Ramsey Naito, the president of Paramount Animation, shared she was exiting the company in a memo to staff Wednesday evening.
“I want to share with you that I am leaving the company and closing this very special chapter with all of you,” she wrote. “Leading this incredible team of talented storytellers, artists and dreamers, and watching the magic that you’ve spun from your imagination and dedication, has been one of the great joys of my career.”
As Naito went on, she expressed how proud she was “of the work the animation teams and I have done for the last 8+ years.”
“I am honored to have given new life and love to the beloved characters and stories within the vast Paramount and Nickelodeon libraries—from SpongeBob to PAW Patrol to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles—and the birth of a whole new slate of originals for today’s generation,” she added. “Not only am I endlessly proud of what we’ve built, but even more so the spirit behind it — the collaboration, creativity and kindness that define this team.”
Before signing of her note, Naito noted that she’d “always be cheering you on (and singing along to the PAW Patrol theme or humming the TMNT riff when I see your work lighting up screens everywhere).”
Naito’s exit from Paramount Animation comes amid a series of company-wide layoffs, brought about after Paramount’s merger with Skydance.
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison informed staffers of company cuts on Wednesday — a decision that impacted roughly 1,000 staffers. However, more cuts are expected to come.
Variety first broke the news regarding Naito’s exit.
