There’s been so much going wrong in the world, that the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger has kind of felt quiet since the dramatic plot twist that Netflix was withdrawing their bid after Paramount made Warner Bros. an offer they couldn’t refuse. When last we checked in on this story, California’s Attorney General was initiating talks with other state AGs to map out a path of legal resistance, while Paramount was prematurely detailing their plans to combine Paramount+ and HBO Max into one colossal streaming platform. I guess Hollywood feels refreshed after the High Holidays (the Oscars), because we’re seeing activity pick up around the big beautiful deal. On Monday, an open letter opposing the merger appeared online and in the New York Times, bearing the signatures of 1,000 prominent people in the industry. Some of those artists included Bryan Cranston, Denis Villeneuve, Jane Fonda, Margaret Cho, Mark Ruffalo, and Yorgos Lanthimos, to name a few. Now mere days later, the number of signatures has tripled, with Florence Pugh and Pedro Pascal among the latest to join the cause.
Florence Pugh and Pedro Pascal are adding their names to the now more than 2,000 Hollywood industry professionals who have signed an open letter opposing the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger. New Signatories also include Edward Norton and Atsuko Okatsuka. Joaquin Phoenix, Ben Stiller and Kristen Stewart were among the original signatures on the letter when it was initially released Monday, April 13.
“We are deeply concerned by indications of support for this merger that prioritize the interests of a small group of powerful stakeholders over the broader public good,” the letter, which was published by the New York Times and available on the website BlocktheMerger.com, states. “The integrity, independence, and diversity of our industry would be grievously compromised. Competition is essential for a healthy economy and a healthy democracy. So is thoughtful regulation and enforcement.”
Paramount Skydance announced its intended $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery in late February, following a battle with Netflix for ownership of the historic studio.
Paramount issued a lengthy statement in response to the letter. “We hear and understand the concerns that some in our creative community have raised and respect the commitment to protecting and expanding creativity,” the statement said, in part.
The response added, “We have been clear in our commitments to do just that: increasing output to a minimum of 30 high-quality feature films annually with full theatrical releases, continuing to license content, and preserving iconic brands with independent creative leadership — ensuring creators have more avenues for their work, not fewer.”
The original list of signatories also included Adam McKay, Alan Cumming, Alyssa Milano, Boots Riley, Bryan Cranston, Cynthia Nixon, Damon Lindelof, David Fincher, Denis Villeneuve, Elliot Page, Glenn Close, Jane Fonda, JJ Abrams, Jason Bateman, John Leguizamo, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Margaret Cho, Mark Ruffalo, Noah Wyle, Patti Lupone, Ramy Youssef, Rosario Dawson, Rosie O’Donnell, Ted Danson, Tiffany Haddish, Tig Notaro, Yorgos Lanthimos and Yvette Nicole Brown, among others.
Variety cites “more than 2,000” signatures, but this thing is growing so fast it’s already past 3,000 (3,247, as of this writing). As for Paramount’s verbose response, they use an awful lot of words to say nothing. Also this week, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker held a conference on the merger (that none of the Republican senators on the subcommittee bothered to show up for), where the star witness was Mark Ruffalo, who’s been in the thick of this fight from the beginning. Mark’s testimony pretty much tore Paramount’s arguments to shreds. He even cited the less-than-a-year-old merger of Paramount and Skydance as an omen of what’s to come: “The pattern is documented and predictably repeats in merger announcements, promises of efficiencies, then mass layoffs and production cuts,” then further noted that this deal will be even worse “because it’s backed by an enormous amount of debt.” Paramount-Skydance CEO David Ellison may be a nepo billionaire, but he still had to get $24 billion in funding from Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar to be able to close the WB deal. What a f–king mess.
But wait, there’s more! It was also just announced this week that Ellison — the boy whose face answers the question, “What if Dr. Frankenstein tried to make a live Ken doll?” — is throwing a dinner to honor the president. Gee, you don’t think that’s to try and curry favor for his monopoly, do you?
Photos credit: Cat Morley/Avalon, James Warren/Bang Showbiz/Avalon
What a mess is right. That 24 mill funding from S.A, Qatar and Dubai! Are they gonna start building warehouses for filming there too? It feels like Ellison wrote a check that he can barely cash. But it seems like the deal is still moving forward? And if it does, I wonder how petty Ellison will be, as in will those actors be blacklisted form future films?
Its odd how Paramount was doing so badly that it had trouble getting mergers/deals (the proposed merger with Peacock failed) until it was finally bought by Skydance. Anyways, Kudos to the actors for protesting! Paramount confirming a second season of Dexter: Original Sin, then cancelling it and other green lit and proposed shows after Skydance bought it shocked the industry. That bs, the nightmare that CBS News became after the Ellisons put Bari Weiss in charge of it, Skydance stating their opposition to “woke” content after buying Paramount (I really hate what r@cists have done to that word), and what that means for the future of CNN and the future of other diverse content was a major wakeup call for the industry. There are still rumors of financing issues, plus this admin’s illegal war has greatly angered Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Qatar and other gulf states, who have sustained significant damages from Iran’s attacks on US bases located in those countries. Those countries threw money at the billionaire class and businesses to curry favor w the US govt and bc they thought the US could protect them from attacks.
I wonder if that sundowning orange man gets Ellison confused with Eric. They look so similar to me!