Earlier this month, it was revealed that Disney+ had paused original commissions in Canada as the company started to pull back its spending on local content, instead focusing on global releases.

Variety is reporting that the head of content for Disney+ Canada, Stephanie Azam, along with several others, including in PR, was let go by Disney during its recent reorganisation, which has seen around 7000 people within the company lose their jobs.

Jason Badal remains in place as Disney+’s Vice President and general manager. While new original commissions are still on hold, the company is still looking to make original Canadian productions in the future, though no timeline has been revealed.

Stephanie has only been in the role for less than a year, following twelve years at Telefilm Canada as the National Feature Film Executive.

Only recently, the rules for streamers, including Disney+, are going through some changes, as part of Bill C-11, which would see the rules being tightened, so they have to comply with the same rules as local television and radio., which will require Disney+ and other streaming platforms to financially support Canadian media content, such as music and TV shows, by promoting Canadian content and making it discoverable.

Disney+ hasn’t commissioned any Canadian originals, though it’s worth pointing out that many recent Disney+ Originals, including “Peter Pan & Wendy” and “Sneakerella”, have been filmed in Canada.

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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