Jeffrey Katzenberg Weighs In On Paramount Drama, Backs David Ellison

Another big Hollywood name is rooting for a Paramount-Skydance deal as Jeffrey Katzenberg says that outcome would be “a great win for Paramount and for people in the industry.” Speaking a the Axios BFD Talks: LA this evening, the DreamWorks co-founder and former Walt Disney Studios head acknowledged that the situation is complicated. “There’s a … Read more

Paramount Sets Bob Bakish Exit Terms And Interim Principal Executive

Paramount Global says Chris McCarthy is the company’s “interim principal executive officer,” a necessity required by the SEC that apparently does not signal he has more decision-making power among a trio of top executives who stepped up to replace Bob Bakish this week in a new Office of the CEO. Security & Exchange Commission rules … Read more

Skydance, Paramount Drama – Will David Ellison Walk?

The clock is ticking down to midnight, the end of a month-long exclusive negotiating window between Paramount Global and Skydance Media. The David Ellison company has been circling Paramount for months and lobbed several offers to buy out Shari Redstone‘s controlling stake, backed by Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and Gerry Cardinale’s RedBird Capital. The Skydance … Read more

Skydance could drop bid after Sony Apollo offer

Shari Redstone, chair of Paramount Global, attends the Allen & Co. Media and Technology Conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, on Tuesday, July 11, 2023. David A. Grogan | CNBC Skydance Media is prepared to walk away from its offer for Paramount Global unless it receives a firm commitment from controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, following the … Read more

Sony & Apollo Make Formal Overture To Paramount Board To Discuss Deal

Partners Sony and Apollo have formally reached out to Paramount‘s special board committee asking to discuss a potential $26 billion cash offer, Deadline has learned. It comes as Par’s exclusive negotiating window with David Ellison‘s Skydance is set to expire. Paramount share are up more than 13% on the news. Investors would vastly prefer a … Read more

Paramount Global Sees Ad Boost From Super Bowl, Paramount+ Passes 71 Million Subs In Q1

Paramount has just unleashed its first quarter financials and they look pretty promising, although all eyes are on the shakeup in the C-suite. Revenue was higher across the board, albeit a hair shy of Wall Street expectations. Operating losses narrowed. Free cash flow rose, a key metric since it allows the company to pay down … Read more

Shari Redstone, Execs Address Paramount Staff After Bob Bakish’s Exit

After trying to reassure Wall Street with their brief opening remarks at the Paramount Global earnings call, the trio of executives named to the newly formed Office of the CEO looked to do the same with the company’s employees rattled by the sudden ouster of longtime CEO Bob Bakish amid sale negotiations with Skydance. In … Read more

Skydance Puts Revised Offer On The Table For Paramount

David Ellison’s Skydance has presented Paramount Global board’s special committee with a revised offer to take control of the company, Deadline has learned. Terms weren’t immediately available, story will be updated when they are. The new proposal is likely designed to make a deal more palatable to Paramount investors beyond controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, something … Read more

Shari Redstone playing M&A war games with Paramount CEO removal

Bob Bakish, CEO of Paramount, speaks with CNBC’s David Faber on Sept. 6, 2023. CNBC In what could easily be a plotline from HBO’s hit show “Succession,” Paramount Global plans to replace Chief Executive Officer Bob Bakish with a cohort of existing division heads on Monday in a chessboard-altering move designed to accelerate the company’s … Read more

Bob Bakish Set To Resign As Paramount Global CEO Amid Skydance Talks

Paramount Global is set to announce as early as Monday morning that Bob Bakish is stepping down as CEO amid talks with Skydance and ahead of the company’s quarterly earnings that afternoon. News Bakish might exit started circulating Friday. Paramount’s controlling shareholder and executive chair Shari Redstone, while once clearly on the same page with … Read more