Paramount targets two-week finish for Warner Bros. Discovery deal
Paramount Skydance plans to close its purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery in about two weeks. Chief executive David Ellison gave staff that timeline in an address on Monday, 21 September 2026, according to Variety.
The sprint follows a settlement that cleared a major legal block. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, acting for himself and 11 other state attorneys general, announced a deal to resolve the states' antitrust lawsuit, a case arguing the merger would harm competition, according to Variety. Talks between Paramount and California accelerated on 19 September 2026, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Paramount Skydance has also reached a separate settlement with the Writers Guild of America, the labour union for screenwriters, over the merger, according to Variety. The agreement includes a commitment to make more than 30 films a year and to expand film production in the United States. The Guild had opposed the merger since it was first proposed, according to WGA East.
For fans, this means the fate of two large film and television libraries could be decided quickly. A single organisation would control Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros., plus cable channels and streaming services on both sides.
That speed is new. Paramount had agreed not to close the deal until after a trial and ruling in the states' case, according to Variety. That pause ran until next June at the latest, according to Reuters, and threatened to push closing into 2027.
The delay fight turned costly. Paramount asked on 17 August 2026 for the states and the Guild to post a 1.88 billion US dollar bond against losses from delay, according to Variety. The states and the Guild opposed that request in a 31 August filing.
The sale has a long trail. Both company boards unanimously approved the Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery transaction, which was expected to close in the third quarter of 2026, according to PR Newswire. The clock slipped. Warner Bros. Discovery had disclosed a price of 31.00 US dollars per share in cash plus a daily ticking fee, a small extra payment for each day the deal stays open, according to Warner Bros. Discovery. Shareholders were due to vote on 23 April 2026, according to Warner Bros. Discovery.
There was a rival bidder. Warner Bros. Discovery set a special meeting for 20 March 2026 and recommended shareholders vote for a merger with Netflix, while also seeking a best-and-final offer from Paramount Skydance, according to the company. Ellison had told staff in July that he remained highly confident the Warner Bros. Discovery deal posed no legal issues. Now he wants to finalise it.
