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Paramount Prepares to Acquire Debt-Laden Warner Bros. Discovery
9 Oct
Summary
- Paramount and David Ellison eyeing acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery
- Existing WBD leadership team of De Luca and Abdy seen as major assets
- Zaslav's future role uncertain in potential merger
According to industry sources, Paramount and the Ellison family, advised by Jeff Shell and Gerry Cardinale, are positioning themselves to acquire the debt-laden Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) conglomerate. This potential deal comes as WBD has enjoyed a strong $4 billion global box office performance so far this year.
The existing WBD leadership team, including Motion Picture chairs Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy, are viewed as major assets that would be acquired in the deal. This is seen as a significant advantage for the Ellisons, who are looking to take over an iconic studio.
However, the future role of current WBD CEO David Zaslav remains unclear. Industry insiders suggest it is unlikely that Zaslav would want to stay on after the completion of the sale, as the Ellisons and their tech-savvy advisor Larry Ellison are seeking a "clean sheet" without any surprises.
At most, Zaslav could be offered a board seat or a "strategic advisor" position in the newly merged entity, but analysts believe he may not be keen to remain involved. The Ellisons are reportedly aiming to avoid the prolonged and painful saga that marked Skydance's $8 billion acquisition of Paramount.
