David Ellison’s megadeal combining Paramount and Warner Bros. closed Tuesday, ushering in a new era for Hollywood. In late July, a judge issued a temporary restraining order halting Ellison’s $81 billion deal to combine Paramount with Warner Bros. Discovery, an early setback in his antitrust battle with 12 state attorneys general.
Rather than fight a preliminary injunction, Ellison chose to go straight to trial on the merits, a risky gambit that could have killed the deal or incurred heavy delay fees. Over weeks, he lobbied politicians, hired operatives, cultivated bipartisan allies, and threatened to move his empire from California, even meeting multiple times with Governor Gavin Newsom, who privately urged Attorney General Rob Bonta to settle. The effort succeeded: Paramount closed the Warner deal Tuesday and held a town hall at the Warner Bros. studio lot for employees of the newly renamed Skydance.
Ellison acknowledged the struggle, saying it was “downright ugly” but worth repeating. He now controls major franchises including Batman, Superman, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Harry Potter, CNN, and CBS News, alongside Paramount+ and HBO Max. His team appointed former Mattel chief Ynon Kreiz as co-CEO, and added Laurene Powell Jobs and Bobby Kotick to the board.
The combined company carries nearly $80 billion in debt, with Ellison targeting $6 billion in annual synergies within three years, expecting layoffs. The victory marked the culmination of a three-year plan, following his August 2025 control of Paramount and merger with Skydance Media, after persistent pursuit of Warner Bros. despite initial rejections from CEO David Zaslav and a competing Netflix bid.
Source: Wall Street Journal US Business · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing