Paramount, Warner Bros merge in $110bn Hollywood deal

Paramount Skydance completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery on Tuesday in a deal valued at approximately $110 billion. The combined company will operate under the Skydance name.

David Ellison will serve as chairman and CEO of the new entertainment giant, with Ynon Kreiz, former Mattel CEO, appointed as co-CEO. With the deal's completion, shares of the new company began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol SKYD.

From Harry Potter to Mission Impossible

The transaction creates one of the world's largest media and entertainment companies, bringing together an extraordinary array of brands under one roof. On one side: Paramount Pictures, CBS, Paramount+, Nickelodeon and franchises including Mission Impossible, Top Gun and SpongeBob. On the other: Warner Bros., HBO, HBO Max, CNN and properties including Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and the DC universe.

Despite the parent company taking the Skydance name, the Paramount and Warner Bros. brands are expected to remain. Ellison explained ahead of the deal's completion that the new name was chosen to give the merged company its own identity while keeping the familiar brands at the forefront.

Game of Thrones (Photo: Shutterstock/Kathy Hutchins)

A deal that reshaped Hollywood's map

The merger's completion follows months of regulatory and legal proceedings. The transaction, announced in February, valued Warner Bros. Discovery at approximately $81 billion in equity value and $110 billion in enterprise value including debt.

Skydance now faces its biggest challenge: integrating two massive entertainment empires at a time when Hollywood studios are grappling with intensifying competition in the streaming market. The company has already set a target of more than $6 billion in savings through technology integration and operational efficiencies.

With the deal complete, some of the entertainment industry's biggest brands and franchises are now, for the first time, under the same company.