Posted on 08/14/2026 11:12:50 PM PDT by nickcarraway
David Ellison is eager to reach a swift resolution in the antitrust case filed by 12 states seeking to block the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger. And, in a move seemingly aimed at gaining leverage in the showdown, he’s prepared to start moving Paramount out of California as soon as October unless the merger is resolved through a settlement with the state’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, Variety has confirmed.
Ellison told Paramount senior execs last week that he will relocate Paramount’s operations outside of the state of California if the deal doesn’t close by Sept. 30, sources confirmed to Variety. The final hurdle to closing the Paramount-WBD merger is the states’ antitrust case; therefore, if Bonta does not agree to negotiate a settlement in the case by then, the company will begin the process of exiting California starting Oct. 1. Ellison told his team the Paramount Skydance board has approved the move.
Paramount declined to comment. Ellison’s threat to relocate Paramount in retaliation for California’s Bonta leading the charge to kill the WBD deal — a move that would include much of its studio operations, over time — was first reported by industry newsletter Puck.
In response, Bonta called Ellison’s planned exit from the state an “attempt to blackmail the state into letting an illegal deal through.”
“Paramount has lost the plot as it continues to lose in court,” the attorney general wrote in a post on X. “It didn’t work the first time — on the eve of our July lawsuit — and it won’t work this time.”
Bonta has not publicly said what concessions from Paramount-WBD he would consider acceptable enough to take the lawsuit off the table. But the Democratic attorney general has said any remedies would need to be “structural” (i.e., divestitures) rather than “behavioral” (e.g., guaranteeing certain production quotas).
The reason Ellison gave to his senior leadership team for the relocation out of California was that Paramount will need to cut costs — by moving to a state with lower taxes and other more business-friendly policies — once the “ticking fee” payable to Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders kicks in starting Oct. 1. On that date, Paramount will begin accruing fees owed to WBD shareholders of $7 million per day until the deal closes. The trial in the state AGs’ lawsuit is scheduled to start March 2, 2027, roughly five months after that, so Paramount would be on the hook to pay around $1.2 billion to WBD shareholders by the time the trial is scheduled to conclude.
At the Aug. 5 meeting on Paramount’s lot, Ellison told his 12-member senior executive team he expects Paramount to prevail in the antitrust case against the states. However, he also indicated that if Bonta balks at talks and the Paramount-WBD merger is still in limbo, Paramount will start packing up and moving out of the Golden State in less than two months.
Paramount’s L.A. headquarters would move out of the state first, with tax incentives from states allegedly helping to cover the costs of the relo. Ellison also outlined a five-year plan to shift most studio jobs out of California, sources said. He also suggested the company would consider selling the Paramount Studios or Warner Bros. Studio lots in the L.A. area.
In a sign of how sudden this decision is, Paramount hasn’t yet decided where its new home might be; the company is considering destinations including Georgia, Texas and Tennessee. Paramount executives at the Aug. 5 meeting included Paramount’s studio bosses, Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, and CBS and TV media chair George Cheeks, a company insider confirmed.
Ellison’s announcement of the Oct. 1 start date for Paramount’s potential move out of SoCal — which would obviously be disruptive and logistically fraught — caught some execs off guard. A large-scale exit from California could prompt a wave of employees to quit, particularly as major layoffs loom if Paramount ultimately consummates the Warners merger.
Ellison and much of the senior team work out from the Paramount Pictures studio lot, located at 5555 Melrose Ave. in Hollywood. However, in SEC filings, Paramount Skydance continues to list 1515 Broadway in New York (where the former Paramount Global maintained its HQ) as the “address of principal executive offices.”
Meanwhile, Paramount was among the top beneficiaries in the most recent round of tax credits granted under California’s Film and Television Tax Credit Program. The company received about $37 million in state tax credits for two Paramount+ shows: $16 million for sequel series “Clueless” (produced by CBS Studios) and $21 million for thriller “Ascent” starring Viola Davis (from Paramount Television Studios).
The notion that Ellison would exit California if the state AGs sued to block the Paramount-WBD merger surfaced in an item last month by Semafor. According to that report, Ellison’s “friends and advisers” were “pushing the media executive to consider shifting his business out of the state.”
At the end of 2025, Paramount Skydance had about 17,600 workers worldwide. Warner Bros. Discovery had 35,500. If the merger does cross the finish line, Ellison and his team are expected to slash thousands of jobs at the combined company to achieve cost savings and streamline operations.
David Ellison’s father, Oracle founder and billionaire Larry Ellison, has personally guaranteed $46.7 billion toward the megadeal. In addition, Paramount has lined up $24 billion in commitments from the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. According to Paramount, the three Middle Eastern funds would own 38.5% of the combined Paramount-Warner Bros. In SEC filings, Paramount has said that foreign investors backing the WBD bid will not have board seats or own any voting shares, and that therefore a U.S. government review of the deal’s financing is not warranted.
What California has done to the entertainment business is nothing short of criminal, exceeded only by what that business has done to itself.
Oh bye the way WGA, your days are numbered! “AI’s a-comin', and he's comin' to get ya”, sung to Eli’s coming tune…….
Oh no, stay the hell outta TN you pedofreaks
The rat play here is to use the courts and taxpayer money to tie up the WB purchase up with litigation to the point that the legal costs will make Paramount give up so the leftist a-holes at Netfilx can buy it. The courts have become the left’s most effective weapon
Fixed.
“Oh no, stay the hell outta TN you pedofreaks”
That’s what they’re thinking. It will draw every kind of mutant in the world to a beautiful state already overrun with coastal Starbucks parasites.
Movie studios will move out anyway due to high costs of doing business.
I would lease unused space out rather than sell.
Delaying the merger will only weaken both studios further because of the uncertainity.
This is just another example of lowlife, crooked pols trying to just rape, not kill the golden goose.
Bonta has to know that he cannot keep any company from leaving kalifornikaor, and certainly not one owned by an Ellison.
All of CA will look like LA's skid row before these demonRATs are done.
It’s a pretty high price to pay just to keep CNN a far left rag.
BONTA HAS BITTEN OFF MORE THAN HE CAN CHEW, IMO.
Bonta and his wife are corrupt criminals I fully expect them to be indicted by DOJ before Trump leaves office.
The merger will be good for competition with Netflix which is why DOJ blessed it. Bonta is grandstanding and doesn’t like the idea that CNN won’t be fawning over him anymore. If Gavin had any cojones he would slap Rob into line but I’m betting he does not want to offend some of his lefty Hollywood donors have
It’s ALL about rewarding Netflix so they can get the 2029 Presidential Inauguration with an exclusive video rights.
Also attacking Trump’s plan to investigate the 2027/2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup rights given to Netflix.
And if Paramount’s ready he’ll move their headquarters to the former The Center in Atlanta (which would host CBS Sports Worldwide including TNT, Channel 5 UK and Network Ten Australia, CBS News, and WUPA) or to Nashville. I can see Ellison going after FIFA for the Netflix deal and corruption because CBS has Australian rights and would love to get the US rights too. Do everything from the Atlanta studio.
I don’t know the real percentage, but it looks like half the movies and TV shows are already filmed outside California.
Paramount Studios has a pretty big operation out here. I would think their leaving would mean quite a loss of money for the city and state. It will be interesting to see what happens.
To the rats this is way bigger than one state. They will gladly screw Ca if it means they can keep their death grip on media. The agenda and the message is everything.
I get so tired of the liberal media constantly bashing our country, our history, and our culture. I wish someone could end their “death grip” on biased reporting and programs.
Amen, the left control of media goes back decades and it is a fortress but there are some pretty serious cracks now.
Started with Rush on the radio, and it got to the point Soros and Biden worked to buy radio stations so they can impose their will on us.
and it got to the point Soros and Biden worked to buy radio stations”
That bastard just bought about 30 Spanish speaking stations in major markets.
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