Mass Resignation Rocks Annapurna Interactive, Publisher Behind Award Winner "Stray"
By Harry Negron, September 13, 2024
Annapurna Interactive, the publisher behind critically acclaimed indie games like Stray, Outer Wilds, and Neon White, has been rocked by the resignation of its entire staff. According to reports from Bloomberg and IGN, the mass exodus followed failed negotiations between company leadership and Annapurna Pictures owner Megan Ellison. The gaming division's staff, including former president Nathan Gary, sought to spin off into a separate entity but were unable to gain Ellison's approval.
The resignation, involving about 20 key employees, raises uncertainty regarding the future of Annapurna Interactive’s existing game development projects. Annapurna Pictures confirmed the departures but reassured that the current slate of games remains under the parent company’s control. Still, many developers who are partnered with Annapurna for publishing support are now reportedly scrambling to understand the impact of this upheaval.
Annapurna Interactive was established in 2016 as the gaming arm of Megan Ellison’s award-winning film company. Since then, it has garnered a reputation for releasing narrative-driven indie hits, expanding its presence with ventures into in-house game development and animated film production. Despite the recent upheaval, Ellison stated that the company remains committed to its interactive storytelling goals across multiple media platforms.
The Hollywood Reporter first broke the news of executive departures last week, which included co-heads Deborah Mars and Nathan Vella. With Hector Sanchez, cofounder of Annapurna Interactive and former Epic Games executive, now stepping in as president of Annapurna's interactive and new media divisions, the company is aiming for a fresh start. However, with the collapse of the internal team, the future direction of the publisher is unclear.
As developers like Remedy Entertainment continue unaffected due to agreements with Annapurna Pictures, the full extent of the resignation’s impact on upcoming projects like Blade Runner 2033: Labyrinth remains to be seen.
