Overview
- Paramount Skydance’s $111 billion agreement to buy Warner Bros. Discovery remains pending and the buyer says it expects a third‑quarter close and will vigorously defend the deal.
- A coalition of 12 Democratic state attorneys general has filed suit seeking to block the merger on antitrust grounds, creating a new legal obstacle that could slow or change the transaction.
- Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav filed to sell about 2.18 million shares worth roughly $59.5 million after earlier selling about $114 million in March, and he stands to receive a large exit package if the sale closes.
- Paramount says regulators in 24 jurisdictions, including the U.S. Justice Department, have cleared the transaction without divestitures, but U.K. authorities have signaled likely intervention and continued review.
- The dispute raises concrete stakes: the deal carries shareholder fees and penalties tied to timing, opponents warn it could reduce jobs and project volume in Hollywood, and rivals such as Netflix previously pursued parts of WBD before Paramount’s all‑in offer.