Paramount Skydance has officially taken over Warner Bros Discovery in a $110bn merger that is set to reshape Hollywood and the media landscape. The takeover - merging two of the biggest studios in Los Angeles - comes after months of legal disputes and widespread criticism over feared cuts and consolidation could harm competition and consumers. It will alter streaming for millions, usher in a new chapter in the film and TV industry, and leave one of the biggest US news outlets, CNN, in uncertain territory.
The merger will also bring together a host of entities including HBO, CBS, Nickelodeon, Showtime, Comedy Central, DC Studios and Food Network. Paramount will acquire ownership of iconic franchises that include Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, The Lord of the Rings and Mission: Impossible. The newly merged entertainment behemoth will be re-branded under the name Skydance Corporation, the company orginally founded by David Ellison before he took over both Paramount and Warner Bros Discover.
Ellison, chairman and chief executive of Skydance, said the completion of the deal was "historic" for the film industry. "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." The long running takeover process has featured controversy since the beginning.
Netflix intially had a deal to buy part of Warner Bros Discovery, but Paramount Skydance launched a bidding war, leading to the streaming giant walking away. Lawyers in about a dozen US states then filed lawsuits - led by California - aiming to block the deal, arguing it would stifle competition, raise consumer prices and cause "substantial" harm to movie theaters, cable distributors and "ultimately, audiences nationwide". US states announced a settlement with Paramount and Ellison last month which paved the way for the merger to go ahead.
As part of the deal, Paramount has agreed to establish a "news editorial independence board" to "ensure independent, objective, fact-based reporting" at CNN and CBS. Politics and editorial independence has become an area of concern at CBS since the news broadcaster was taken over in 2025 as part of separate a merger between Skydance Media and Paramount. Ellison, who hosted a dinner for President Donald Trump earlier this year, has sought to reassure people that editorial independence will be maintained.
Over its 103-year-old history, Warner Bros has won more than 100 Academy Awards - including dominating at last year's show with a record-tying 11 Oscars for One Battle After Another, Sinners and Weapons. Paramount traces its roots back 1912 and also boasts more than 100 Oscars for classics spanning from The Godfather to Titanic, though the studio has not mirrored the same recent spate of Hollywood honours. The studio was not nominated for any projects last year by the Academy.
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