David Ellison names combined Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery "Skydance"

LeftDavid Ellison, chairman and CEO of Paramount, announced in a post on X on Friday 2 October that the combined Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery will be called Skydance, the name of the studio he founded. 1 2 LeftParamount and Warner Bros. will continue as sub-brands under the Skydance corporate name. 2 MixedEllison wrote that the aim was to preserve what made each studio iconic and that a new corporate identity should not "diminish, alter or overshadow either one". 1 3

MixedVariety said the post was the first on a newly created account and included a sizzle reel of the merged companies' properties; Screen Rant said it introduced a new logo in a video. 1 3 MixedThe deal, valued at about $110-111 billion, is set to close on Oct. 6, after a judge approved on Sept. 30 a settlement between Paramount and 12 state attorneys general who had sued on antitrust grounds. 1 4 LeftUnder the settlement, according to The Verge, Paramount must release a minimum number of theatrical films over five years, starting with 30 annually in years one and two; IndieWire put it as more than 30 films annually for the first five years. 5 6

CentreDeadline said the Writers Guild of America also sued, calling the deal an illegal monopoly, and that the settlement is a 5-year consent decree requiring separation of Paramount and WBD operations in several business areas. Deadline said this made a name favouring one partner a potential problem. 4 LeftEllison will be chairman and CEO with Ynon Kreiz, the former Mattel chief, as co-CEO from Oct. 5. 1 LeftVariety reported that the company will carry projected debt of more than $80 billion, and will be controlled by David and Larry Ellison with RedBird Capital's Gerry Cardinale; Paramount said Saudi, Qatari and Emirati sovereign funds will own 38.5%. 1

CentreAnadolu Agency, citing company filings, said Skydance will move its Class B stock from Nasdaq to the New York Stock Exchange, with trading expected to begin Oct. 6 under the ticker SKYD, replacing PSKY. 7 CentreAnadolu said the financing includes more than $41 billion in dollar bonds, €885 million in euro notes, term loans of $8.5 billion and €850 million, and up to $46.7 billion in equity from affiliates of Larry Ellison, alongside investment vehicles linked to Saudi, Qatari and Emirati sovereign funds and RedBird Capital Partners. 7 MixedDeadline noted that Discovery's name disappears, and that Skydance's 2025 acquisition of Paramount first produced the name "Paramount, a Skydance Corporation", later "Paramount Skydance Corporation". Nicknames such as "ParaBros" had circulated before the announcement. 4 1

Centre/Film, citing the Los Angeles Times, said layoffs are likely and Ellison faces heavy debt, and its writer voiced concern about one company owning CNN and CBS News. 8 LeftIndieWire, in a wry take, said the merger is expected to lead to thousands of job cuts, noting that Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy were let go from Warner Bros.' film studio on Thursday and Cindy Holland, who led Paramount's streaming efforts, had also recently left, and that Ellison's debt could become onerous. 6 CentreAnadolu added that Paramount prevailed after outbidding Netflix, which had agreed to acquire Warner Bros.' studio and streaming operations, and that the new group will hold CBS, CNN, HBO Max, Paramount+ and franchises such as Harry Potter and DC. 7