By Miguel Mike Medina
Photo Credit: (AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
Warner Bros Discovery shareholders approved Paramount Skydance’s proposed acquisition of the company during a special meeting on Thursday morning.
CEO David Zaslav will be leaving with a massive $550 million payout from the Paramount deal. There are going to be thousands of jobs in the movie and TV departments that will be cut once Paramount gets things going
The merger has the Hollywood industry in shambles. There’s an ongoing petition from big names such as Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sofia Coppola, and Joaquin Phoenix. Artists don’t want to see a decrease in competition, job losses, and the media in general. It’s not just those Hollywood names who signed the petition; there are almost 4,000 signatures.
The deal between Paramount and Warner Bros will end in the third quarter. Zaslav hasn’t been in everyone’s good graces for the last four years. Some of his decision making have upset people. Every business leader knows that there’s going to be scrutiny in the leadership position. Warner Bros.’ catalog will be huge over the next two years, as the company expects to release at least 32 movies.
Part of the deal includes Paramount paying the $7 billion breakup fee, plus the 2.8 billion breakup fee that Warner Bros owes Netflix. The 2.8 is the termination fee. Netflix rejected WBD’s bid, opening the floodgates for Paramount to take the situation into its own hands.
The announcement of the Paramount deal took place on Feb 27. We can’t tell how the future will look. It is going to change several things. At the same time, we have to look at the positives in every situation. We hope that political correctness gets diminished in many of these Hollywood stories.
If these companies care enough about storytelling and keep customers engaged, think back to the days when stories mattered, and stop being too nice to please certain crowds.
Miguel Mike Medina is the publisher of The MMM Journal. He can be reached at medinamiguelmike@gmail.com and themmmjournal@gmail.com
X: @mmm_sportnfilms, Instagram: @miguel_passionforsports and @themmmjournal, LinkedIn: The MMM Journal, TikTok: @miguelmikemedina
