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A Hollywood mega-merger for Paramount is going through: reports

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1 month ago

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  • Paramount and Skydance have agreed to terms on a merger, according to multiple reports.
  • The deal is valued at $8 billion, according to CNBC, but has yet to be signed by Shari Redstone.
  • The deal would mark a Hollywood coup for David Ellison.

After weeks of negotiations, a Paramount and Skydance merger is happening, according to reports in CNBC and Deadline.

The deal has yet to be signed by Shari Redstone, who owns a controlling stake in Paramount, but will be formally unveiled in days, according to CNBC.

Skydance — the media company owned by David Ellison, son of Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison — is being backed in its bid for Paramount by investment firms RedBird Capital Partners and KKR.

The deal would elevate Ellison to a major Hollywood player.

A Paramount spokesperson declined to comment. Skydance did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Paramount has fielded other offers — including one from Apollo Global Management and Sony Pictures. But Redstone preferred the Skydance deal, CNBC reports, because it would keep Paramount together rather than Apollo’s plans to break apart the media conglomerate.

CNBC reports the Skydance deal is valued at $8 billion. Redstone will receive $2 billion for National Amusements — a holding company that owns the majority of Paramount’s voting shares. Skydance will also buy roughly 50% of Paramount class B shares, and allocate $1.5 billion toward Paramount’s balance sheet, CNBC reports.

The deal will not require a shareholder vote, according to CNBC, though the company’s annual stockholder meeting is scheduled for tomorrow.

In April, Paramount announced a leadership shakeup at the top, with CEO Bob Bakish stepping down to be replaced by a trio of senior execs known as the “Office of the CEO.”

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