Liquor scion Edgar Bronfman Jr. is preparing to bid for Paramount Global less than a week before a pending $8 billion merger with Skydance Media becomes official, according to a report.
Bronfman, the entertainment mogul and son of the late Seagram CEO Edgar Bronfman Sr., has been engaged in talks with potential investors about backing a bid for National Amusements, the parent company that controls Paramount Global, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The Journal cited sources as saying that a bid could be made within the next few days although they caution that it is possible Bronfman declines to formally submit a proposal.
Bronfman has until Aug. 21 to make his pitch since that is the day the “go-shop period” during which Paramount is allowed to solicit rival bids formally ends.
Paramount, which has launched a cost-cutting spree that included the jettisoning of Paramount Television Studios as well as a major overhaul of subsidiary CBS’s flagship evening news program, would end up owing Skydance Media a $400 million breakup fee should it opt for another bid.
The Post has sought comment from Bronfman and Paramount.
The entertainment conglomerate whose properties include CBS television, MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and the eponymous legacy movie studio announced on July 8 that it would be acquired by Skydance, the film studio founded by David Ellison, son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison.
Paramount announced it would lay off 15% of its workforce and wrote down the value of its cable networks by nearly $6 billion as it reported its earnings last week.
The deal with Skydance would mark the end of the Redstone family’s decades-long reign as Hollywood power players.
Shari Redstone’s National Amusements has owned more than three-quarters of Paramount’s Class A voting shares through the estate of her late father, Sumner Redstone.
She had battled to maintain control of the company that owns CBS, which is behind blockbuster films such as “Top Gun” and “The Godfather.”
Just weeks after turning down a similar agreement with Skydance, however, Redstone agreed to a deal on terms that had not changed much.
“Given the changes in the industry, we want to fortify Paramount for the future while ensuring that content remains king,” said Redstone, who is chair of Paramount Global.
The new combined company is valued at around $28 billion.
In connection with the proposed transaction, which is expected to close in September 2025 pending regulatory approval, a consortium led by the Ellison family and RedBird Capital will be investing $8 billion.
Skydance, based in Santa Monica, California, has helped produce some major Paramount hits in recent years, including Tom Cruise films like “Top Gun: Maverick” and installments of the “Mission Impossible” series.
Skydance was founded in 2010 by David Ellison and it quickly formed a production partnership with Paramount that same year.
If the deal is approved, Ellison will become chairman and chief executive officer of what’s being called New Paramount.
Last month, Ellison outlined the vision for New Paramount on a conference call about the transaction.
In addition to doubling down on core competencies, notably with a “creative first” approach, he stressed that the company needs to transition into a “tech hybrid” to stay competitive in today’s evolving media landscape.
Sumner Redstone used National Amusements, his family’s movie theater chain, to build a vast media empire that included CBS and Viacom, which have merged and separated a number of times over the years.
Most recently, the companies re-joined forces in 2019, undoing the split consummated in 2006. The company, ViacomCBS, changed its name to Paramount Global in 2022.
Under Sumner Redstone’s leadership, Viacom became one of the nation’s media titans, home to pay TV channels MTV and Comedy Central and movie studio Paramount Pictures.
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