California Attorney General Rob Bonta talked tough Thursday, claiming he has been winning his legal battle against Paramount Skydance’s merger with Warner Bros. Discovery — but said he is “open” to settlement talks if Paramount comes to the table “in good faith.”
Speaking at the Atlantic Festival in Manhattan, Bonta crowed that the suit to block the $81 billion mega-deal is looking like a slam dunk, even as top Dems in the Golden State have been urging him to settle.
Asked about the prospect of talks — as CEO David Ellison threatens to leave the state and take thousands of jobs with him if Bonta doesn’t drop the case — the prosecutor sounded a more conciliatory tone.
“We are always open to coming to the table if it is in good faith and it is sincere. And we will always explore an opportunity to get the results that we want based on our evaluation of the case at the table,” Bonta said.
The AG, Paramount and the Writers Guild of America announced Tuesday they’d hold two days of talks with an eye to reaching a resolution next month. Last month, Bonta cancelled a sit-down with Paramount at the last minute, accusing the studio of leaking inaccurate details beforehand.
Speaking Thursday, he again rejected Paramount’s request for California and 11 other states joining his suit to put up a $1.88 billion bond to address the costs of delay in completing the deal.
“They don’t have any right to that, in our view. I think it’s buyer’s remorse,” Bonta scoffed.
He accused Paramount of trying to “rewrite an agreement” to begin the trial next June, adding that the bond request was an “effort to manufacture, invent, generate leverage in the case.”
Recent weeks have seen Cali Dems including Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass publicly urge Bonta to settle with Paramount, saying it’s vital to keep tens of thousands of Paramount jobs in the state.
Bonta projected confidence in the face of the mounting pressure from members of his own party — part of a Paramount strategy of turning him into a pariah, as The Post reported Thursday.
“We sued and we’ve been winning in the case so far,” the prosecutor said.
“They continue threats to leave the state of California. I can’t comment on what a company decides to do, especially a company that has professed a commitment to Hollywood and to California,” he added.
“If they make that choice to leave, that is their choice and their choice alone — they own it. It lies at their feet. We will do our job. We have a job to enforce the law without fear, without favor.”
TMZ reported Wednesday that Paramount came close to announcing its escape from LA on Tuesday, but backed down at the last minute.
The report put new pressure on city and state officials to keep the entertainment giant from joining the exodus of production and entertainment jobs from Hollywood.
Reached by The Post, Bass’ office wouldn’t confirm whether she was directly involved in negotiations, saying only that she was ”focused on protecting and fighting for jobs in LA, including critical jobs in the entertainment industry that have been a vital part of Los Angeles’ economy.”
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