Netflix Reportedly Fires Organizer of Trans Employee Walkout for Leaking Financial Data

As controversy around Netflix’s new Dave Chappelle stand-up special The Closer continues, the company has fired an employee for reportedly leaking confidential financial data to Bloomberg. The former employee detailed the cost of The Closer to the outlet, which published an Oct. 13 piece reporting that members of Netflix’s staff raised concerns about the special prior to its Oct. 5 release. The Verge reports that this employee was also a leader of the trans employee resource group, and was in the midst of organizing a staff walkout to protest Chappelle’s comments about the trans community.

“We have let go of an employee for sharing confidential, commercial sensitive information outside the company,” a Netflix spokesperson said in a statement on Friday. “We understand this employee may have been motivated by disappointment and hurt with Netflix, but maintaining a culture of trust is core to our company.”

In the article, Bloomberg reported that Netflix spent $24.1 million on The Closer and $23.6 million on Chappelle’s 2019 special, Sticks & Stones. By comparison, the streamer spent $3.9 million on Bo Burnham’s recent special Inside, and $21.4 million for its smash-hit series Squid Game. The leaking of data is rare at Netflix, which traditionally shares its data internally.

While the former Netflix employee was not named, another former staffer told The Verge that the person in question is Black and currently pregnant, and had spoken out against the leaks to colleagues in worries of hurting the walkout.

“All these white people are going around talking to the press and speaking publicly on Twitter and the only person who gets fired is the Black person who was quiet the entire time,” the source said. “That’s absurd, and just further shows that Black trans people are the ones being targeted in this conversation.”

Netflix has dealt with internal backlash since The Closer was released. The company previously suspended three employees (included trans software engineer Terra Field) who had publicly criticized the special for attending a director-level meeting without permission. They have since been reinstated.