Netflix founder Reed Hastings is giving up his CEO role

Netflix founder Reed Hastings is giving up his CEO role but will stay on as chairman, the company announced alongside its earnings report Thursday.

Co-CEO Ted Sarandos will remain in his position. Greg Peters, most recently chief operating officer, will assume the post of co-CEO in Hastings’ place. Peters will also join the company’s board.

“I want to thank Reed for his visionary leadership, mentorship and friendship over the last 20 years. We’ve all learned so much from his intellectual rigor, honesty and willingness to take big bets — and we look forward to working with him for many more years to come,” said Sarandos in a written statement.

Hastings co-founded Netflix in 1997. Sarandos was promoted to co-CEO alongside Hastings in July 2020, the same time that Peters was appointed to his COO role. The company did not specify whether it would backfill the role of COO.

Hastings tweeted on Thursday that he plans to stay on as executive chairman “for many years to come.” He leaves the helm as the streaming giant attempts a variety of pivots to boost subscribers and rebound after its business sagged in recent quarters.

Hastings wrote in a blog post on Thursday that period of the past two and a half years “was a baptism by fire, given COVID and recent challenges within our business.”

The executive shake-up will also see Bela Bajaria, who served as the company’s global head of television, step in as chief content officer. Scott Stuber, who was previously the head of global film, will step in as chairman of Netflix Film.

The succession announcement comes alongside the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report. Netflix matched Wall Street’s revenue expectations and posted millions more subscriber adds than anticipated.

Correction: Netflix was founded in 1997. An earlier version of this story misstated the year in some instances.