David Ellison sent a memo to Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery staff on Monday, saying the $110 billion merger is set to close in "approximately two weeks." The memo arrived hours after Paramount settled its antitrust lawsuit with 12 state attorneys general, removing the final legal barrier to the deal.
"With both groups' concerns now addressed, we have complete clearance for this merger and can move toward closing," Ellison wrote, according to The Wrap.
The combined company will carry roughly $80 billion in combined debt and is targeting $6 billion in annual cost savings in its first three years, per The Wrap. An economic analysis commissioned by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors estimates nearly 4,500 local film and television jobs could be lost over that span, with around 2,661 additional indirect jobs at risk and approximately 6,000 employees affected globally.
The backlash from the creative community was immediate. Mark Ruffalo called the settlement a "Huge win to Trump and his billionaire cronies," according to The Wrap. Jane Fonda said the deal had "sold people in the entertainment industry down the river." SAG-AFTRA board member Frances Fisher called herself "so disappointed and pissed off," per The Wrap.
The Writers Guild, which reached its own settlement with Paramount as part of the overall deal, had warned the merger would "cause damage to writers and the industry at large." One unnamed director described it to The Wrap as "a total sea-change event of our industry" and raised concerns about one person controlling so many media companies.