In the fall of 2025, a bidding war started between competitors Netflix and Paramount-Skydance for a purchase of the media giant Warner Bros. After Netflix initially appeared to be winning, the story took a new turn with Paramount's counteroffer of $111 billion—which Warner ultimately accepted.
Despite widespread criticism about the concentration of power, the deal was approved at the beginning of the summer in the US Department of Justice's competition review without objection. In response, 12 Democratic states filed a lawsuit against the deal. A trial was scheduled for spring 2027 when Paramount owner David Ellison leaked to the press that he was considering moving the company's operations from the Democratic state of California.
In the end, the parties agreed to an out-of-court settlement. Among other things, the owner of the new major company commits not to sell its land in Los Angeles for five years, to invest an extra 1.5 billion dollars in American film production and to launch at least 30 films in theaters per year. In addition, steps are being taken to ensure that the news channels CNN and CBS can operate independently of their owners.
Film history would not have been the same without the film companies Paramount and Warner Bros. During Hollywood's golden age, from the late 1920s to the early 1960s, they were both among the eight major companies that dominated the world's most successful film industry. Paramount specialized in sophisticated comedies and melodramas with star actors like Marlene Dietrich and Cary Grant, while Warner stood for tough, urban and socially conscious films, starring names like Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.
Since then, the companies have transformed into media empires in film, television and streaming. In 2025, Paramount was acquired by David Ellison's Skydance, which is now growing further with the purchase of Warner.
The new major owner David Ellison and his father, businessman Larry Ellison, are known to be close to US President Donald Trump. Critics believe that it poses a risk to the diversity of opinion in the United States that the two major television channels CNN and CBS now end up under the same umbrella. Not least since Trump recently ported CNN from the White House, after repeatedly criticizing the channel's news reporting.
- For Ellison and Paramount, gaining control of CNN is important. The consolidation is enormous when it comes to gathering power over both traditional media and social media with Trumpism, said TV expert Kjell Häglund earlier this year in an interview with DN.
Another concern concerns the effects on the film industry. In April, more than 3,000 actors, directors and other film professionals signed a petition warning that the deal risks leading to fewer and more mainstream films. One of the sharpest critics has been the actor Mark Ruffalo.
"The merger will stifle creativity, weaken free speech and cost people their jobs - it's a bad deal for our country that should never have been approved," the actor wrote last week on his social media.
Several politicians from the Democrats have also expressed concerns. Including New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who called the deal corrupt and criticized it for giving "billionaires like David Ellison even more power to decide what Americans see and hear".
Another controversial aspect is that the deal is being carried out with money from sovereign wealth funds in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. According to information in Variety, these will own more than a third of the company, but will not be represented on the board.
David Ellison has announced that the new major company will be called Skydance. Under the combined umbrella name, the two Warner and Paramount brands will remain and, according to Ellison, maintain separate identities in their range of films and TV series. According to the industry magazine Variety, the new company is estimated to have debts of a staggering SEK 800 billion. The wealthy Ellison family themselves are responsible for significant parts of the financial security.
David Ellison will shoulder the CEO role together with Ynon Kreiz, who joins from the toy company Mattel, where he was involved in the film adaptation of "Barbie" (2023). A financial success that is now expected to get a sequel.
With the merger, Skydance controls the two American streaming services HBO Max and Paramount+. According to Deadline, there are many indications that the two services will be retained, but that they may be combined in different offers to consumers.
The deal will also have effects in Sweden. In part, the purchase means that Warner Bros. television channels in Sweden, among them Kanal 5 and Discovery Channel, will have a new owner. At the same time, the streaming services HBO Max and Skyshowtime end up under the same umbrella. According to Reuters, a closure of Skyshowtime is now being considered.
