Paramount completes $110B Warner Bros. Discovery deal, forms Skydance

Paramount announced on Tuesday that it has completed its $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, creating a combined company called Skydance in one of the largest mergers in history.

The deal brings together two major streaming platforms, Paramount+ and HBO Max, along with networks including CBS, CNN, MTV, TBS, Comedy Central and Food Network. Skydance also gains control of major franchises such as “The Lord of the Rings,” “Game of Thrones,” the DC Universe and “Yellowstone.”

The merger puts one of the world’s largest entertainment studios under the control of David Ellison, who completed his own merger of Skydance Media with Paramount just last year and is rapidly expanding his influence in Hollywood. The Ellison family is Skydance’s largest shareholder, backed by the wealth of Larry Ellison, David Ellison’s father and co-founder of Oracle.

The deal’s completion follows settlements with a coalition of U.S. states and a Hollywood writers’ union that cleared the main legal hurdles facing the merger. Paramount announced in February that it would acquire Warner Bros. Discovery following a bidding battle with Netflix, which had previously reached an agreement to purchase Warner Bros.’ film and television studios and streaming business, excluding its cable networks. Paramount sweetened its own bid by promising shareholders additional cash if the deal failed to close by a specified deadline and by agreeing to cover the breakup fee Warner Bros. Discovery would have owed Netflix for ending that earlier agreement.

“Today is a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry,” Ellison said in a statement. “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.”

The combined Skydance corporation will have annual revenue of nearly $70 billion, the company said. Skydance Class B shares began trading on the New York Stock Exchange Tuesday under the ticker symbol “SKYD.”

Why it matters

The deal consolidates two of Hollywood’s largest content libraries and streaming platforms under single ownership, reshaping the competitive landscape for every rival streamer and studio.