Paramount Faces Drawn-Out Battle With State AGs: ‘They Saw the Writing on the Wall’
In doing so, Paramount’s lawyers have effectively conceded that they were not likely to prevail in an upcoming fight over an injunction and will instead...
Key points
- In doing so, Paramount’s lawyers have effectively conceded that they were not likely to prevail in an upcoming fight over an injunction and will instead try to beat the states at trial.
- Otherwise, why not challenge it?” Popular on Variety David Ellison, Paramount Skydance‘s chairman and CEO, had hoped to win a ruling denying the injunction by mid-September — allowing him to close the deal in time to avoid paying Warner Bros.
- To trial, where Paramount still believes it has the upper hand against what it terms “one of the weakest merger challenges in modern antitrust history.” The company hopes to get there as soon as possible, ideally before the end of 2026.
- “We do think 2027 is appropriate,” Bonta said.
What happened
In doing so, Paramount’s lawyers have effectively conceded that they were not likely to prevail in an upcoming fight over an injunction and will instead try to beat the states at trial. Otherwise, why not challenge it?” Popular on Variety David Ellison, Paramount Skydance‘s chairman and CEO, had hoped to win a ruling denying the injunction by mid-September — allowing him to close the deal in time to avoid paying Warner Bros. To trial, where Paramount still believes it has the upper hand against what it terms “one of the weakest merger challenges in modern antitrust history.” The company hopes to get there as soon as possible, ideally before the end of 2026. “We do think 2027 is appropriate,” Bonta said. “If the judge said April 2027, we would not disagree with that.” Paramount has agreed not to close the transaction until five days after the trial ruling or June 1, 2027, whichever comes first. “I’m sure they want a fast trial,” he said.