Edgar Bronfman Jr. withdraws offer for Paramount, allowing Skydance merger to go ahead
NEW YORK — The merger between entertainment giant Paramount and media company Skydance will continue after Edgar Bronfman Jr. withdrew a competing bid.
Bronfman, executive chairman of streaming service Fubo, told Paramount’s special committee of directors Monday night that he would not proceed with his bid.
“While there may have been differences, we believe everyone involved in the sale process is united in the belief that Paramount’s best days are yet to come,” he said.
Bronfman, the former chairman and CEO of Warner Music, had initially offered $4.3 billion for Shari Redstone’s National Amusements, the controlling shareholder of Paramount, according to multiple media reports. He subsequently increased that offer to $6 billion.
Paramount agreed to a merger deal with Skydance last month, injecting much-needed cash into an established studio struggling to adapt to the changing entertainment landscape.
Since then, during what’s known as a “go shop” period, a special committee of Paramount’s board of directors contacted more than 50 third parties to determine if they were interested in making offers. The go shop period was extended for Bronfman, but is now closed.
Shari Redstone’s National Amusements owned more than three-quarters of Paramount’s Class A voting stock through her late father’s estate, Summer RedstoneShe had fought to retain control of the company that owns CBS, which is behind blockbusters such as “Top Gun” and “The Godfather.”
The deal marks the rise of a new power broker: Skydance founder David Ellison, the son of billionaire Larry Ellison, who founded the software company Oracle.
Skydance, based in Santa Monica, California, has helped produce some of Paramount’s biggest hits in recent years, including Tom Cruise films like “Top Gun: Maverick” and episodes of the “Mission Impossible” series.
The proposed combined company of Paramount and Skydance is valued at approximately $28 billion. The deal is expected to close in September 2025, pending regulatory approval.
Founded in 1914 as a distributor, Paramount is one of Hollywood’s oldest studios and has had a hand in releasing countless films — from “Sunset Boulevard” and “The Godfather” to “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Titanic.”