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Paramount CEO defends Warner Bros mega merger amid US antitrust case
David Ellison said the merger’s critics are relying on an outdated Hollywood model, as the deal is still frozen by US legal challenges with a trial now set for March 2, 2027.
Paramount Skydance chief executive David Ellison has defended the company’s $110 billion (£86 billion) takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery in an op-ed published by The New York Times, rejecting claims that a combined media giant would exert excessive market control or undermine newsroom independence, BBC Business reported.
Ellison said opposition to the transaction rests on a “Hollywood model” that no longer exists, and he argued the combined company will need to scale content investment to sustain creative workers against technology platforms driven by engagement algorithms.
He also pointed to commitments to expand traditional production, including 30 theatrical films and 170 television series each year supported by more than $30 billion in annual content investment.
The defense comes as Paramount and Warner Bros continue an intense legal fight in the US, with 12 state attorneys general led by California’s Rob Bonta and the Writers Guild of America having filed antitrust lawsuits in July. According to BBC Business, domestic proceedings remain on hold, with the trial pushed to March 2, 2027, after regulators including the US Department of Justice and the European Union approved the deal earlier in the process.