New Offer, Shareholder Meeting Refresh Paramount's Saga

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Why it matters: Paramount is one of the five major Hollywood studios, employing more than 20,000 people. Its health and vitality are important to the overall entertainment ecosystem in Los Angeles.

The latest offer: Skydance had been floating a complex arrangement by which it would buy out Shari Redstone’s voting control via her family’s ownership in National Amusements and then Paramount would acquire Skydance — but Skydance would then control and run the combined company. Now Skydance, which is run by David Ellison — son of Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest men — is reportedly offering to buy a majority stake in Paramount.

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Paramount’s current plan: Paramount Global’s three-person Office of the CEO appeared at the company’s annual shareholder meeting on June 4 to answer questions and present their vision. They discussed how they were cutting costs at a rate that would total $500 million on an annual basis, with more planned. They also evangelized their intent to license more content from Paramount’s vast library, produce new versions of iconic work from that library — such as the forthcoming Matlock series — and perhaps pursue a long-rumored joint venture on streaming.

What’s next: A planned Paramount company-wide town hall that had been scheduled for June 5 was postponed to June 25. Meanwhile, all accounts are that the ultimate decision for what happens next rests with Redstone.

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