California Cancels Paramount Settlement Meeting Over Leak Allegations
California Attorney General Rob Bonta canceled a settlement meeting with Paramount Skydance scheduled for Monday, August 24, 2026, accusing the company of leaking confidential discussions and acting in bad faith.
The meeting was meant to open settlement talks over a multistate antitrust lawsuit seeking to block Paramount's proposed merger with Warner Bros. Discovery — a deal that would combine two of Hollywood's largest studios. Twelve states have joined the suit, arguing the combination could harm competition.
Bonta's office alleged that Paramount leaked the substance of settlement discussions to the press and misrepresented what was said. In a statement reported by Variety, Bonta said his office would meet again with Paramount once it "stops playing games and engages sincerely."
Paramount fired back on Monday with a statement of its own, denying it was the source of the leaks. The company did not address Bonta's specific accusations about misrepresenting the discussions, according to Variety.
The meeting's cancellation throws a wrench into efforts to resolve the antitrust case before it heads to court. A Wall Street Journal report, cited by Variety, said Bonta's office was expected to ask Paramount to sell off some of its cable channels and guarantee that its film studio would stay separate from Warner Bros. as conditions for dropping the lawsuit. Those terms would have been on the table had the Monday session gone ahead.
For the merger itself, the setback means more uncertainty. Paramount Skydance — the entity formed after Skydance Media completed its acquisition of Paramount Global — has been working to clear regulatory and legal hurdles before it can move forward with absorbing Warner Bros. Discovery. The California AG's involvement carries particular weight because of the state's outsized role in the media industry, even though the lawsuit spans a dozen states.
Bonta has not set a new date for talks. Paramount has not publicly commented on whether it will attempt to restart the negotiations.
