Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery Are Now One Company Called Skydance

Paramount has completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, bringing two of Hollywood’s biggest collections of film, television, news and streaming assets into a single company now called Skydance. The transaction closed on October 6 after months of regulatory review and legal challenges, and the combined company’s Class B shares have begun trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SKYD.

What the new Skydance includes

The combination puts Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. under the same corporate roof alongside CBS, HBO, CNN and the companies’ cable networks. It also joins Paramount+ and HBO Max, although Skydance says the two streaming products will be unified into a single service over time rather than immediately. The enlarged catalogue spans franchises including Harry Potter, DC, Game of Thrones, Star Trek, Mission: Impossible, Top Gun and SpongeBob SquarePants.

Skydance says the combined business reaches more than 200 countries and territories and has more than 200 million streaming subscribers across its platforms. The company is targeting at least $6 billion in annual run-rate synergies within three years, while aiming to reduce net leverage to 3.0 times by the end of 2029.

The deal came with major conditions

The acquisition was announced in February at $31 per Warner Bros. Discovery share and an enterprise value of approximately $110 billion. Because the closing slipped beyond September 30, WBD shareholders ultimately received $31.01666668 per share in cash. Separate reporting has described the equity acquisition as roughly $81 billion, so that figure should not be confused with the larger enterprise value, which accounts for debt as well.

Regulatory clearance did not end the resistance. A coalition of 12 US state attorneys general challenged the merger on competition grounds before reaching a court-approved settlement with Paramount and WBD. That agreement imposes unusually concrete obligations on the combined company for the next five years.

• Release at least 30 films a year in the first two commitment years and 32 a year in years three through five.
• Keep qualifying theatrical releases in cinemas for at least 45 days and meet minimum wide-release requirements.
• Spend at least an additional $1.5 billion on US film production over five years compared with the companies’ 2025 spending levels.
• Fund a $47.5 million workforce programme and maintain separate negotiations for Paramount and Warner Bros. basic cable channels.
• Use an independent editorial board intended to protect the editorial independence of CNN and CBS News.

Failure to meet the annual film-output requirement can trigger substantial penalties, including $30 million per missed film and a requirement to divest Miramax under the settlement terms. Those commitments make the merger more than a simple change of ownership: they set measurable limits on how aggressively Skydance can reduce theatrical output while it integrates the businesses.

David Ellison leads the combined company

David Ellison remains chairman and CEO of Skydance, with former Mattel chief Ynon Kreiz serving as co-CEO. Ellison is set to focus on long-term strategy, creative direction, technology, partnerships and capital allocation, while Kreiz oversees day-to-day operations and the integration of the two companies.

The scale is enormous, but so is the integration challenge. Skydance says the combined company has nearly $70 billion in revenue and expects more than $10 billion in free cash flow by 2030. Recent reporting also puts its debt at close to $80 billion, meaning management will have to balance cost reductions and deleveraging against legally binding production commitments and the need to keep its biggest film and streaming brands competitive.

What changes for viewers?

For now, the most immediate change is corporate rather than consumer-facing. HBO Max, Paramount+ and the group’s other services and channels continue to exist, and Skydance has not announced an immediate shutdown or migration plan for subscribers. The company has said its streaming products will eventually be brought together into one service, but it has not provided a timetable or detailed pricing for that transition.

That leaves the biggest consumer questions unanswered: how the future streaming service will be packaged, what it will cost, and how the combined catalogue will be distributed across regions. What is settled is the ownership. Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery are now part of one company, and Skydance has become one of the largest media groups in the world overnight.

Where to find it

• Skydance Investor Relations