for producing Boss Baby (2017) at DreamWorks Animation. She also produced for Blue Sky Studios, served as Cartoon Network head of movies, and held the role of VP of development and production at Nickelodeon Movies. She is among the few studio executives with formal training in art and animation, holding a Master of Fine Arts from CalArts, where she specialised in sculpture.

According to Variety, Naito wrote a letter to her staff in which she informed her team that she would be leaving the company, marking the end of a significant chapter in her career. She expressed deep gratitude for the opportunity to lead a group of talented storytellers, artists and dreamers, and described the experience as one of the great joys of her professional life. Reflecting on her eight-plus years with the animation teams, she said she was proud of the work they had accomplished together. She felt honoured to have helped breathe new life into beloved characters and stories from the Paramount and Nickelodeon libraries such as SpongeBob, Paw Patrol, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, while also launching a new slate of original content for a new generation. 

She emphasised that her pride extended beyond the creative output to the spirit of collaboration, creativity and kindness that defined the team. Although she was moving on, she assured them she would continue to cheer them on. Naito thanked Josh, Dana and the wider leadership team, expressing confidence that they would continue to drive the animation business forward.