Quick Info
| Profession | Entrepreneur, Netflix Co-founder and Chairman |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Date of Birth | 08/10/1960 |
| Age | 66 years |
| Birthplace | Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Full Name | Wilmot Reed Hastings Jr. |
| Net Worth | $5.8 billion |
| Zodiac Sign | Libra |
Latest News about Reed Hastings
05/06/2026
Reed Hastings stepped down from Netflix’s board of directors after the company’s June 4, 2026 annual shareholders meeting. Netflix said he was leaving to focus on philanthropy and other pursuits, and longtime director Jay Hoag was named chairman in his place.
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Bio/Wiki
| Wilmot Reed Hastings Jr. is an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist best known as the co-founder of Netflix. | |
| He conceived the idea for Netflix after incurring a $40 late fee for returning the movie Apollo 13 from Blockbuster. | |
| Before founding Netflix, he founded Pure Software in 1991, which was acquired in 1997. | |
| He is a strong advocate for charter schools and served as the president of the California State Board of Education from 2000 to 2004. |
Physical Stats & More
| Height: 5'9" (175 cm) | |
| Weight: 167 lbs (76 kg) | |
| Hair Color: Grey | |
| Eye Color: Blue | |
| Zodiac Sign: Libra | |
| Religion: Christianity | |
| Ethnicity: White | |
| Current Residence: Santa Cruz, California |
Personal Life
| Reed Hastings lives in Santa Cruz, California. | |
| He is an active educational philanthropist supporting charter school reform. |
Relationships & More
| Spouse | Patricia Ann Quillin (m. 1991) |
|---|---|
| Children | 2 |
Family
| Father: Wilmot Reed Hastings | |
| Mother: Joan Amory Loomis | |
| Children: 2 (names not publicly disclosed) |
Career
| Early Career | Peace Corps mathematics teacher; software engineer at Adaptive Technology; Founder of Pure Software (1991) |
|---|---|
| Companies Founded | Pure Software (1991, IPO 1995, acquired 1997); Netflix (co-founded 1997 with Marc Randolph) |
| Netflix Roles | CEO (1998-2020); Co-CEO (2020-2023); Executive Chairman (2023-2026); Chairman of the board |
| Board Memberships | California State Board of Education (2000-2004); Bloomberg; Anthropic; KIPP; Pahara; The City Fund; Microsoft; Facebook |
| Other | Active educational philanthropist; Advocate for charter schools |
Some Lesser Known Facts
| 1. Conceived Netflix idea after incurring a large video rental late fee. | |
| 2. Took a gap year selling vacuum cleaners door-to-door before college graduation. | |
| 3. Background in mathematics and computer science. | |
| 4. Forbes estimates his net worth at approximately $5.8 billion. | |
| 5. He decided to establish Netflix after being fined $40 at a Blockbuster shop for being late returning a copy of Apollo 13. |
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