Paramount finally completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. on Tuesday, after months of delays stemming from a prolonged bidding war and a short-lived legal battle.
The combined company will be known as Skydance, which was originally a small Hollywood production company founded by David Ellison 20 years ago, has now become a vast media empire following the merger.
“Today is a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry,” Ellison said in a press release. “From the start, our ambition was to bring these two storied studios together and create a stronger competitor, with the talent, resources, and reach to tell great stories in every genre, on every platform, for audiences everywhere. Now that ambition is a reality.”
“We’re grateful to everyone who made this possible — the employees, creative talent, and production teams of both companies, who worked tirelessly to get us here and inspire audiences around the world every day, as well as the advisors and partners who guided this transaction to completion,” he added. “Our focus now turns to the future: building a company that empowers creatives, entertains audiences and rewards shareholders. We couldn’t be more excited to get to work.”
Ellison will serve as chairman and chief executive alongside Skydance co-CEO Ynon Kreiz, who previously led the Mattel toy brand. Both executives alluded to the prospect of cost-cutting and layoffs, two concerns made by opponents to the merger.
“Integrating two companies will bring change, including difficult decisions that affect our workforce,” Ellison and Kreiz wrote in a memo to employees. “We are committed to handling this process thoughtfully and respectfully.”
Meanwhile, they said Skydance is committed to “take on some of the largest technology and media companies in the world and to lead in an evolving entertainment landscape.” Paramount previously beat out Netflix, the world’s largest streaming service, in the bidding war for Warner Bros.
Skydance will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the new ticker symbol “SKYD,” the newly combined company said. Under the merger agreement, Warner Bros. shareholders received just over $31 per share in cash. Warner Bros. shares have stopped trading on Nasdaq.
Ellison announced the name of the merged entity on Friday, saying he wanted to keep the identities of the Paramount and Warner Bros. film studios separate.
“Both have distinct identities, extraordinary legacies and brands that have resonated with audiences for generations,” he said. “We never wanted a new corporate identity to diminish, alter or overshadow either one. Instead, we wanted a name that would give the combined company an identity of its own while allowing Paramount and Warner Bros. — and all our extraordinary brands — to remain in the spotlight.”
The chief executive made the announcement in his first post on X, which included a nearly two-minute sizzle reel of Paramount and Warner Bros. film and television intellectual properties set to fall under a single corporate umbrella.
Beyond the two legacy Hollywood studios, the services that Skydance owns include HBO and HBO Max, Paramount+, Pluto TV, CBS, CNN, CBS Sports, TNT Sports, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, MTV, Food Network, BET, HGTV, and Comedy Central.
The future of CNN and CBS News has been a concern among Democratic lawmakers and anti-merger activists, though the news outlets didn’t initially factor into the antitrust lawsuit brought by California and 11 other blue states. The settlement resolving the litigation stipulates an independent editorial board to oversee CNN and CBS News, which were formerly owned by Warner Bros. and Paramount, respectively.
Mark Thompson is staying in his role as CNN’s top executive under the new company, and Bari Weiss will continue leading CBS News as editor in chief.
JUSTICE KAGAN DENIES LAST-MINUTE BID TO HALT PARAMOUNT-WARNER BROS. MERGER
U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin approved the states’ settlement with Paramount and Warner Bros. last week, clearing the way for the two companies to close their transaction amounting to roughly $111 billion in enterprise value.
Though the lawsuit was settled, five consumers mounted a last-minute bid on Monday to get the Supreme Court to intervene. The plaintiffs’ effort was unsuccessful, as Justice Elena Kagan denied their emergency appeal to block the merger. Kagan, who handles emergency applications in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, did not provide an explanation for her decision.