Paramount Skydance has unveiled the senior leadership team expected to run its combined business with Warner Bros. Discovery, defining how some of the world’s largest film, television, streaming and news assets will be managed after the companies complete their proposed merger.
The combined company will be named Skydance. Paramount said the acquisition was anticipated to close on Tuesday, October 6, subject to the remaining customary closing requirements.
David Ellison will serve as chairman and chief executive officer, while former Mattel chairman and CEO Ynon Kreiz will become co-chief executive officer. Andy Gordon, Paramount’s chief strategy and operating executive, has been named president.
Under the proposed division of responsibilities, Ellison will concentrate on long-term strategy, creative direction, technology, capital allocation, partnerships and relationships with talent. Kreiz will oversee daily management and the integration of Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery.
The structure will bring Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures, CBS, CNN, HBO, DC Studios, Paramount+, HBO Max and an extensive portfolio of cable and broadcast networks into one organisation.
Casey Bloys, currently responsible for HBO and Max programming, will become co-chair and chief content officer of Skydance’s direct-to-consumer division. His remit will cover original programming for HBO Max and Paramount+, as well as streaming strategy and operations.
George Cheeks will become co-chair and chief content officer of Skydance Television. Paramount said the division will encompass Warner Bros. Television Studios, CBS Studios, Paramount Television Studios, the CBS television network, 27 local stations and more than 50 American cable networks.
Those networks include MTV, Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central, HGTV, Food Network, TNT, TBS and Discovery.
Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein will co-chair the motion-picture group. James Gunn and Peter Safran will remain co-chairmen of DC Studios, retaining responsibility for the DC Universe across film, television, animation, gaming and themed entertainment.
The announcement also resolves an important question surrounding two of the United States’ most influential television-news organisations.
Mark Thompson will remain chairman and editor-in-chief of CNN Worldwide, while Bari Weiss will continue as editor-in-chief of CBS News. Both will report to Ellison and Kreiz, but neither was placed above the other.
Reuters reported that the separate reporting arrangement may ease concerns that one newsroom leader would receive authority over both CNN and CBS News. However, important questions remain about how editorial independence will operate within the consolidated company.
Ellison agreed to establish an editorial-independence board covering CNN and CBS News under a settlement with 12 US states and a Hollywood writers’ organisation that had challenged the transaction. Critics have questioned how much practical authority that board will possess.
The combined company’s corporate leadership will also include Dennis Cinelli as chief financial officer, Makan Delrahim as chief legal officer and president of global corporate affairs, Dane Glasgow as chief product officer, Rebecca Mall as chief marketing officer and Melissa Zukerman as chief communications officer.
Glasgow’s appointment reflects the technology-centred strategy Ellison has promoted. Paramount said he will lead product vision and technical strategy across digital platforms, advertising, immersive storytelling and artificial-intelligence capabilities.
JB Perrette will help lead both the television and direct-to-consumer businesses, with responsibility for distribution, advertising sales, content sales, streaming strategy, marketing and business operations.
The acquisition values Warner Bros. Discovery at an enterprise value of approximately $110 billion, according to transaction documents filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The financing and integration will leave the new company responsible for a vast collection of studios, franchises, networks and streaming operations.
Paramount argues that the scale will help the business compete as viewers and advertisers migrate from conventional television towards streaming and digital platforms. The company says it intends to use technology to improve consumer products, support creators and achieve operating efficiencies.
Those ambitions will be tested by the difficulty of integrating two complex media businesses, protecting distinct creative cultures and managing overlapping television, theatrical and streaming operations.
The announcement is significant beyond Hollywood. Decisions made by the new leadership will affect global film distribution, television commissioning, news coverage, advertising markets, sports rights and the availability of content across Paramount+ and HBO Max.
Paramount said a broader executive-leadership list will be issued after the transaction closes. Until that formal confirmation is published, the appointments should be described as the expected leadership of the combined company.
