David Ellison and the leadership team at Paramount expected to spend much of the summer settling into new digs with Warner Bros. Discovery. A few weeks ago, they privately predicted the merger of the two media companies would be wrapped up by July or August at the latest.
Instead, Ellison is bracing for a long and costly fight to keep the $111 billion deal alive after 12 state attorneys general filed suit to block it on antitrust grounds. And that’s left the rank and file at both companies in a strange state of paralysis.
“Nobody wants this merger, but what happens if it fails?” asks one Warner Bros. executive. “Is that worse? We’ll just be sold to someone else.”
Executives at Paramount admit a cloud of tension is hanging over the studio lot. It’s easy to understand why. Ellison, who bought Paramount in 2025 for $8 billion, had always envisioned joining it with the much larger Warner Bros. Discovery to build a media giant with the scale and arsenal of intellectual property necessary to take on Netflix or Amazon. And that’s why he pushed to put Warner Bros. in play by submitting several rounds of unsolicited offers and then outmaneuvered Netflix after it secured its own deal for the company. That included writing a $2.8 billion check to Netflix to walk away, as well as committing to pay Warner Bros.’ shareholders $7 billion if the deal with Paramount doesn’t close. Ellison also signed off on a ticking fee of $7 million per day until the sale is finalized; the fee goes into effect on Oct. 1.
