Skydance’s newly combined Paramount and Warner Bros business has been positioned by its leaders as a global media group capable of competing across film, television and streaming, following the formal completion of its acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery.
David Ellison, Skydance’s co-chief executive, said the enlarged company was “positioned to win in every single vertical that we operate in”. The group now includes the Paramount and Warner Bros film studios, CBS, pay-TV channels including CNN, TNT, MTV and BET, and the Paramount+ and HBO Max streaming services.
Ellison said the combination created what he called “the greatest content engine”, supported by major film franchises, sports rights and more than 200 million global streaming subscribers between HBO Max and Paramount+.
The two co-CEOs will divide responsibilities. Ellison, who is also Skydance’s chairman, will focus on creative direction, technology and long-term strategy, while Ynon Kreiz will oversee the integration and day-to-day operations.
Kreiz, a veteran of the media industry with a reputation for turning around businesses, said the merger came as companies faced increasing difficulty reaching audiences and bringing fans together.
“We have a unique opportunity to build the next generation media and entertainment global company that is powered by creativity and technology,” he said.
Skydance targets $6 billion in savings
The combined company is taking on roughly $80 billion in debt and has set a target of $6 billion in cost savings over the next three years.
Ellison said the companies had spent more than a year examining the deal and knew where the savings would come from. Kreiz said they would be achieved through technology changes, consolidated marketing, more efficient use of property and reductions in labour costs.
The merger has prompted concern about possible job losses. Kreiz acknowledged that reducing the workforce would form part of the plans, but said decisions would be made “in the right way, respectfully, transparently, and communicate our plans”.
Ellison said advertising sales had already been brought together across the platforms, while work was under way to combine the companies’ back-end technology systems. He has also said Paramount+ and HBO Max will eventually be merged.
The new group faces film-release commitments under a settlement with state attorneys general who had sued to block the acquisition on antitrust grounds. It has agreed to release at least 30 films in cinemas in each of 2027 and 2028, and at least 32 a year from 2029 to 2031. The combined business currently has 35 films scheduled for release next year.
CBS and CNN to retain independent newsrooms
The deal also places CBS and CNN under the same ownership. Concerns had been raised about political influence over the news operations, including because Ellison’s father, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, is a longstanding ally of President Donald Trump.
As part of the settlement, Skydance agreed to establish a board overseeing CBS and CNN to protect editorial independence. Mark Thompson will remain chairman and editor-in-chief of CNN Worldwide, while Bari Weiss will continue as editor-in-chief of CBS News.
Kreiz said the two newsrooms would operate independently and in parallel. “Corporate stays out of editorial,” Ellison said, leaving questions about their future operations to Thompson and Weiss.
