Massive Entertainment will install Natalie Francis as its new managing director on October 1st, recruiting the former Avalanche Studios chief development officer and ex-DICE head of studio operations to lead the Ubisoft subsidiary behind Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora and Star Wars Outlaws.

Who is taking the role?

Francis spent the past several years at Avalanche Studios as chief development officer, following an earlier tenure as head of studio operations and development at DICE. She now steps into the top operational seat at Massive, reporting into Ubisoft's Creative House 2 structure that was formalized during the publisher's restructuring earlier this year.

The appointment lands one month after Ubisoft confirmed 55 redundancies at Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft Stockholm, and roughly nine months after the publisher opened a voluntary buyout program — branded a "voluntary career transition program" — that pulled staff from the same studios and offered a "comprehensive package" covering financial and career assistance.

What did Francis and Ubisoft say?

Francis framed the move around continuity rather than overhaul. "Massive Entertainment has an extraordinary history, built by incredibly talented people and a culture that cares deeply about craft and quality," she said in the announcement. "I'm excited to build on that foundation and help create the conditions for the studio and its people to thrive in its next chapter."

Christoph Hartmann, general manager for Creative House 2, anchored her hiring to operational track record rather than creative mandate. "Natalie's extensive experience bringing talented, multidisciplinary teams together around a clear creative and business vision makes her ideally suited to lead Massive into its next chapter," Hartmann said. "Her track record of delivering ambitious player experiences while connecting long-term strategy with operational excellence provides a strong foundation for the studio and its talented teams moving forward."

What is the studio working on?

Massive Entertainment is currently leading production on two Tom Clancy franchises:

• Tom Clancy's The Division 2, the live ongoing live-service sequel shipped in 2019
• Tom Clancy's The Division 3, the announced successor whose release window has not been publicly detailed

The studio also contributed to Star Wars Outlaws (2024), co-developed with Ubisoft's other Creative Houses, and to Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora (2023).

How does the hire fit the wider Ubisoft picture?

The Francis appointment is the second senior studio leadership change inside Ubisoft this quarter, and arrives against a backdrop of sustained cost-cutting. Across the publisher's global studio network in 2026, Ubisoft has executed:

• Voluntary buyouts at Massive Entertainment (announced October 2025)
• 55 confirmed redundancies split between Massive Entertainment and Ubisoft Stockholm (announced January 2026)
• Additional cuts at Ubisoft offices in San Francisco, Winnipeg, Belgrade and Barcelona

The Creative House reorganization — which bundles Ubisoft's development labels into smaller, autonomous units — was designed in part to give each studio faster decision-making on production and headcount. Francis inherits a Stockholm-headquartered team that has lost personnel on two fronts inside ten months while continuing to ship live-service content and develop a numbered sequel.

What to watch next?

Two signals worth tracking: whether Ubisoft discloses further leadership appointments inside Creative House 2 studios still running interim management, and whether Massive publicly posts a date, scope or window for The Division 3 reveal that would clarify the production runway Francis is inheriting.