A special committee of Paramount Global‘s board set up to steer its M&A process has declared an end to the “go-shop” period in its pending Skydance Media merger and says the transaction will close in the first half of 2025. In a statement tonight following the withdrawal of a rival bid led by Edgar Bronfman
Shari Redstone
For some in Hollywood, there’s a sigh of relief in Skydance’s $8 billion takeover of Paramount: A legacy motion picture studio and entertainment conglom will largely remain standing. This versus if Sony had actually won Paramount, in which case we’d be looking at a potential reduction in theatrical releases, a maneuver that would greatly impact
David Ellison‘s Skydance Media has announced it and its backers will invest $8 billion in a takeover of Paramount Global, capping a seven-month quest. The company had received approval earlier Sunday from a special committee of Paramount’s board of directors. The full board then OK’d the plan for a two-step transaction. First the acquisition of
David Ellison‘s Skydance Media has gained approval for the company’s proposed acquisition of Paramount Global controlling shareholder National Amusements Inc. after seven months of talks. The deal was blessed Sunday by a special committee of Paramount’s board, a person familiar with the matter told Deadline. The full board is now expected to consider the proposal.
Yet another name has surfaced in the Paramount Global scrum as former entertainment executive and beverage billionaire Edgar Bronfman Jr. is eyeing control of the company in a deal scenario with multiple moving pieces even as Shari Redstone‘s camp remains deep in talks with Skydance. Takeover speculation has engulfed Paramount since last October and Skydance
Another big Hollywood name is rooting for a Paramount-Skydance deal as Jeffrey Katzenberg says that outcome would be “a great win for Paramount and for people in the industry.” Speaking a the Axios BFD Talks: LA this evening, the DreamWorks co-founder and former Walt Disney Studios head acknowledged that the situation is complicated. “There’s a
Partners Sony and Apollo have formally reached out to Paramount‘s special board committee asking to discuss a potential $26 billion offer, Deadline has learned. It comes as Par’s exclusive negotiating window with David Ellison‘s Skydance is set to expire. Paramount share jumped 12% on the news. Investors would vastly prefer a Sony deal to Skydance.
The mountains are as gorgeous as ever, the deal climate not so much as boutique investment bank Allen & Co. prepares to host its annual Sun Valley retreat. After guests arrive on Tuesday, official activities get under way Wednesday. The annual ritual of media-mogul whitewater rafting and shop talk is a 40-year, post-July 4 tradition.
ViacomCBS Chair Shari Redstone was doing the rounds at Sun Valley but contrary to reports, she did not have a meeting with Comcast CEO Brian Roberts at the Allen & Co. mogul mountain retreat, according to a person familiar with the situation. The Philly-based conglom has been the subject of constant deal speculation since two