Skydance Closes Warner Bros Deal, Sets Leadership Plan
Skydance has closed its $110 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery, and its two chief executives faced reporters within hours to explain what happens next. Chairman and CEO David Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz spoke on 6 October on Stage 3 at the Paramount lot in Hollywood Variety. The deal had been cleared to close by a US judge, with the $110 billion figure reported by Reuters.
The session was billed as a "Day One" press conference. It ran for nearly 30 minutes with national press, with Variety journalists reporting first-hand from the room. It opened with a trailer pulling together properties now under the same ownership, including Batman, Game of Thrones, the Star Trek universe and Scream.
Ellison said the company will keep both the Warner Bros. lot and the Paramount lot. The likely plan is to organise film on one lot and television and streaming on another. That split is not final.
On management, Kreiz said all business units will report to both him and Ellison. Ellison will focus on creative technology and long-term creative strategy. Kreiz will focus on operations and day-to-day management, including integration, meaning the practical work of combining the two companies.
The pair were asked about Ellison's earlier remarks about productive conversations with US President Donald Trump concerning CNN. Ellison said he has not talked to any political leader of any party about news, beyond wanting to be in what he called the truth and trust business with complete editorial independence, meaning news decisions made without political interference. Deadline reported that he defended meeting Trump while Paramount was seeking to complete the merger.
Ellison also turned to filming in America. He said he and Makan Delrahim started work in October last year on a federal tax incentive for production, a tax break intended to make US shoots more affordable. He put Paramount's domestic production level at about 5%.
Ellison founded Skydance Media in 2010, and now leads the enlarged group with Kreiz. Senior figures in the room included Gerry Cardinale, Andy Gordon, Delrahim, Dana Goldberg, Josh Greenstein, Casey Bloys, Peter Safran, Rebecca Mall and JB Perrette. Skydance's Newsroom on 6 October listed a release confirming completion of the acquisition and naming their leadership team.
For viewers, this means no immediate change on screen. No series was ordered, renewed or cancelled at the briefing. What changed is who owns the studios and channels behind them.
