"Now that the federal government has abandoned antitrust enforcement in favor of cronyism and runaway consolidation, state attorneys general must step in to block this deal," said one critic.

As attorneys general aim to challenge the merger, David Ellison’s team is leaning on a free speech theory to help cross the finish line.

Paramount Skydance defeated Netflix in the battle to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, committing $111 billion for the merger.

A coalition of state attorneys general led by California is preparing a lawsuit to challenge the merger.

The DOJ said its investigation concluded that the "transaction is not likely to result in harm to competition or American consumers."