Corie Henson is stepping down as President of Beast Industry Studios, the production arm of MrBeast’s Beast Industries, less than a year after joining from NBCUniversal, according to reports from Deadline and Business Insider.

Henson, who took the role in September 2025, is leaving to move back to Los Angeles to be closer to family after spending nearly 12 months at Beast’s Greenville, North Carolina headquarters. In an internal Slack message shared by Beast Industries CEO Jeff Housenbold, Henson wrote that “being surrounded by people who care so deeply about making great content has completely changed the way I think about YouTube and storytelling,” adding that after a year away from home, “I know it’s time for me to get back to them.”

Deadline reports the departure is amicable, with Jimmy Donaldson (MrBeast) and Housenbold supportive of the decision, and that Henson will remain for a transition period. Business Insider reports Housenbold told staff she will “be around for the next few weeks.” Beast Industry Studios will now search for her replacement, though it is unclear whether the company will pursue a like-for-like hire.

Henson’s exit follows the completion of production on season three of “Beast Games,” the Amazon competition series hosted by Donaldson. Beyond that show, she worked on the flagship MrBeast YouTube channel, which has more than 510 million subscribers, and helped expand the studio’s output into a theatrical feature, an animation studio, and a video game platform. Business Insider reports that under Housenbold, part of her mandate was bringing financial discipline to a production operation known for costly, elaborate spectacles, and that three former employees said the change proved difficult inside a company with a history of freewheeling spending.

Housenbold told staff he would use the leadership transition to “increase our execution while simultaneously strengthening our culture,” pointing to plans including Beast-branded content, additional “Beast Games” seasons, new non-Beast programming under Watchtime Studios, “The Most Dangerous Games” and new IP development. He has previously framed Beast Industries’ ambitions in explicitly Disney-sized terms, telling Deadline last year: “Just like Disney has Mickey [Mouse], it also has Lucasfilm, Pixar, Marvel, Searchlight, ABC, ESPN, and so on, we have Jimmy.”

Henson joined Beast Industries after roughly a decade in traditional television, most recently as EVP of unscripted content at NBCUniversal, where she oversaw “America’s Got Talent,” “The Voice,” “The Traitors” and “Love Island.” Her hire last fall was part of a broader push by Beast Industries to recruit executives with major media pedigrees. Business Insider also notes that Jenny Ramirez, another NBCUniversal alum Henson had brought on as Head of Creative Content Strategy, left the company in June after seven months.

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