Reed Hastings, the co-founder and Chairman of Netflix, will leave the company’s board of directors after nearly three decades, stepping down at the company’s 2026 annual stockholders meeting, where he will not seek re-election to his seat.
In a letter to shareholders, Hastings said “Netflix changed my life in so many ways, and my all‑time favorite memory was January 2016, when we enabled nearly the entire planet to enjoy our service. My real contribution at Netflix wasn’t a single decision; it was a focus on member joy, building a culture that others could inherit and improve, and building a company that could be both beloved by members and wildly successful for generations to come. A special thanks to Greg and Ted, whose commitment to Netflix’s greatness is so strong that I can now focus on new things.”
In May 2025, Hastings joined the board of directors of Anthropic, an AI research company and the developer of AI chatbot Claude.
Netflix disclosed Hastings departure in an 8-K filing with the SEC on April 16, noting that Hastings’ departure was not the result of any disagreement with the company.


















