Paramount Skydance
Imagine a media landscape where classic Hollywood studios, iconic television networks, and innovative streaming platforms merge into a single, dominant entity. Paramount Skydance isn't just a corporate name; it's the audacious consolidation of legendary entertainment empires, officially formed in a future that's closer than you think. Its very creation was fraught with high-stakes political drama, controversial decisions, and a vision to redefine how we consume stories. Paramount Skydance, formed in 2025, represents a massive convergence of Paramount Global, Skydance Media, and National Amusements, designed to create a new entertainment powerhouse. The merger faced extraordinary political challenges, leading to a controversial settlement with Donald Trump and significant leadership changes, including the hiring of a conservative editor for CBS News. Post-merger, the company embarked on aggressive restructuring, significant layoffs, a theatrical-first content strategy, and even attempted a colossal takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, signaling a new era of media consolidation.
AI Summary
Imagine a media landscape where classic Hollywood studios, iconic television networks, and innovative streaming platforms merge into a single, dominant entity. Paramount Skydance isn't just a corporate name; it's the audacious consolidation of legendary entertainment empires, officially formed in a future that's closer than you think. Its very creation was fraught with high-stakes political drama, controversial decisions, and a vision to redefine how we consume stories.
- Paramount Skydance, formed in 2025, represents a massive convergence of Paramount Global, Skydance Media, and National Amusements, designed to create a new entertainment powerhouse.
- The merger faced extraordinary political challenges, leading to a controversial settlement with Donald Trump and significant leadership changes, including the hiring of a conservative editor for CBS News.
- Post-merger, the company embarked on aggressive restructuring, significant layoffs, a theatrical-first content strategy, and even attempted a colossal takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, signaling a new era of media consolidation.
A New Media Titan Takes Form
In a bold move that reshaped the entertainment industry, Paramount Skydance Corporation officially came into existence on August 7, 2025. This colossal multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate operates under the 'Paramount' brand, establishing its primary headquarters right on the historic Paramount Pictures lot in Hollywood, Los Angeles.
The company's operational heart also beats in New York City, at One Astor Plaza, the former Paramount Global headquarters, alongside major divisions like CBS, which maintains its own iconic presence in Midtown Manhattan. Additionally, significant operations are housed at the former Skydance Media headquarters in Santa Monica, California, reflecting its diverse origins.
The Architect of a Giant
This new media titan was forged through the vision of David Ellison, orchestrating the merger of three powerful entities: Paramount Global, National Amusements, and his own Skydance Media. This ambitious consolidation quickly made waves on the Nasdaq, where the new entity began trading under the distinctive ticker symbol 'PSKY'.
A Merger Shrouded in Political Drama
The path to this merger was anything but smooth, deeply entangled with the political landscape of the United States. With Donald Trump beginning his second presidential term, U.S. regulators scrutinized the deal against a backdrop of ongoing legal battles between Trump and CBS, a major Paramount asset.
In a truly extraordinary move, Paramount opted to settle the 'baseless' CBS-Trump lawsuit for a staggering $16 million in July 2025. The clear aim? To ensure that the Federal Communications Commission — then led by a staunch Trump loyalist — wouldn't block the crucial merger.
The fallout from this settlement was immediate and highly controversial. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, a cornerstone of CBS's late-night lineup, was not renewed after Colbert candidly referred to the payment on-air as a 'big fat bribe.' Following the merger's completion, CEO David Ellison initiated a series of 'conservative-friendly' changes at CBS News, notably hiring conservative political commentator Bari Weiss as its new editor-in-chief, a move publicly lauded by Donald Trump himself.
Deep Roots, Entangled Legacies
The formation of Paramount Skydance in 2025 wasn't a sudden creation, but the culmination of a long, often intertwined history shared by Paramount Pictures, CBS, Viacom, and Skydance Media. Their corporate journeys, marked by a complex series of mergers, splits, and strategic partnerships, laid the groundwork for this unprecedented unification.
From Film Pioneers to Broadcast Giants
The story begins with Paramount Pictures, established in 1912 as the Famous Players Film Company. Just over a decade later, in 1927, the Columbia Broadcasting System — CBS — was founded, with Paramount Pictures even holding a significant 49% ownership stake between 1929 and 1932.
Fast forward to 1952, CBS created a division for broadcast syndication, which by 1970 had evolved into 'Viacom' — an acronym for Video and Audio Communications. This entity was spun off in 1971 due to new FCC rules, only to dramatically reunite with its former parent decades later, after the rules were abolished in 1993.
Meanwhile, Paramount Pictures itself underwent a major shift, being acquired by Gulf and Western Industries in 1966. This industrial giant eventually rebranded itself as Paramount Communications in 1989, consolidating its entertainment holdings under the famous studio name.
Viacom's Meteoric Rise and National Amusements' Influence
Viacom, now an independent entity, began its own aggressive expansion in 1986 by acquiring MTV Networks and Showtime/The Movie Channel Inc. A pivotal moment arrived in 1987 when National Amusements, a prominent theater operator, secured a majority stake in Viacom, forever linking its destiny to the burgeoning media giant.
The empire continued to grow. In 1994, after a fierce five-month battle, Viacom acquired a controlling 50.1% stake in Paramount Communications for a staggering $9.75 billion. This was followed in 1999 by Viacom's largest acquisition yet: a merger with its former parent, the CBS Corporation, bringing the two halves of a media dynasty back together in 2000.
A Temporary Split and a New Player
This grand reunion was short-lived, however. On December 31, 2005, Viacom once again split into two distinct, publicly traded companies: the second incarnation of CBS Corporation and the second incarnation of Viacom. This separation aimed to unlock value by allowing each company to focus on different growth strategies.
Into this complex landscape, a new, dynamic player emerged: Skydance Media, founded in 2006 by David Ellison. Skydance quickly forged a close relationship with Paramount Pictures, signing a five-year co-financing, production, and distribution agreement in 2009 that would be extended twice, solidifying their long-standing partnership before the ultimate merger.
The Road to Merger
By 2023, Paramount's parent company, National Amusements, found itself grappling with significant debt. In a highly competitive entertainment industry, they began actively exploring merger and acquisition opportunities for Paramount Global, attracting interest from a multitude of prominent companies like Sony Pictures, Warner Bros. Discovery, Apollo Global Management, and of course, Skydance Media.
The journey to the final merger was a winding one. An initial deal with Skydance was called off in June 2024 due to unsatisfactory discussions. However, talks resumed, leading to a preliminary agreement on July 2, 2024, for a three-way merger involving Skydance, National Amusements, and Paramount, to create what was then known as 'New Paramount.' David Ellison was slated to become Chairman and CEO, with Jeff Shell as President.
Despite initial expectations for a first-half 2025 closure, the deal faced delays, necessitating two automatic extensions. While the SEC and the European Commission granted their approvals in February 2025, the final hurdle — approval from the U.S. FCC — didn't arrive until July 24, 2025, paving the way for the historic consolidation.
A New Era Begins: Restructuring the Giant
With the merger complete, Paramount Skydance wasted no time in unveiling its new leadership team and organizational structure on August 4, 2025. Andy Gordon stepped in as COO, Cindy Holland took the reins of streaming services, and Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein co-led Paramount Pictures, among other key appointments.
The newly forged company was strategically divided into three major units: Studios, encompassing film, television, and video game divisions from Paramount Pictures and Skydance; Direct-to-Consumer, overseeing Paramount+ and Pluto TV; and Television Media, which includes iconic networks like CBS, BET, MTV, and Nickelodeon. This bold restructuring also saw the revival of Paramount Television Studios, now led by Matt Thunell, integrating Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Skydance Television.
Sweeping Changes and Strategic Plays
The immediate aftermath of the merger brought significant, swift changes. On August 5, 2025, Paramount Skydance announced plans for roughly 1,000 layoffs and an ambitious $2 billion in operating cost reductions. The company also began exploring a potential merger of its streaming services, Paramount+ and Pluto TV, with assistance from Oracle Corporation.
Just days later, the company signaled its intention to sell the National Amusements cinemas, and made the symbolic decision to move its primary corporate headquarters to the Paramount Pictures lot in Los Angeles, departing from One Astor Plaza, its New York base since 1994. In a major content coup, Paramount secured a seven-year deal with TKO Group Holdings on August 11, bringing exclusive U.S. distribution of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) events to Paramount+, with select numbered events simulcasting on CBS starting in 2026.
The company's content strategy also sharpened, prioritizing major film franchises like 'Top Gun 3' and 'Star Trek' with an ambitious goal of releasing twenty films per year. While streaming films were de-emphasized, Chairperson of Direct-to-Consumer Cindy Holland outlined plans to expand Paramount+'s offerings beyond the popular Taylor Sheridan universe, leveraging CBS content, live sports, and cable network programming to foster daily engagement for a broader audience.
The creative slate expanded dramatically, with major deals following quickly. On September 2, 2025, Paramount Pictures partnered with Activision Blizzard for a live-action 'Call of Duty' film — a 'dream come true' for David Ellison. A multi-picture first-look deal with Will Smith and his company Westbrook soon followed, alongside a significant three-year worldwide film distribution agreement with Legendary Entertainment, kicking off with a live-action 'Street Fighter' adaptation.
Consolidation and Controversy Continue
The restructuring continued to unfold with a mix of new initiatives and controversial decisions. A new sports media division, Paramount Sports Entertainment, was launched to produce scripted and unscripted programming and interactive games. The board was also expanded to include AI executive Dennis K. Cinelli, signaling a forward-looking technological focus.
However, the most notable and contentious development arrived on October 6, 2025: Paramount Skydance named Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News, following its $150 million acquisition of her outlet, The Free Press. This move, celebrated by conservative circles, sparked widespread debate about journalistic independence and the direction of one of America's most respected news organizations.
Amid these changes, the company also continued to divest international assets, selling its Argentine television network Telefe and Chilevisión. High-profile talent departures, including acclaimed creator Taylor Sheridan leaving for NBCUniversal and veteran journalist John Dickerson exiting CBS News, underscored the volatile nature of the transition, exacerbated by plans for another 2,000 layoffs across various divisions.
The restructuring's human cost was particularly evident in South America, where 1,600 employees were laid off as part of a 15% workforce reduction aimed at achieving $3 billion in cost savings. Further, 600 U.S. employees chose severance over a new 'return to office' policy requiring five days a week in the office. Meanwhile, U.S. House Democrats Jamie Raskin and Frank Pallone pressed Paramount for greater cooperation in their investigation into the settlement agreement with former President Trump, indicating ongoing scrutiny.
The year concluded with a dramatic shift in international strategy. On December 31, 2025, Paramount Skydance shut down numerous MTV music channels outside the United States, effectively ending 38 years of dedicated music broadcasting in regions from Europe to South America. This marked a definitive end for the MTV brand's traditional presence on Brazilian television, a significant cultural pivot for the global media giant.
The Ambitious Play: Eyeing Warner Bros. Discovery
Even as it absorbed its own massive merger, Paramount Skydance quickly set its sights on an even larger prize: Warner Bros. Discovery. In September 2025, reports from The Wall Street Journal indicated Paramount Skydance was weighing a colossal takeover that, crucially, was expected to sidestep FCC review since WBD held no broadcast licenses.
This audacious proposal immediately drew political scrutiny, with Senator Elizabeth Warren urging regulators to intervene. Financial speculation ran wild, with early price talks soaring to $70 billion before settling into the mid-$40 to $50 billion range, with tech tycoon Larry Ellison, David Ellison's father, reportedly offering support for a potential 70-80% cash offer structure.
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Paramount Skydance
Paramount Skydance Corporation was a short-lived American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate co-headquartered in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California and at One Astor Plaza in New York City. CBS, a major Paramount asset, is also headquartered in New York City, but at the CBS Broadcast Center in Midtown Manhattan.
Paramount Skydance also housed major offices and operations at the previous Skydance Media headquarters in Santa Monica, California. Larry and David Ellison control the company, owning 77.5% of the voting shares and 47.2% of all shares. RedBird Capital Partners own 22.5% of the voting shares and 13% of all shares.
Paramount Skydance was formed on August 7, 2025, by David Ellison, through the merger of Skydance Media, Paramount Global, and National Amusements. The company traded under the ticker symbol "PSKY" on the Nasdaq.
Shortly after its formation, Paramount Skydance began pursuing an unsolicited bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery and subsequently won a bidding war for the company in February 2026. Paramount Skydance's purchase of WBD was approved by the U.S. Department of Justice on June 12, 2026. A subsequent anti-trust lawsuit by 12 state attorneys general (led by California) initially led Paramount to delay the closure of the acquisition until June 1, 2027, and a federal judge ruled in favor of holding a trial for the lawsuit in March 2027. Ultimately, on September 21, 2026, Paramount Skydance reached a settlement with the states, which included provisions for independent editorial boards at CNN and CBS News and a commitment by Paramount to release 30 films annually, with a $30 million penalty for each film below that target. On October 2, 2026, David Ellison announced that Paramount Skydance will be restructured and renamed to Skydance Corporation, and its stock will be traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "SKYD" upon the merger's forthcoming completion, which closed on October 6, 2026.
Background
Paramount Skydance
Through an assortment of corporate mergers, splits, and partnerships, Paramount Pictures, CBS, Viacom, and Skydance Media shared a long history prior to the 2025 merger joining the entities as Paramount Skydance.
1912–1986
Paramount Pictures was founded in 1912 as the Famous Players Film Company. CBS was founded in 1927, which Paramount Pictures held a 49% ownership stake in from 1929 to 1932.
In 1952, CBS formed CBS Television Film Sales, a division which handled broadcast syndication rights for CBS's library of network-owned television series. This division was renamed CBS Films in 1958 and again renamed CBS Enterprises Inc. on December 1, 1967. It was renamed Viacom (an acronym of Video and Audio Communications) in 1970. In 1971, this syndication division was spun off amid new FCC rules forbidding television networks from owning syndication companies. These rules were eventually abolished completely in 1993.
Meanwhile, Paramount Pictures was acquired by Gulf and Western Industries in 1966, which then re-branded itself as Paramount Communications in 1989.
1986–2005
In 1986, Viacom purchased MTV Networks and Showtime/The Movie Channel Inc. from Warner Communications and American Express. In 1987, a majority stake in Viacom was acquired by theater operator company National Amusements.
Viacom then purchased a 50.1% stake in Paramount Communications in February 1994 for $9.75 billion, following a five-month battle with shopping channel QVC. The merger was completed in July. In 1999, Viacom made its biggest acquisition to date by announcing plans to merge with its former parent CBS Corporation (the renamed Westinghouse Electric Corporation, which had merged with CBS in 1995). The merger was completed in 2000, resulting in CBS reuniting with its former syndication division.
2005–2022
On December 31, 2005, Viacom was split into two companies: the second incarnation of CBS Corporation, the former's corporate successor, and the second incarnation of Viacom, which was formed as a spin-off. The two companies re-merged in 2019, forming ViacomCBS, renamed to Paramount Global in 2022.
Skydance Media was founded in 2006 by David Ellison. In 2009, Skydance and Paramount Pictures signed a five-year co-financing, production and distribution agreement, with Paramount holding an additional option of distribution. That deal would later be extended twice in 2013 and 2017.
History
Formation
In 2023, after struggling with debt and striving to remain competitive in the entertainment industry, Paramount's parent company, National Amusements, explored potential merger and acquisition opportunities for Paramount Global. Numerous prominent companies, such as Sony Pictures, Warner Bros. Discovery, Apollo Global Management, Warner Music Group, Allen Media Group, and Skydance Media, had indicated their interest in exploring potential business partnerships or purchasing the company.
After first coming to a merger deal with Skydance, Paramount and Skydance canceled the proposed merger on June 11 due to unsatisfactory conversations. Following a break in the talks, Skydance was able to reach a preliminary agreement on July 2, 2024, to perform a 3-way merger between it, National Amusements, and Paramount to establish what was then known as "New Paramount". After the merger closed, Skydance Media CEO David Ellison became the chairman and CEO of the combined company and Jeff Shell became the president.
Paramount said in February 2025, and May 2025, that it expected the transaction to close within the first half of the year, but it did not happen. With the deal not yet approved, the first automatic extension to July 7, 2025, went into effect on April 8, 2025, after which the second automatic extension to October 4, 2025, went into effect on July 7, 2025. The SEC and the European Commission (EC) approved the transaction in February 2025. On July 24, 2025, the FCC approved the merger between Paramount Global and Skydance Media.
Merger restructuring
On August 4, 2025, Paramount Skydance announced some of its new leadership alongside Ellison and Shell, with Andy Gordon joining as COO and strategy officer; Cindy Holland leading streaming services Paramount+ and Pluto TV; Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein co-leading Paramount Pictures; and Paramount Global veteran George Cheeks leading television networks. It was also announced the same day that the company would comprise 3 major units: studios (consisting of Paramount Pictures, Skydance Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies and other divisions such as those for film, television and video games), direct-to-consumer (Paramount+ and Pluto TV) and television media (CBS, BET, MTV, Nickelodeon among others). It also announced the merger of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Skydance Television into a revival of Paramount Television Studios to be headed by Matt Thunell. Oversight of the television units would be split, with Thunell heading the studios division (focusing on the streaming services) and George Cheeks overseeing production for the television media division (focusing on the linear networks), as well as South Park, which renewed its standing with Paramount in a deal worth $1.5 billion. Three months later in October following Paramount Skydance's relaunch of Paramount Television Studios, it was announced that Nickelodeon Group's live-action studio Nickelodeon/Awesomeness Live-Action aka Nickelodeon Productions and Awesomeness' production studio including Nickelodeon's & Awesomeness' production slates was folded into Paramount Television Studios, with the relaunched studio taking over Nickelodeon's current production slate alongside Awesomeness' current productions, and would produce their future production slates beginning with the upcoming Victorious spin-off series Hollywood Arts which was originally ordered at Nickelodeon had moved to Netflix as its first Nickelodeon-branded series produced by the revived studio.
On August 5, 2025, Paramount Skydance announced layoffs of around 1,000 employees and a slashing of $2 billion in operating costs, alongside interest in a merger of Paramount+ and Pluto TV with assist from Oracle Corporation. On August 7, Jeff Shell announced that Paramount Skydance was exploring a sale of the NAI cinemas. On August 8, Paramount announced that they would be based in the Paramount Pictures lot in Los Angeles, departing from One Astor Plaza for the first time since the first Viacom moved there in 1994. On August 11, Paramount announced a seven-year deal with TKO Group Holdings where Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will be exclusively distributed in the United States. UFC's 13 marquee numbered events and 30 "Fight Nights" will air on its streaming platform, Paramount+, with select numbered events also set to simulcast on CBS starting in 2026.
On August 13, 2025, Paramount announced that Top Gun 3, Star Trek, and other projects were now priorities. Paramount executives are looking to release twenty films per year. Cindy Holland, chairperson of direct-to-consumer, said, "We want to entertain all audiences around the world. On Paramount+ today, we have a really great foundation, which is the Taylor Sheridan universe. We also have incredible CBS next-day, live sports, a lot from the cable networks, franchises like Star Trek, so many series. We're seeking to expand that and make sure that we’re offering programming for everybody not just occasionally, not just for the one thing they came to watch but ultimately and hopefully a year round and a daily habit for all audiences." Streaming films will not be a priority per Ellison. Also that day, Shell announced $2 billion in cuts. "We do not want to be a company that has layoffs every quarter. So, it is important for us to get done what we're doing in one big thing and then be done with it," Shell said. On August 19, Paramount announced a four-year deal with Matt and Ross Duffer, the creators of Stranger Things, for movies, television and streaming projects at Paramount+. The agreement will commence following the conclusion of their current deal with Netflix in April 2026.
On September 2, 2025, Paramount Pictures announced that they and Microsoft-owned Activision Blizzard had signed a deal that will see the studio develop, produce and distribute a live-action film based on the Call of Duty franchise, which Ellison, a long-time fan of the series, considered a "dream come true". On September 3, Paramount Pictures announced that they signed a first-look, multi-picture deal with Will Smith and his company Westbrook. The deal will include films like Sugar Bandits and Rabbit Hole. Westbrook will also relocate to the Paramount lot in Hollywood. On September 4, Paramount Pictures and Legendary Entertainment announced a three-year worldwide film distribution deal. Under the deal, Paramount will market and distribute Legendary-developed and -produced theatrical films globally, excluding China, where Legendary East handles all marketing and distribution activities. Warner Bros. Pictures will continue to globally distribute films from select Legendary franchises including Dune: Part Three and Godzilla x Kong: Supernova (outside of Japan, which will be handled by Toho). The first film under the Paramount deal will be the live-action adaptation of the Street Fighter video game series. Also on September 4, Paramount announced a return to office policy that requires all employees to be in the office five days a week. On September 5, it was announced that Piers Morgan Uncensored will move from YouTube to (/wiki/5(BritishTVchannel)) where it will air as a 90-minute highlights show starting September 12.
On September 12, 2025, Paramount Skydance announced they would be launching a sports media division called Paramount Sports Entertainment, the division would produce scripted and unscripted programming for its own platforms as well as third-party media companies and streaming services, while also developing sports-focused interactive games and experiences while also housing Skydance Sports. The division is also expected to collaborate with CBS Sports, but it will not be directly involved in live sports broadcasts. The division would be led by Skydance Sports chairman Jesse Sisgold. On September 16, Paramount Skydance added AI executive Dennis K. Cinelli to its board as an independent director, effective immediately. The appointment expands the body to 11 directors.
On September 17, 2025, it was announced that Marc Weinstock would be stepping down from his role as President of Worldwide Marketing and Distribution at Paramount Pictures. His departure comes as Josh Goldstine, the former marketing chief at Warner Bros., is expected to take over the position, according to media reports. On September 23, A former top official in the Trump Administration, Makan Delrahim, is in advanced talks to join the newly merged Paramount Global in a major legal role, according to sources with direct knowledge. On September 26, Pam Kaufman exited her role as Paramount President and CEO of International Markets, Global Consumer Products and Experiences.
On October 6, 2025, it was announced that Paramount Skydance named Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News after acquiring her outlet The Free Press, a deal valued at $150 million. On October 23, Paramount Skydance sold its Argentine television network Telefe alongside its regional stations in Santa Fe and Córdoba, its international channel Telefe Internacional, its production divisions and its content library to holding company Grupo Televisión Litoral, a company of businessman Gustavo Scaglione and José Luis Manzano. On October 27, The Hollywood Reporter announced that Taylor Sheridan was leaving Paramount for NBCUniversal as Paramount did not offer Sheridan an offer to stay. Also on October 27, it was announced that John Dickerson would be leaving CBS News, where he had been employed for over 16 years. On October 29, upcoming layoffs were announced, about which Ellison stated that in “some areas, we are addressing redundancies that have emerged across the organization. In others, we are phasing out roles that are no longer aligned with our evolving priorities and the new structure designed to strengthen our focus on growth ". Paramount announced anchors Dana Jacboson and Michelle Miller as well as producer Brian Applegate of CBS Saturday Morning would be a part of the 2,000 layoffs planned. The company announced the layoffs of motion picture divisions, including production, literary, marketing and music including executives Randy Spendlove, Bryan Oh, Geoff Stier, Andres Alvarez, Rachel Cadden, Christine Benitez, and Phil Cohen. Also TV Executives Teri Fleming, Pamela Soper, Amanda Palley, Rose Catherine Pinkney, Robi Reed, Wendy Plaut, Amanda Culkowski, Margaret Comeaux, Jeff Grossman, Patricia Kollappallil, Gregory Heller, Amy Campbell, and Andrea Ballas were a part of the layoffs.
On October 30, 2025, Matt Thunell announced the department heads in areas such as Creative, Production, Business Affairs & Legal, Finance & BA, with some functions, including Talent & Casting and Corporate were either staying, newly hired, or promoted to different departments. Those named are Head of Development Shelley Zimmerman, EVP of Current Series Carolyn Harris, President of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studio Keith Cox, Head of Production Drew Brown, Head of Business Affairs Virginia Lazalde-McPherson, EVP, Legal Affairs Lance McPherson, and Head of Finance Mel Rauch. Matt Hengemuhle moved from SVP, Financial Planning & Analysis to Direct to Consumer. Tricia Wood, EVP Casting for Paramount Pictures will also cast for Paramount Television Studios. Those leaving are EVP and Head of Global Production for Showtime/MTVE Keri Flint, EVP, TV Business & Legal Affairs for Skydance Jeff Hegedus, CFO, Paramount Media Networks, Showtime/MTVE Studios Candice Brancazio, EVP, Head of Live-Action Series, Films & Talent, Nickelodeon and Awesomeness TV Shauna Phelan, and EVP, Head of Global Talent and Content Development for Showtime/MTVE Trevor Rose.
On November 10, 2025, the Los Angeles Times reported that Paramount laid off 1,600 employees in South America in exchange of a reduction of 15% of its workforce and cost savings which are worth $3 billion. The next day, 600 employees chose the severance package and left their jobs instead of returning to the office. On November 14, Paramount announced its decision to sell Chilevisión to Vytal Group. Also that day, U. S. House of Representatives Jamie Raskin and Frank Pallone, the top two Democrats on the House Energy & Commerce Committee, said Paramount had not fully cooperated with their investigation in the settlement agreement between Skydance, Paramount Global, and President Trump. In August, they had requested documents from Paramount, communications with the Trump administration, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and internal communications concerning the merger between Skydance and Paramount.
On December 4, 2025, Paramount unveiled its TV Media leadership team. Under these changes, Laurel Weil would lead programming across the division. Jeannie Scalzo would lead MTV with Sitarah Pendelson handling all of the channel's programming. Jurles Borkent would now lead Nickelodeon Kids & Family after being president of the channel's international unit while Ari Pearce would lead Comedy Central. On December 31 of the same year, Paramount shut down the various MTV music channels outside of the United States (MTV 80s, MTV 90s, MTV 00s, Club MTV, MTV Live, MTV Hits, MTV Base, and MTV Music), marking the end of their broadcasting of music in those regions after 38 years (dating from the launch of MTV Europe) alongside a number of other channels which included channels in France and Brazil, the latter marking its exit from the Brazilian pay-television market. This closure represented the definitive end of the MTV brand on Brazilian television, following its 1990 launch as a broadcast network in one of the first markets outside the United States, after MTV Europe, and its relaunch by Viacom on cable television in 2013.
In September 2026, Netflix and Paramount Skydance announced that their agreement would conclude after the releases of Ray Gunn and the untitled Jack and the Beanstalk project, with the latter assuming theatrical-first distribution for future projects. This includes Cosmic Motors, a new film directed by John Lasseter and co-directed by Louie del Carmen.
Departure of Jeff Shell and merger with Warner Bros. Discovery
In September 2025, The Wall Street Journal and others reported that Paramount Skydance was weighing a takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, a deal that, unlike the Skydance–Paramount tie-up, was expected to sidestep Federal Communications Commission review because WBD holds no broadcast licenses. The idea drew immediate political scrutiny, with Senator Elizabeth Warren urging regulators to stop it, while price talk swung widely: early chatter reached about $70 billion, mid-month commentary pointed to the mid-$50 billion range, and by September 19 reporting centered on scenarios "north of" $45 billion alongside a potential $22–$24 per-share offer structure that could be 70–80% cash, with support from Larry Ellison. By September 29, CNBC's David Faber suggested a friendly agreement looked unlikely and that Paramount might need to take any bid directly to WBD shareholders.
Industry voices spent the month debating what such a combination would mean. UTA chief David Kramer called it a mixed prospect for Hollywood, and FX Networks chairman John Landgraf predicted that large-scale consolidation among legacy studios was essentially unavoidable. Strategically, observers noted the sheer scale on offer: Paramount Skydance's roughly 4,500-film (including the entire of Miramax, pre-2005 Dimension Films, pre-February 1952 United Artists and pre-2011 DreamWorks Pictures libraries), 200,000-episode library (including the CBS/Paramount Television, Spelling Television, Big Ticket Television and libraries from the cable networks alongside the pre-1973 programming libraries of NBC and ABC) alongside Warner Bros.' catalog of about 10,000 films (including the pre-May 1986 MGM and pre-May 1982 Orion Pictures libraries) and 120,000 episodes (including the Turner, HBO, Discovery and Scripps legacy libraries). Much industry speculation centred around how this could change competition, and the line-up of streaming services such as Pluto TV. Financially, late-month research cautioned that even post-deal, most earnings power would still come from traditional TV: Bernstein Research estimated roughly 70% of EBITDA would be tied to linear networks, even as KPMG highlighted US content spend surpassing $200 billion and continuing to rise.
On December 5, Netflix announced that they would be buying the Warner Bros. streaming and studio company for $72 billion after the split closes in the third quarter, valuing WBD at $82.7 billion. Although Netflix ultimately won the bidding process, the transaction was still subject to regulatory approval in multiple jurisdictions. Amid the ongoing antitrust review, reports indicated that Paramount Skydance might consider launching a hostile takeover bid should the approval process create an opening. Three days later, Paramount launched a hostile takeover bid of WBD for an enterprise value of $108.4 billion. Paramount argued its $30 per share all-cash offer was superior to the $27.75 per share offer from Netflix, and that a combination with Paramount faced lower regulatory hurdles. On December 11, Paramount Skydance was considering raising its takeover offer for Warner Bros. Discovery by as much as 10% as it plots its next move to break up a merger agreement with Netflix. The new offer of Warner Bros. for Paramount would now be $33 per share for $90 billion, while the new offer of Warner Bros. for Netflix would now be $30.75 per share for $86 billion. On December 17, WBD told its shareholders to reject Paramount's bid, instead proceeding with the Netflix acquisition.
On January 7, 2026, it was reported by Variety that Warner Bros. Discovery's board of directors had rejected the amended offer by Paramount Skydance to acquire the entire company, with the board writing in a SEC filing that they considered the Paramount Skydance offer to be of "insufficient value", and that the offer was "inadequate", as they believed the Netflix offer was of better value to their shareholders, with the board sticking with the Netflix offer for Warner Bros. Discovery's Streaming and Studios division.
On February 15, 2026, Bloomberg reported that Warner Bros. Discovery was considering reopening sale talks with Paramount Skydance. On February 20, 2026, the company announced its bid had passed the second request review process undertaken by the Department of Justice, with the company saying "there was no statutory proposal to close down the acquisition".
On February 26, 2026, Warner Bros. Discovery announced that they found Paramount's offer of $31 per share was superior to the deal Netflix made. Shortly after, Netflix announced they were not going to raise their bid and pulled out, with Paramount emerging as the winner of the bidding war. On February 27, the studios revealed that the deal is worth $110 billion. According to David Zaslav, the acquisition is expected to close within 6–12 months, pending regulatory and shareholder approval. If the deal closes, it would be the largest all-cash transaction in corporate history, ahead of Microsoft's $67 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard in 2023, and would mark the second horizontal integration of two legacy media conglomerates and film studios after the 2019 Disney-Fox merger.
On April 8, 2026, Jeff Shell departed Paramount Skydance as president. The departure came a month after Robert James "R.J." Cipriani filed a $150 million lawsuit against Shell and his wife for breach of contract and fraud complaint, in which it also lists Paramount's CEO David Ellison, his father Larry, and several other advisors. Cipriant accused Shell of "gossiping about deals surrounding UFC, WBD, and Donald Trump"; Shell has since denied the allegations, calling it an "utterly false tale created in a shakedown attempt". Paramount Skydance later came out saying that Shell exited the company with a severance package of $5 million; the contract set an annual base salary of $3.5 million, as well as a $1.5 million bonus.
On April 23, 2026, shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery approved the sale to Paramount Skydance.
On June 12, 2026, the Paramount-WBD deal was approved by the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division.
A coalition of 12 U.S. states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Washington all announced that they filed a lawsuit, and they were all seeking to block the proposed Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition.
On September 21, 2026, Paramount and the state attorneys general have settled the blockbuster antitrust lawsuit over the $110.9 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, clearing the way to close the Paramount-WBD deal. The deal included $52 billion financing that included varying degrees of debt and loans. Initial demand was more than 3x for the $30 billion investment grade tranche.
On September 30, 2026, it was reported that Paramount intends to complete the Warner Bros. acquisition on October 6, 2026. It is also reported that the new name and logo for the newly-merged entity will be announced before this date.
On October 2, 2026, it was announced that co-chairs and CEOs of Warner Bros. Pictures Pamela Abdy and Michael De Luca would be exiting after the close of the Paramount and Warner Bros. merger. It was also announced that, post-acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount Skydance would be restructured and rebranded to Skydance.
On October 6, 2026, it was announced that Paramount Skydance had completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Company units
Paramount Skydance
Paramount Skydance comprises 3 major business segments:
• Paramount Skydance Studios consists of the company's film and television production studios. • Paramount Motion Picture Group focuses on theatrical film production and distribution, including film releases under Paramount Pictures, the company's namesake division and flagship label as well as the Paramount Animation, Paramount Players, Paramount Primal and Nickelodeon Movies labels. Other assets include Skydance Animation (and its animation studio division, Skydance Animation Madrid), Republic Pictures and a 49% stake in Miramax. Paramount Pictures also consists of Paramount Studio Group (physical studio and post-production), production facilities and lot, and archives for restoration/preservation for Paramount Home Entertainment and Music. • Paramount Television Group which consists of Paramount Television Studios and CBS Studios (including BET Studios and Nickelodeon Animation Studio (including Avatar Studios)), both focusing on television production. • Paramount Experiences focuses on the retailing and licensing of merchandising for Paramount Consumer Products, and also consists of some theme parks, and gaming at Paramount Games Studio. • Paramount Sports Entertainment focuses on scripted and unscripted sports programming, as well as interactive sports games and experiences. The division also oversees Skydance Sports, a joint venture with the NFL. • Paramount Skydance Direct-to-Consumer focuses on the global over-the-top streaming services, and encompasses Paramount+, Pluto TV, SkyShowtime (50% with Comcast through Sky Group), CBS News 24/7, CBS Sports HQ, and an undisclosed stake in FuboTV, which it acquired in 2020. • Paramount Skydance TV Media encompasses the company's domestic and international linear television channels. The division also oversees See It Now Studios and a 50% stake in South Park Digital Studios. • CBS Entertainment Group oversees CBS, CBS News and Stations, CBS Sports and CBS Media Ventures (including Big Ticket Television). • BET Media Group which owns channels with the BET name. • Paramount Media Networks encompasses the pay television channels owned by Paramount in the United States such as MTV, Nickelodeon (including Nick Jr.), Comedy Central, TV Land, Paramount Network, Logo, CMT, Pop TV, Showtime, The Movie Channel, Flix, VH1 and the Smithsonian Channel. • Paramount International Networks encompasses certain international versions of their cable channels split into three regional hubs: United Kingdom and Australia, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia (EMEAA), and the Americas, as well as region-specific free-to-air networks (including Channel 5 in the United Kingdom and Network 10 in Australia). It also co-owns channels that were previously under the CBS name across Europe with AMC Networks International. • Paramount Global Content Distribution serves as the international television distribution arm for Paramount's television networks and streaming services.
The former subsidiaries of National Amusements such as Showcase Cinemas have been sold as of summer 2026.
Leadership
Board of directors
• David Ellison (chairman) • Barbara Byrne • Andy Campion • Gerry Cardinale • Safra Catz • Justin G. Hamill • Andy Gordon • Sherry Lansing • Paul Marinelli • John L. Thornton
Executives
• David Ellison, chairman and CEO • Jay Askinasi, chief revenue officer • George Cheeks, chairman of TV media • Dennis K. Cinelli, chief financial officer • Makan Delrahim, chief legal officer • Dane Glasgow, chief product officer • Dana Goldberg, co-chair of Paramount Pictures and chair of Paramount Television • Andy Gordon, chief strategy officer and chief operating officer • Josh Greenstein, co-chair of Paramount Pictures and vice chair of Platforms • Stephanie Kyoko McKinnon, general counsel • Jim Sterner, chief people officer • Melissa Zukerman, chief communications officer