Twelve states bid to block $110 billion Paramount-Warner Bros. merger

Twelve states are trying to stop Paramount from buying Warner Bros. Discovery, and California's top lawyer says federal regulators let the $110 billion deal through too easily.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta defended the states' lawsuit at The Atlantic Festival in New York, where he appeared alongside New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella and Pennsylvania Attorney General David Sunday. Speaking about the case reported on 17 September, Bonta said the US Department of Justice, which approved the deal in June, had not done an adequate review, according to Deadline.

The states filed their complaint on 13 July 2026 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California as Case No. 4:26-cv-07116. It alleges the merger violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act, the federal law that bars deals likely to substantially reduce competition, the California Attorney General's office said in its announcement. Bonta said the states' own assessment found an antitrust violation in three separate markets named in that complaint.

The deal itself was announced in February. Paramount had submitted its pre-merger notification filing to the Justice Department on 8 December 2025. The states describe the $110 billion proposal as the largest merger in Hollywood history, a figure that covers two studios, their cable channels and their streaming services.

Paramount has said the acquisition would produce $6 billion in cost cuts, Reuters reported in July. Cost cuts in mergers of this size often mean job losses and fewer commissions. That is why this case matters beyond boardrooms. A crew of 200 on a series, a writers' room mapping a season, all wait on whether two libraries and two slates become one.

The courts have already slowed the timetable. A federal judge ordered Paramount Skydance to pause the acquisition through 3 August 2026, Reuters reported at the time. The attorneys general then secured a temporary restraining order, a short court order freezing action, and Paramount agreed to delay closing until next summer.

Now the fight is about money while the parties wait. Paramount has asked that the plaintiff states post a $1.88 billion bond, a financial guarantee meant to cover losses if the block is later found to be wrong. A judge will rule on that request at a hearing on 24 September.

The sum is tied to a ticking fee, meaning a daily payment due while closing is delayed. Paramount agreed to pay Warner Bros. Discovery $7 million a day from 1 October if the merger has not closed, which would total $1.88 billion by early June. If either side walks away in early June, Paramount would instead owe a $7 billion termination fee. The Justice Department has filed a brief supporting Paramount's right to a bond.

Bonta also pushed back on talk that Paramount could leave California if the states succeed. That departure, he said, would be Paramount's choice alone and would lie at its feet.

The court has ordered two days of settlement talks in October. If there is no deal, the lawsuit is set for trial in March.