Warren Buffett says he has sold all of his shares in Paramount Global at a significant loss.
Speaking at the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, his company, today in Omaha, Ne, the billionaire investor took full ownership of the bad call. Despite speculation to the contrary, he said, “It was 100% my decision” to invest in Paramount in 2022. “We sold it all and we lost quite a bit of money. That happens in this business.” (Watch a clip of him above.)
As of the end of 2023, Berkshire owned 63.3 million Class B, or non-voting shares, which had a value of about $800 million at the time. The stake, which represented about 10.1% of the company’s equity, helped boost the stock when Buffett initially invested in 2022. He then went on to make public comments criticizing the companies pursuing Netflix in subscription streaming, a cohort that includes Paramount, given the economics of the emerging sector.
Speaking at the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, his company, today in Omaha, Ne, the billionaire investor took full ownership of the bad call. Despite speculation to the contrary, he said, “It was 100% my decision” to invest in Paramount in 2022. “We sold it all and we lost quite a bit of money. That happens in this business.” (Watch a clip of him above.)
As of the end of 2023, Berkshire owned 63.3 million Class B, or non-voting shares, which had a value of about $800 million at the time. The stake, which represented about 10.1% of the company’s equity, helped boost the stock when Buffett initially invested in 2022. He then went on to make public comments criticizing the companies pursuing Netflix in subscription streaming, a cohort that includes Paramount, given the economics of the emerging sector.
- 5/4/2024
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish is officially out at the company.
The entertainment conglomerate — in the middle of a sales process — is turning to a handful of top executives to run the company.
Chris McCarthy, George Cheeks and Brian Robbins will make up an “Office of the CEO,” running Paramount on a day-to-day basis for now. The three executives will work with the Paramount board and CFO Naveen Chopra.
According to Paramount’s quarterly report, Bakish will officially step down on Tuesday, and has agreed to remain employed by the company through Oct. 31 as a “senior advisor.”
The dramatic change comes as Paramount is in the middle of an exclusive negotiating window with a potential buyer group consisting of David Ellison’s Skydance, RedBird Capital and Kkr, with talks circling a plan that would keep Paramount public but with Skydance and RedBird executives effectively running things and executing a new strategy.
The entertainment conglomerate — in the middle of a sales process — is turning to a handful of top executives to run the company.
Chris McCarthy, George Cheeks and Brian Robbins will make up an “Office of the CEO,” running Paramount on a day-to-day basis for now. The three executives will work with the Paramount board and CFO Naveen Chopra.
According to Paramount’s quarterly report, Bakish will officially step down on Tuesday, and has agreed to remain employed by the company through Oct. 31 as a “senior advisor.”
The dramatic change comes as Paramount is in the middle of an exclusive negotiating window with a potential buyer group consisting of David Ellison’s Skydance, RedBird Capital and Kkr, with talks circling a plan that would keep Paramount public but with Skydance and RedBird executives effectively running things and executing a new strategy.
- 4/29/2024
- by Alex Weprin and Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Bob Bakish may be out at Paramount Global before any sale or merger deal for the media company is completed.
The board of directors of Paramount Global, including controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, have discussed a plan to oust Bakish as CEO, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing anonymous sources. Instead, the company would form an “Office of the CEO” comprising Paramount Global’s division heads to run operations on an interim basis, per the report.
A Paramount Global rep declined to comment.
The company is scheduled to report first quarter 2024 results Monday, April 29, after the market close. The earnings call with analysts is set to begin at 4:30 p.m. Et.
The report comes as Paramount — owner of Paramount Pictures, CBS, Paramount+ and cable channels like MTV and Comedy Central — has been in exclusive M&a talks with David Ellison’s Skydance Media the past two weeks. Meanwhile, word emerged last...
The board of directors of Paramount Global, including controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, have discussed a plan to oust Bakish as CEO, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing anonymous sources. Instead, the company would form an “Office of the CEO” comprising Paramount Global’s division heads to run operations on an interim basis, per the report.
A Paramount Global rep declined to comment.
The company is scheduled to report first quarter 2024 results Monday, April 29, after the market close. The earnings call with analysts is set to begin at 4:30 p.m. Et.
The report comes as Paramount — owner of Paramount Pictures, CBS, Paramount+ and cable channels like MTV and Comedy Central — has been in exclusive M&a talks with David Ellison’s Skydance Media the past two weeks. Meanwhile, word emerged last...
- 4/26/2024
- by Todd Spangler
- Variety Film + TV
Paramount Global shares jumped 13% Friday as investors cheered news that Sony Pictures Entertainment is talking with Apollo Global Management about joining Apollo’s bid for Paramount.
The beleaguered stock ended the day at $12.44 after registering more than twice its normal trading volume. Shares reached their highest point since February, offering fresh evidence that many investors appear to be gravitating toward the Apollo/Sony scenario, largely for structural reasons. Importantly, even if the two entities joined forces, they are not yet officially in the arena. For the next two weeks, David Ellison’s Skydance Media, backed by RedBird Capital and other investors, is in an exclusive negotiating window with Paramount’s controlling shareholder, National Amusements.
While Skydance appeals to many media industry vets given Ellison’s strong track record and enthusiasm for keeping Paramount Pictures intact, the deal it is pursuing has inherent strings attached. National Amusements Inc., which is run by Shari Redstone,...
The beleaguered stock ended the day at $12.44 after registering more than twice its normal trading volume. Shares reached their highest point since February, offering fresh evidence that many investors appear to be gravitating toward the Apollo/Sony scenario, largely for structural reasons. Importantly, even if the two entities joined forces, they are not yet officially in the arena. For the next two weeks, David Ellison’s Skydance Media, backed by RedBird Capital and other investors, is in an exclusive negotiating window with Paramount’s controlling shareholder, National Amusements.
While Skydance appeals to many media industry vets given Ellison’s strong track record and enthusiasm for keeping Paramount Pictures intact, the deal it is pursuing has inherent strings attached. National Amusements Inc., which is run by Shari Redstone,...
- 4/19/2024
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
The USC School of Cinematic Arts has announced that Miky Lee will deliver the 20024 Commencement address.
James Gray, director, writer, and Sca alumnus, will receive the Mary Pickford Alumni Award at the graduation ceremony at the Shrine Auditorium on Friday, May 10, 2024.
“Miky Lee is a true pioneer and ambassador of collaborative global filmmaking, and we are so happy to have her share her insight and expertise with our graduating students,” Elizabeth M. Daley, Dean of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, said in a statement. “Miky works across borders, cultures, and genres, and champions the kinds of projects our students aspire to creating. We are so pleased she agreed to be this year’s graduation speaker.”
Sca alumnus Jon M. Chu, who graduated in 2003 with a Bfa in film & television production, will speak at this year’s main, university-wide commencement ceremony at 8:30 a.m. at Alumni Park.
As Commencement Speaker,...
James Gray, director, writer, and Sca alumnus, will receive the Mary Pickford Alumni Award at the graduation ceremony at the Shrine Auditorium on Friday, May 10, 2024.
“Miky Lee is a true pioneer and ambassador of collaborative global filmmaking, and we are so happy to have her share her insight and expertise with our graduating students,” Elizabeth M. Daley, Dean of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, said in a statement. “Miky works across borders, cultures, and genres, and champions the kinds of projects our students aspire to creating. We are so pleased she agreed to be this year’s graduation speaker.”
Sca alumnus Jon M. Chu, who graduated in 2003 with a Bfa in film & television production, will speak at this year’s main, university-wide commencement ceremony at 8:30 a.m. at Alumni Park.
As Commencement Speaker,...
- 4/17/2024
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Miky Lee, vice chair of Korean media giant Cj, is set to give the USC School of Cinematic Arts 2024 commencement address, organizers said Tuesday.
As a pioneer of the Korean movie wave, Lee has championed Korean directors like Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon Ho, and has executive producer credits that include Lady Vengeance, The Host, Snowpiercer, The Handmaiden and Parasite, the latter of which was the first non-English-language film to win the Oscar for best picture.
She will give the commencement address at the graduation ceremony set for May 10 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
“Miky Lee is a true pioneer and ambassador of collaborative global filmmaking, and we are so happy to have her share her insight and expertise with our graduating students,” Elizabeth M. Daley, dean of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, said in a statement.
Organizers also announced that the veteran Hollywood director, writer and...
As a pioneer of the Korean movie wave, Lee has championed Korean directors like Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon Ho, and has executive producer credits that include Lady Vengeance, The Host, Snowpiercer, The Handmaiden and Parasite, the latter of which was the first non-English-language film to win the Oscar for best picture.
She will give the commencement address at the graduation ceremony set for May 10 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
“Miky Lee is a true pioneer and ambassador of collaborative global filmmaking, and we are so happy to have her share her insight and expertise with our graduating students,” Elizabeth M. Daley, dean of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, said in a statement.
Organizers also announced that the veteran Hollywood director, writer and...
- 4/16/2024
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paramount Global’s beleaguered stock faltered Monday as investors fretted over the ongoing talks between controlling shareholder National Amusements Inc. and Skydance Media.
As the moon blocked out the sun across a swath of the U.S. in a total eclipse, the stock behaved accordingly, falling almost 8% on heavier-than-average trading volume to finish at $11.06. The shares, which have lost nearly half their value over the past year, retreated amid numerous reports about how a tentative deal between David Ellison’s Skydance and Shari Redstone’s National Amusements would be structured.
While Nai controls more than three-quarters of Paramount’s voting shares, it has only about 10% of the company’s equity, posing a risk of dilution for a number of other shareholders. During their 30-day exclusive negotiating window, Skydance and Nai are said to have established a framework for an all-stock transaction valued in the range of $5 billion. An initial step...
As the moon blocked out the sun across a swath of the U.S. in a total eclipse, the stock behaved accordingly, falling almost 8% on heavier-than-average trading volume to finish at $11.06. The shares, which have lost nearly half their value over the past year, retreated amid numerous reports about how a tentative deal between David Ellison’s Skydance and Shari Redstone’s National Amusements would be structured.
While Nai controls more than three-quarters of Paramount’s voting shares, it has only about 10% of the company’s equity, posing a risk of dilution for a number of other shareholders. During their 30-day exclusive negotiating window, Skydance and Nai are said to have established a framework for an all-stock transaction valued in the range of $5 billion. An initial step...
- 4/8/2024
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
It had all the elements of a good action movie – jeopardy, revenge, a mega budget – with even some casualties thrown in (albeit corporate).
The Bob Iger vs Nelson Peltz (who?) war is over now and Iger has won. But some filmmakers and ticket buyers might wonder: Did any of it matter? Would a modest change on the Disney board of directors have had any impact on the future of entertainment? (Peltz himself runs a hedge fund called Trian Partners and has no background in entertainment.)
To be sure, it’s been a good show, albeit a throwback to an era when Hollywood was run by Big Personalities, not monoliths like Amazon or Apple. The battles of that era were ego wars, not proxy wars — Redstone vs Diller or Murdoch vs Ted Turner, with bewildered stars and their reps huddled in the middle.
But now Iger has won – again. The onetime...
The Bob Iger vs Nelson Peltz (who?) war is over now and Iger has won. But some filmmakers and ticket buyers might wonder: Did any of it matter? Would a modest change on the Disney board of directors have had any impact on the future of entertainment? (Peltz himself runs a hedge fund called Trian Partners and has no background in entertainment.)
To be sure, it’s been a good show, albeit a throwback to an era when Hollywood was run by Big Personalities, not monoliths like Amazon or Apple. The battles of that era were ego wars, not proxy wars — Redstone vs Diller or Murdoch vs Ted Turner, with bewildered stars and their reps huddled in the middle.
But now Iger has won – again. The onetime...
- 4/4/2024
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
The bid marks the second reported attempt by Apollo to buy Paramount, but David Ellison and Skydance appear to be in the driver’s seat to make a deal.
There appears to be real movement on the Paramount merger and acquisition front. This week, the company entered into exclusive negotiations with David Ellison, founder of Skydance Media, which means that the two companies have likely already agreed on some major deal points and are now ready to get into the gritty details. However, Skydance is not the only potential buyer that has expressed interest; a report from Variety indicates that Apollo Global Management submitted a $27 billion bid for the entirety of Paramount this week, but was rebuffed. It’s clear that Paramount prefers the Ellison/Skydance deal, and there could be several compelling reasons for this inclination.
Apollo’s first bid to buy Paramount was an $11 billion offer for just its movie and TV studio.
There appears to be real movement on the Paramount merger and acquisition front. This week, the company entered into exclusive negotiations with David Ellison, founder of Skydance Media, which means that the two companies have likely already agreed on some major deal points and are now ready to get into the gritty details. However, Skydance is not the only potential buyer that has expressed interest; a report from Variety indicates that Apollo Global Management submitted a $27 billion bid for the entirety of Paramount this week, but was rebuffed. It’s clear that Paramount prefers the Ellison/Skydance deal, and there could be several compelling reasons for this inclination.
Apollo’s first bid to buy Paramount was an $11 billion offer for just its movie and TV studio.
- 4/4/2024
- by David Satin
- The Streamable
Paramount Global shares are soaring as talks of a deal with Skydance Media continue to heat up.
The stock price rose by 15 percent Wednesday, all in the minutes leading up to the market close, after The Wall Street Journal reported that Paramount and its controlling shareholder National Amusements, led by Shari Redstone, have agreed to an exclusive negotiating window with David Ellison’s Skydance in a key step towards a possible sale of the media and entertainment empire controlled by Redstone in a two-stage process. Paramount and Skydance declined to comment on the report.
Bloomberg reported shortly after that there was a “tentative” agreement between the companies on a deal.
Skydance, controlled by the Ellison family, and Paramount, which owns the Paramount film and TV studios, streaming service Paramount+, broadcast network CBS, and such cable channels as Nickelodeon, MTV, BET and Comedy Central, have a long track record of collaborating...
The stock price rose by 15 percent Wednesday, all in the minutes leading up to the market close, after The Wall Street Journal reported that Paramount and its controlling shareholder National Amusements, led by Shari Redstone, have agreed to an exclusive negotiating window with David Ellison’s Skydance in a key step towards a possible sale of the media and entertainment empire controlled by Redstone in a two-stage process. Paramount and Skydance declined to comment on the report.
Bloomberg reported shortly after that there was a “tentative” agreement between the companies on a deal.
Skydance, controlled by the Ellison family, and Paramount, which owns the Paramount film and TV studios, streaming service Paramount+, broadcast network CBS, and such cable channels as Nickelodeon, MTV, BET and Comedy Central, have a long track record of collaborating...
- 4/3/2024
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paramount Global shares, which soared Wednesday on news that Apollo had made an $11 billion offer for Paramount Pictures, has slumped today after a report splashed cold water on the scenario.
Shares in the media company had dropped 5% by mid-day, to below $12, after the Financial Times reported that controlling shareholder Shari Redstone is “unconvinced” by the private equity offer. Apollo’s offer, which valued just the studio at more than the entirety of Paramount Global, pushed the stock up 12% on Wednesday. Redstone has long regarded the studio, which was a cherished asset of her father, Sumner Redstone, as the centerpiece for Paramount and a deal without the studio could be far trickier to engineer.
Reps for Redstone and Paramount did not immediately respond to Deadline’s requests for comment.
Redstone, whose National Amusements controls more than three-quarters of the voting shares in Paramount, is looking more favorably on a competing offer...
Shares in the media company had dropped 5% by mid-day, to below $12, after the Financial Times reported that controlling shareholder Shari Redstone is “unconvinced” by the private equity offer. Apollo’s offer, which valued just the studio at more than the entirety of Paramount Global, pushed the stock up 12% on Wednesday. Redstone has long regarded the studio, which was a cherished asset of her father, Sumner Redstone, as the centerpiece for Paramount and a deal without the studio could be far trickier to engineer.
Reps for Redstone and Paramount did not immediately respond to Deadline’s requests for comment.
Redstone, whose National Amusements controls more than three-quarters of the voting shares in Paramount, is looking more favorably on a competing offer...
- 3/21/2024
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
Skydance Media and Paramount Global’s controlling shareholder are engaged in talks that could fold the home of CBS, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central into a new entity controlled by the people who produce starry Hollywood franchises such as “Mission Impossible” and “Tranformers.”
Shari Redstone, who controls Paramount’s corporate parent, National Amusements Inc., is in early discussions with a consortium of investors led by Skydance founder David Ellison (pictured above), according to a person familiar with the matter. The talks may not come to fruition, this person cautions, but if they do, the investors would purchase a controlling stake in National Amusements that they would subsequently use to merge Skydance with Paramount Global.
Representatives for Skydance did not respond to a query seeking comment. National Amusements and Paramount declined to comment. Skydance has for several years produced many of the biggest films released by Paramount’s movie studio, including “Top Gun: Maverick...
Shari Redstone, who controls Paramount’s corporate parent, National Amusements Inc., is in early discussions with a consortium of investors led by Skydance founder David Ellison (pictured above), according to a person familiar with the matter. The talks may not come to fruition, this person cautions, but if they do, the investors would purchase a controlling stake in National Amusements that they would subsequently use to merge Skydance with Paramount Global.
Representatives for Skydance did not respond to a query seeking comment. National Amusements and Paramount declined to comment. Skydance has for several years produced many of the biggest films released by Paramount’s movie studio, including “Top Gun: Maverick...
- 1/10/2024
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
The most consequential entertainment business story of 2024 was kickstarted by two pro operators having a pre-Christmas meal. The Dec. 19 lunch between Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav and Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish, held at Paramount’s New York office, instantly ignited a firestorm of “what ifs,” as the future of the storied studio was suddenly in question.
Is Paramount for sale? Or is controlling shareholder National Amusements? Or both? But the future of Paramount — and for that matter Wbd — may be defined by a cast of characters straight out of central casting: A trio of scions forging their own path in the footsteps of their mogul fathers (Shari Redstone, David Ellison, Brian Roberts); a pair of self-made billionaire investors who find their fortunes tied up in the debt-laden companies at the heart of the deal (John Malone, Warren Buffett); and a handful of professional executives seeking moguldom — or at...
Is Paramount for sale? Or is controlling shareholder National Amusements? Or both? But the future of Paramount — and for that matter Wbd — may be defined by a cast of characters straight out of central casting: A trio of scions forging their own path in the footsteps of their mogul fathers (Shari Redstone, David Ellison, Brian Roberts); a pair of self-made billionaire investors who find their fortunes tied up in the debt-laden companies at the heart of the deal (John Malone, Warren Buffett); and a handful of professional executives seeking moguldom — or at...
- 1/4/2024
- by Alex Weprin
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paramount Global has clinched a deal that is crucial to its future — but it’s not the transaction that Wall Street has been buzzing about for a few weeks.
Paramount Global and Comcast have extended the broad carriage agreement covering Paramount’s cable channels and CBS-owned stations. The pact averts the prospect of a blackout for CBS stations and Paramount channels across Comcast’s cable systems, which reach about video 14.5 million subscribers and 29 million broadband subscribers.
A Paramount spokeswoman confirmed early Saturday that the deal has been completed but no details were provided. The agreement covers “Paramount’s leading portfolio of entertainment, news and sports channels and apps across [Comcast’s] Xfinity platforms.” It’s understood to be essentially an extension of the deal the sides reached in January 2022.
Shoring up the contract with the nation’s largest cable operator is important for Paramount Global’s long-term financial health. It also...
Paramount Global and Comcast have extended the broad carriage agreement covering Paramount’s cable channels and CBS-owned stations. The pact averts the prospect of a blackout for CBS stations and Paramount channels across Comcast’s cable systems, which reach about video 14.5 million subscribers and 29 million broadband subscribers.
A Paramount spokeswoman confirmed early Saturday that the deal has been completed but no details were provided. The agreement covers “Paramount’s leading portfolio of entertainment, news and sports channels and apps across [Comcast’s] Xfinity platforms.” It’s understood to be essentially an extension of the deal the sides reached in January 2022.
Shoring up the contract with the nation’s largest cable operator is important for Paramount Global’s long-term financial health. It also...
- 12/30/2023
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
The Burning Questions Swirling Around the Early Warner Bros. Discovery-Paramount Global Merger Talks
Here we go again?
Warner Bros. Discovery is flirting with the idea of acquiring Paramount Global. If a deal involving the Redstone empire comes to fruition, it would mark another transformative mega-merger for Hollywood legacy brands, following on the heels of Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox in 2019, AT&T’s difficult marriage with Time Warner in 2018 and the subsequent Discovery-WarnerMedia tie-up that closed in April 2022.
Sources caution that conversations are in the earliest of early stages — following a lunch meeting this week between WB Discovery CEO David Zaslav and Paramount Global’s Bob Bakish. There’s no certainty that a deal will come to fruition, of course, especially as Paramount Global and its parent holding company National Amusements Inc. was already being pursued. But if Wbd and Paramount Global are determined to march down the aisle, the companies will have to overcome a host of obstacles, and possible regulatory and legal challenges.
Warner Bros. Discovery is flirting with the idea of acquiring Paramount Global. If a deal involving the Redstone empire comes to fruition, it would mark another transformative mega-merger for Hollywood legacy brands, following on the heels of Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox in 2019, AT&T’s difficult marriage with Time Warner in 2018 and the subsequent Discovery-WarnerMedia tie-up that closed in April 2022.
Sources caution that conversations are in the earliest of early stages — following a lunch meeting this week between WB Discovery CEO David Zaslav and Paramount Global’s Bob Bakish. There’s no certainty that a deal will come to fruition, of course, especially as Paramount Global and its parent holding company National Amusements Inc. was already being pursued. But if Wbd and Paramount Global are determined to march down the aisle, the companies will have to overcome a host of obstacles, and possible regulatory and legal challenges.
- 12/21/2023
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Global are in talks for a potential merger, IndieWire has confirmed. It’s the very early days — especially considering Wbd is in an M&a timeout until April.
As Axios first reported, Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav journeyed to the Paramount offices in Times Square for an hours-long meeting on Tuesday with Paramount CEO Bob Bakish. Rumor has it they were not there to reminisce about the “Trl” days.
He and Bakish discussed potential synergies between their two companies, including how Max — itself the combination of Discovery+ and HBO Max — could complement Paramount+ (now with Showtime!). There are also possibilities within each company’s news, sports, and kids programming — plus, HBO and Showtime could stop competing with each other and join forces. (Not that it’s been much of a competition lately.)
Zaslav has also spoken with Paramount Global’s controlling shareholder Shari Redstone about a potential deal.
As Axios first reported, Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav journeyed to the Paramount offices in Times Square for an hours-long meeting on Tuesday with Paramount CEO Bob Bakish. Rumor has it they were not there to reminisce about the “Trl” days.
He and Bakish discussed potential synergies between their two companies, including how Max — itself the combination of Discovery+ and HBO Max — could complement Paramount+ (now with Showtime!). There are also possibilities within each company’s news, sports, and kids programming — plus, HBO and Showtime could stop competing with each other and join forces. (Not that it’s been much of a competition lately.)
Zaslav has also spoken with Paramount Global’s controlling shareholder Shari Redstone about a potential deal.
- 12/20/2023
- by Tony Maglio
- Indiewire
As 2023 began, Covid was waning, Top Gun: Maverick was a billion-dollar Oscar Best Picture nominee, and Shari Redstone’s place in the media firmament felt secure after a years-long quest to reunite CBS and Viacom.
At year’s end, the narrative has dramatically changed.
Paramount Global, which Redstone leads as chair and CEO of its controlling shareholder, National Amusements, has hit a prolonged rough patch, and speculation is rampant about its future as a stand-alone company. Film and TV production has been hampered by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, the company’s streaming operation is bleeding cash, and an advertising slowdown is squeezing cable networks already jeopardized by cord-cutting. What’s more, old questions are resurfacing about whether the company has enough scale to compete, with those doubts reflected in the company’s lagging stock price. As of Friday’s close, the share price of $16.27 gave Paramount a market value of about $10.2 billion.
At year’s end, the narrative has dramatically changed.
Paramount Global, which Redstone leads as chair and CEO of its controlling shareholder, National Amusements, has hit a prolonged rough patch, and speculation is rampant about its future as a stand-alone company. Film and TV production has been hampered by the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, the company’s streaming operation is bleeding cash, and an advertising slowdown is squeezing cable networks already jeopardized by cord-cutting. What’s more, old questions are resurfacing about whether the company has enough scale to compete, with those doubts reflected in the company’s lagging stock price. As of Friday’s close, the share price of $16.27 gave Paramount a market value of about $10.2 billion.
- 12/15/2023
- by Dade Hayes and Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
The entertainment company that everyone in Hollywood is talking about is based in a nondescript three-story office building in the Boston suburb of Norwood, Massachusetts.
Nestled between an indoor ice-skating rink and a Home Depot distribution center is the headquarters of National Amusements, Inc., a movie theater operator with 22 cinemas in the U.S., almost all in the New York to Boston corridor.
But it’s not the movie theaters that have investment bankers, media moguls and opportunistic private equity firms salivating. National Amusements, the pride and joy of the media titan Sumner Redstone, and now controlled by his daughter Shari, serves as a holding company for the family’s most precious asset: voting control of Paramount Global, the owner of CBS, Paramount+, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, and other media brands.
Paramount — or at least control of Paramount via National Amusements — now appears to be on the block, with Redstone reportedly...
Nestled between an indoor ice-skating rink and a Home Depot distribution center is the headquarters of National Amusements, Inc., a movie theater operator with 22 cinemas in the U.S., almost all in the New York to Boston corridor.
But it’s not the movie theaters that have investment bankers, media moguls and opportunistic private equity firms salivating. National Amusements, the pride and joy of the media titan Sumner Redstone, and now controlled by his daughter Shari, serves as a holding company for the family’s most precious asset: voting control of Paramount Global, the owner of CBS, Paramount+, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, and other media brands.
Paramount — or at least control of Paramount via National Amusements — now appears to be on the block, with Redstone reportedly...
- 12/15/2023
- by Alex Weprin
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Imagine: You want to buy a car. However, the dealer tells you that car isn’t for sale. Instead, they offer another option: You can’t own the car, but you can buy the dealership — and with it comes the right to control all the cars on the lot.
Such is the unusual scenario presented to would-be buyers of Paramount Studios. It’s among the many assets of Paramount Global, which include CBS, Paramount+, and cable channels like BET and Nickelodeon. The studio can’t be bought on its own — and buying Paramount Global as a unit would cost in the neighborhood of $30 billion.
However, might you be interested in buying National Amusements, Inc. (Nai), the Redstone Family-owned movie-theater chain that also holds about 77 percent of Paramount Global’s voting shares? It’s available for a few billion bucks.
Nai president Shari Redstone likely knows she should have gotten out...
Such is the unusual scenario presented to would-be buyers of Paramount Studios. It’s among the many assets of Paramount Global, which include CBS, Paramount+, and cable channels like BET and Nickelodeon. The studio can’t be bought on its own — and buying Paramount Global as a unit would cost in the neighborhood of $30 billion.
However, might you be interested in buying National Amusements, Inc. (Nai), the Redstone Family-owned movie-theater chain that also holds about 77 percent of Paramount Global’s voting shares? It’s available for a few billion bucks.
Nai president Shari Redstone likely knows she should have gotten out...
- 12/12/2023
- by Tony Maglio
- Indiewire
Paramount Global chair and National Amusements president Shari Redstone is one of the most powerful people in Hollywood. She is also an observant Jew and a supporter of Israel who has been reeling over the days since Oct. 7, when Hamas terrorists attacked the Jewish state, she told The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday in a corner booth at Wolfgang Puck’s Spago. The Beverly Hills restaurant was closed to the public for the evening in order to host “Black & Jewish Conversations,” an event that Redstone and Gelila Assefa, Puck’s Ethiopia-born wife, began organizing well before the Hamas attack in order to foster increased conversation and partnership between members of Hollywood’s Black and Jewish communities.
“Look, I’m not doing well, to be honest,” Redstone acknowledged. “I think there are no words to describe what took place, and all I do every day is try to do something that’s...
“Look, I’m not doing well, to be honest,” Redstone acknowledged. “I think there are no words to describe what took place, and all I do every day is try to do something that’s...
- 10/18/2023
- by Scott Feinberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Jonathan Dolgen, the former head of Viacom Entertainment and a former top 20th Century Fox executive, died Oct. 9 of natural causes in Los Angeles. He was 78.
For a decade, from 1994 until 2004, the hard-charging Dolgen led Viacom’s film, television and amusement parks, as well as Simon & Schuster and its music publishing operations, establishing a reputation for smarts, drive and relentless focus on costs and efficiency in operations. He took the reins of Viacom’s entertainment assets not long after Sumner Redstone prevailed in a long and public battle with Barry Diller to acquire Paramount Pictures in September 1993.
“You come to work in the morning,” Dolgen once told the New York Times in a profile shortly after he took the job at Viacom. “And you work 12 hours, and then you’re off 12 hours. And then you come to work again, and you push, and keep pushing, and learn, and keep learning.
For a decade, from 1994 until 2004, the hard-charging Dolgen led Viacom’s film, television and amusement parks, as well as Simon & Schuster and its music publishing operations, establishing a reputation for smarts, drive and relentless focus on costs and efficiency in operations. He took the reins of Viacom’s entertainment assets not long after Sumner Redstone prevailed in a long and public battle with Barry Diller to acquire Paramount Pictures in September 1993.
“You come to work in the morning,” Dolgen once told the New York Times in a profile shortly after he took the job at Viacom. “And you work 12 hours, and then you’re off 12 hours. And then you come to work again, and you push, and keep pushing, and learn, and keep learning.
- 10/10/2023
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Jonathan Dolgen, the tough-minded dealmaker and skillful numbers-cruncher who spent a decade at Viacom working for Sumner Redstone and alongside Paramount Pictures head Sherry Lansing, has died. He was 78.
Dolgen died Monday evening of natural causes at UCLA Medical Center surrounded by his family, a publicist announced. He had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in 2012.
A native of Queens and a former Wall Street lawyer, Dolgen also held top positions at Columbia Pictures, Fox and Sony Pictures before becoming the first top executive recruited by Redstone for the newly merged entertainment conglomerate forged by Viacom’s $8.2 billion purchase of Paramount Communications.
“I had known Dolgen off and on over the years when I was a motion picture exhibitor, even before I gained control of Viacom,” Redstone recalled in his 2001 book, Passion to Win. “He was with Columbia Pictures, and I remember sitting with him in one particular meeting that became rather heated and thinking,...
Dolgen died Monday evening of natural causes at UCLA Medical Center surrounded by his family, a publicist announced. He had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in 2012.
A native of Queens and a former Wall Street lawyer, Dolgen also held top positions at Columbia Pictures, Fox and Sony Pictures before becoming the first top executive recruited by Redstone for the newly merged entertainment conglomerate forged by Viacom’s $8.2 billion purchase of Paramount Communications.
“I had known Dolgen off and on over the years when I was a motion picture exhibitor, even before I gained control of Viacom,” Redstone recalled in his 2001 book, Passion to Win. “He was with Columbia Pictures, and I remember sitting with him in one particular meeting that became rather heated and thinking,...
- 10/10/2023
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
According to Whats-On-Netflix.com, 2009's "Star Trek" and 2012's "Star Trek Into Darkness" are going to be removed from Netflix in October of 2023. Their removal indicates that an era is over.
The handlers of "Star Trek" have, ever since the late 1960s, been very good about letting the shows remain available. Even before home video, "Star Trek" was put into seemingly eternal syndication, able to be enjoyed pretty much in perpetuity. Older Trekkies may also recall the Columbia House VHS days, when eager Trekkies could subscribe to a mail-in service that would deliver cassettes -- containing two episodes apiece -- directly to their doors. Eventually, "Star Trek" would be released in season-by-season DVD box sets, followed by massive proliferation across many major streaming services. Ultra-crunchy Blu-rays also eventually crept into the marketplace.
A lot of Trek's widespread availability stems from Janet Jackson's infamous wardrobe malfunction during Super Bowl Xxxviii...
The handlers of "Star Trek" have, ever since the late 1960s, been very good about letting the shows remain available. Even before home video, "Star Trek" was put into seemingly eternal syndication, able to be enjoyed pretty much in perpetuity. Older Trekkies may also recall the Columbia House VHS days, when eager Trekkies could subscribe to a mail-in service that would deliver cassettes -- containing two episodes apiece -- directly to their doors. Eventually, "Star Trek" would be released in season-by-season DVD box sets, followed by massive proliferation across many major streaming services. Ultra-crunchy Blu-rays also eventually crept into the marketplace.
A lot of Trek's widespread availability stems from Janet Jackson's infamous wardrobe malfunction during Super Bowl Xxxviii...
- 9/22/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation (Wrmppf) is honoring one of their biggest champs this year with a posthumous recognition: late MGM and United Artists Distribution Boss Erik Lomis. The honor will be recognized at the October 4 dinner at The Beverly Hilton.
Lomis, who was a force in getting movie theaters back open as Covid quelled, and a proponent of the theatrical window with the release of the 007 title No Time to Die, passed away suddenly at 64 on March 22. Lomis was also known for his relentless and passionate fundraising for Will Rogers.
Lomis hosted last year’s Pioneer dinner which honored James Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson.
A tradition for more than 75 years, the Pioneer of the Year Award is bestowed upon esteemed and respected members in the motion picture industry whose corporate leadership, service to the community and commitment to philanthropy are exceptional. All proceeds...
Lomis, who was a force in getting movie theaters back open as Covid quelled, and a proponent of the theatrical window with the release of the 007 title No Time to Die, passed away suddenly at 64 on March 22. Lomis was also known for his relentless and passionate fundraising for Will Rogers.
Lomis hosted last year’s Pioneer dinner which honored James Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson.
A tradition for more than 75 years, the Pioneer of the Year Award is bestowed upon esteemed and respected members in the motion picture industry whose corporate leadership, service to the community and commitment to philanthropy are exceptional. All proceeds...
- 8/4/2023
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
It wasn’t all that long ago that being the CEO of a major media or entertainment company was the top of the heap. The moguls of the day, from Ted Turner and Sumner Redstone to Rupert Murdoch and Steve Ross, dominated the culture — and earned billions in the process.
But the CEO gig ain’t what it used to be. David Zaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, has become public executive enemy No. 1 for many industry workers amid the Writers Guild of America’s ongoing strike.
Netflix co-ceo Ted Sarandos is a close second, while Disney chief Bob Iger finds himself back in the CEO seat, but under much more challenging circumstances, all while trying to figure out who, if anyone, has what it takes to succeed him after his predecessor and successor Bob Chapek lasted only two and a half years.
At Apple and Amazon, entertainment is...
But the CEO gig ain’t what it used to be. David Zaslav, the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, has become public executive enemy No. 1 for many industry workers amid the Writers Guild of America’s ongoing strike.
Netflix co-ceo Ted Sarandos is a close second, while Disney chief Bob Iger finds himself back in the CEO seat, but under much more challenging circumstances, all while trying to figure out who, if anyone, has what it takes to succeed him after his predecessor and successor Bob Chapek lasted only two and a half years.
At Apple and Amazon, entertainment is...
- 7/7/2023
- by Alex Weprin
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The 61-year-old Hollywood star said he wants to emulate Harrison Ford’s longevity – here’s to the next 20 years of swashbuckling stunts
Anyone remember those strange days, way back in the distant pre-Covid era, when the death of cinema seemed to be imminent and even Tom Cruise couldn’t sell out multiplexes? So clouded was the Top Gun star’s future in 2010 that it seemed likely he might fade into oblivion while still in his late 40s. There was even talk that Cruise had slipped off the late Paramount chair Sumner Redstone’s Christmas Card list due to his weird sofa-jumping antics and continuing advocacy of Scientology.
Fast forward to 2023 and thanks to a combination of the pandemic and the march of streaming, box offices globally might just be in an even worse position than they were when Cruise’s now largely forgotten romcom thriller with Cameron Diaz, Knight and Day,...
Anyone remember those strange days, way back in the distant pre-Covid era, when the death of cinema seemed to be imminent and even Tom Cruise couldn’t sell out multiplexes? So clouded was the Top Gun star’s future in 2010 that it seemed likely he might fade into oblivion while still in his late 40s. There was even talk that Cruise had slipped off the late Paramount chair Sumner Redstone’s Christmas Card list due to his weird sofa-jumping antics and continuing advocacy of Scientology.
Fast forward to 2023 and thanks to a combination of the pandemic and the march of streaming, box offices globally might just be in an even worse position than they were when Cruise’s now largely forgotten romcom thriller with Cameron Diaz, Knight and Day,...
- 7/7/2023
- by Ben Child
- The Guardian - Film News
Former Warner Bros. President of Sales and Distribution, D. Barry Reardon, passed at the age of 92 on May 27 in Vero Beach, Florida.
Known as “The Dean of Distribution” among industry peers and filmmakers, Reardon was the head of theatrical distribution at Warner Bros from 1978 to 1999, and was known for breaking the mold on the motion picture business, i.e. getting a jumpstart on summer before Memorial Day and dating blockbusters during the early days of August, previously considered a dead zone.
Also before his departure from Warner Bros. in March 1999, Reardon had developed an internal marketing...
Known as “The Dean of Distribution” among industry peers and filmmakers, Reardon was the head of theatrical distribution at Warner Bros from 1978 to 1999, and was known for breaking the mold on the motion picture business, i.e. getting a jumpstart on summer before Memorial Day and dating blockbusters during the early days of August, previously considered a dead zone.
Also before his departure from Warner Bros. in March 1999, Reardon had developed an internal marketing...
- 6/5/2023
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
This post contains spoilers for "Succession."
When Jesse Armstrong announced in a 2023 New Yorker interview that his hit HBO show "Succession" was coming to an end with its upcoming fourth season, fans were shocked. The show had reached not just a dramatic peak in its third season, in which elderly media mogul Logan Roy (Brian Cox) made the first steps to sell his Waystar Royco empire and cut his children out, but a peak in popularity and impact as well, having earned its highest ratings yet during the season 3 finale. For a tragic media satire with such seemingly specific appeal, its fanbase skews broad, sparking both analysis of its thematic richness and shipping videos set to Taylor Swift.
Still, as Armstrong told the New Yorker, "There's a promise in the title of 'Succession.'" With a show designed around the broad idea of a King Lear-type ceding control...
When Jesse Armstrong announced in a 2023 New Yorker interview that his hit HBO show "Succession" was coming to an end with its upcoming fourth season, fans were shocked. The show had reached not just a dramatic peak in its third season, in which elderly media mogul Logan Roy (Brian Cox) made the first steps to sell his Waystar Royco empire and cut his children out, but a peak in popularity and impact as well, having earned its highest ratings yet during the season 3 finale. For a tragic media satire with such seemingly specific appeal, its fanbase skews broad, sparking both analysis of its thematic richness and shipping videos set to Taylor Swift.
Still, as Armstrong told the New Yorker, "There's a promise in the title of 'Succession.'" With a show designed around the broad idea of a King Lear-type ceding control...
- 5/13/2023
- by Anthony Crislip
- Slash Film
Producer Steven Paul has optioned the rights to “Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy,” with plans to develop the nonfiction bestseller by James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams as a TV series.
The book, published by Penguin Random House in February, tells the sordid, behind-the-scenes story of the battle for control of Sumner Redstone’s media empire. The book has been the talk of the town in Hollywood as industry insiders learn the unvarnished details behind the recent history of Sumner and Shari Redstone, Viacom, CBS Corp., Leslie Moonves and a host of other prominent figures.
Rachel Abrams, Steven Paul and James B. Stewart
Paul is in the process of recruiting a writer to develop the property as a limited series through his Sp Media Group. The deal was brokered for Stewart and Abrams by CAA’s Ron Bernstein and Sp Media president Scott Karol.
The book, published by Penguin Random House in February, tells the sordid, behind-the-scenes story of the battle for control of Sumner Redstone’s media empire. The book has been the talk of the town in Hollywood as industry insiders learn the unvarnished details behind the recent history of Sumner and Shari Redstone, Viacom, CBS Corp., Leslie Moonves and a host of other prominent figures.
Rachel Abrams, Steven Paul and James B. Stewart
Paul is in the process of recruiting a writer to develop the property as a limited series through his Sp Media Group. The deal was brokered for Stewart and Abrams by CAA’s Ron Bernstein and Sp Media president Scott Karol.
- 4/20/2023
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
Paramount Global has agreed to pay $122.5 million to settle a 2019 lawsuit by Viacom shareholders over the company’s 2019 merger with CBS.
The settlement was disclosed Friday in an SEC filing. In the filing (read it here), the company details the chronology of the case brought in Delaware Chancery Court. After disclosing the settlement amount, it notes the company is pursuing legal action against insurance carriers related to the case, though a specific amount for damages being sought was not mentioned.
Related Story Les Moonves And Paramount Global Agree To Pay $9.75M To Resolve NY State Attorney General Probe Related To CBS Shareholder Lawsuit Related Story 'Elsbeth': Wendell Pierce & Carra Patterson Join Carrie Preston In CBS' 'Good Wife' Offshoot Pilot Related Story 'Matlock': Skye P. Marshall Joins Kathy Bates In CBS Pilot
“The company is currently engaged in litigation regarding insurance coverage against certain of...
The settlement was disclosed Friday in an SEC filing. In the filing (read it here), the company details the chronology of the case brought in Delaware Chancery Court. After disclosing the settlement amount, it notes the company is pursuing legal action against insurance carriers related to the case, though a specific amount for damages being sought was not mentioned.
Related Story Les Moonves And Paramount Global Agree To Pay $9.75M To Resolve NY State Attorney General Probe Related To CBS Shareholder Lawsuit Related Story 'Elsbeth': Wendell Pierce & Carra Patterson Join Carrie Preston In CBS' 'Good Wife' Offshoot Pilot Related Story 'Matlock': Skye P. Marshall Joins Kathy Bates In CBS Pilot
“The company is currently engaged in litigation regarding insurance coverage against certain of...
- 3/3/2023
- by Dade Hayes
- Deadline Film + TV
Paramount Global has agreed to settle a shareholder lawsuit that claimed that the 2019 CBS-Viacom merger was unfair for shareholders.
According to a securities filing Friday, Paramount will pay the shareholders $122.5 million to settle the claims, subject to a long-form settlement agreement and approval by Delaware’s Chancery Court.
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (“CalPERS”) was lead plaintiff in the litigation, which also named Shari Redstone and the Redstone family’s National Amusements as defendants. Paramount CEO Bob Bakish was also a defendant, but was removed from the suit in Dec. 2020.
Indeed, Redstone was at the center of the suit, which claimed that Viacom’s board accepted a lower price for the merger in order to secure Redstone’s governance priorities (namely that the company would be led by Bakish and much of his executive team).
“Plaintiffs allege that the willingness of the fiduciaries who served on Viacom...
According to a securities filing Friday, Paramount will pay the shareholders $122.5 million to settle the claims, subject to a long-form settlement agreement and approval by Delaware’s Chancery Court.
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (“CalPERS”) was lead plaintiff in the litigation, which also named Shari Redstone and the Redstone family’s National Amusements as defendants. Paramount CEO Bob Bakish was also a defendant, but was removed from the suit in Dec. 2020.
Indeed, Redstone was at the center of the suit, which claimed that Viacom’s board accepted a lower price for the merger in order to secure Redstone’s governance priorities (namely that the company would be led by Bakish and much of his executive team).
“Plaintiffs allege that the willingness of the fiduciaries who served on Viacom...
- 3/3/2023
- by Alex Weprin
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
“‘Nobody likes to watch people getting eaten by lions.”
Apparently this was the response by the late Sumner Redstone during his National Amusement exhibition days after he saw a screening of the 1981 Tom Skerritt lion movie, Savage Harvest, relayed to me by an exhibition source who overheard him.
As funny as Redstone’s reaction was, it’s an axiom that has rung true: Certain animal-eat-people movies just don’t work. Moviegoers chomp on sharks movies like Jaws and Meg, but other treacherous animal movies aren’t prime to high openings, i.e. Paramount’s alligator movie Crawl and more recently Universal with its Idris Elba title Beast — which was a lion move.
However, this weekend Universal proved that everybody likes to watch people get eaten by bears, as their R-rated Elizabeth Banks-directed Cocaine Bear opened to $23M.
How did Universal...
Apparently this was the response by the late Sumner Redstone during his National Amusement exhibition days after he saw a screening of the 1981 Tom Skerritt lion movie, Savage Harvest, relayed to me by an exhibition source who overheard him.
As funny as Redstone’s reaction was, it’s an axiom that has rung true: Certain animal-eat-people movies just don’t work. Moviegoers chomp on sharks movies like Jaws and Meg, but other treacherous animal movies aren’t prime to high openings, i.e. Paramount’s alligator movie Crawl and more recently Universal with its Idris Elba title Beast — which was a lion move.
However, this weekend Universal proved that everybody likes to watch people get eaten by bears, as their R-rated Elizabeth Banks-directed Cocaine Bear opened to $23M.
How did Universal...
- 2/26/2023
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Content is king, late media mogul Sumner Redstone, founder of Paramount Global’s predecessor companies, used to say. But so is cash for many investors of the entertainment giant behind the likes of Paramount Pictures, CBS, MTV, BET, Showtime, Paramount+ and Pluto TV.
Paramount Global’s streaming business ended 2022 with a bang thanks to Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick, which helped Paramount+ add nearly 10 million subscribers in the final quarter of the year to get it to nearly 56 million and the conglomerate’s overall streaming sub count to more than 77 million.
But what about the other bang … bang for its buck? As has been the case across the industry, the company’s fourth-quarter streaming loss widened to 575 million amid higher investments into content in a competitive atmosphere. With Wall Street increasingly impatient about Hollywood giants’ progress toward streaming profitability, management argued that 2023 will be its peak investment year in...
Paramount Global’s streaming business ended 2022 with a bang thanks to Tom Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick, which helped Paramount+ add nearly 10 million subscribers in the final quarter of the year to get it to nearly 56 million and the conglomerate’s overall streaming sub count to more than 77 million.
But what about the other bang … bang for its buck? As has been the case across the industry, the company’s fourth-quarter streaming loss widened to 575 million amid higher investments into content in a competitive atmosphere. With Wall Street increasingly impatient about Hollywood giants’ progress toward streaming profitability, management argued that 2023 will be its peak investment year in...
- 2/17/2023
- by Georg Szalai
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
From the outset, Sumner Redstone was a curiosity.
A cluster of power players 50 years ago were suddenly bidding for control of Hollywood’s revered movie studios. Competition was intense but most of the bidders were not even “movie” people. In fact, they’d rarely seen a movie.
Related Story Les Moonves Lies, Shari Pushes, Philippe Dauman Falls, Sumner Steals His Grandson’s Girlfriend And Other Tales In New Book On The Redstones Related Story 'Scream VI' Headed To Franchise Record Opening At Box Office Related Story 'Dungeons & Dragons' John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein's GoldDay Inks First Look With Paramount Pictures
The exception was a cantankerous lawyer from Boston who’d inherited a small chain of theaters. Unlike characters like Steve Ross (funeral business), Kirk Kerkorian (airplanes) or Rupert Murdoch (newspapers), Redstone was passionate about film. He wanted to champion filmmaking and build a media conglomerate around that zeal.
A cluster of power players 50 years ago were suddenly bidding for control of Hollywood’s revered movie studios. Competition was intense but most of the bidders were not even “movie” people. In fact, they’d rarely seen a movie.
Related Story Les Moonves Lies, Shari Pushes, Philippe Dauman Falls, Sumner Steals His Grandson’s Girlfriend And Other Tales In New Book On The Redstones Related Story 'Scream VI' Headed To Franchise Record Opening At Box Office Related Story 'Dungeons & Dragons' John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein's GoldDay Inks First Look With Paramount Pictures
The exception was a cantankerous lawyer from Boston who’d inherited a small chain of theaters. Unlike characters like Steve Ross (funeral business), Kirk Kerkorian (airplanes) or Rupert Murdoch (newspapers), Redstone was passionate about film. He wanted to champion filmmaking and build a media conglomerate around that zeal.
- 2/16/2023
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
As Paramount Global prepares to report quarterly earnings Thursday, with CEO Bob Bakish presiding and Shari Redstone happily ensconced as non-executive chair, a new book is bringing forth some interesting (and at times lurid) revelations about the company’s tortuous journey.
Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy, a tale of sex, lies, family drama and boardroom backstabbing, is out this week and is already one of Amazon’s top sellers. Co-authors and New York Times colleagues James Stewart and Rachel Abrams gleefully expand on what has already been known about the epic dysfunction that swirled around late patriarch Sumner Redstone. As their account emphasizes, the mercurial loyalties, sexual obsessions and physical and mental decline of the company’s founder fomented chaos at the former Viacom and CBS Corp. Part salacious soap opera, part business book/legal chronicle, it charts the downward spiral of...
Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy, a tale of sex, lies, family drama and boardroom backstabbing, is out this week and is already one of Amazon’s top sellers. Co-authors and New York Times colleagues James Stewart and Rachel Abrams gleefully expand on what has already been known about the epic dysfunction that swirled around late patriarch Sumner Redstone. As their account emphasizes, the mercurial loyalties, sexual obsessions and physical and mental decline of the company’s founder fomented chaos at the former Viacom and CBS Corp. Part salacious soap opera, part business book/legal chronicle, it charts the downward spiral of...
- 2/15/2023
- by Jill Goldsmith
- Deadline Film + TV
In Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy, the Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times journalists James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams chart the byzantine corporate maneuvering and salacious personal embroilments that brought disgrace to billionaire Viacom owner Sumner Redstone and longtime CBS head Les Moonves — as well as trouble for their allies, sycophants, rivals and shareholders. The book, published Feb. 14, relies on exclusive access to key documents and participants in the soap-operatic drama to examine alleged sexual assault, elder abuse, financial shenanigans, legal negligence, boardroom power politics, executive cover-ups and the doomed dynamic in the relationships between a very wealthy, very old man and two very clever younger women.
Those two women, Sydney Holland and Manuela Herzer, who for a time toward the end of the mogul’s life resided in Redstone’s Beverly Park mansion, ended up rich. By the time he ultimately rid himself of them,...
Those two women, Sydney Holland and Manuela Herzer, who for a time toward the end of the mogul’s life resided in Redstone’s Beverly Park mansion, ended up rich. By the time he ultimately rid himself of them,...
- 2/14/2023
- by Gary Baum
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Murdoch family is tamping down its push to merge the two media conglomerates it controls after some investors seemed lukewarm to the idea.
Rupert Murdoch sent letters to the board of directors of News Corp. and Fox Corp. on Tuesday, informing both groups he had decided to withdraw his recent proposal to recombine the two companies, which his family, controlling shareholders of both, split apart in 2013.
Murdoch, and his son Lachlan, who holds senior executive posts at both companies, ” have determined that a combination is not optimal for shareholders of News Corp and Fox at this time,” News Corp. said in a statement.
Murdoch in October proposed an exploration of the potential for a merger, which had to be completed by special committees of both corporations. A re-combination of the assets would have paired the Fox broadcast network, Fox News Channel and Fox Sports with the Harper Collins publishing company,...
Rupert Murdoch sent letters to the board of directors of News Corp. and Fox Corp. on Tuesday, informing both groups he had decided to withdraw his recent proposal to recombine the two companies, which his family, controlling shareholders of both, split apart in 2013.
Murdoch, and his son Lachlan, who holds senior executive posts at both companies, ” have determined that a combination is not optimal for shareholders of News Corp and Fox at this time,” News Corp. said in a statement.
Murdoch in October proposed an exploration of the potential for a merger, which had to be completed by special committees of both corporations. A re-combination of the assets would have paired the Fox broadcast network, Fox News Channel and Fox Sports with the Harper Collins publishing company,...
- 1/24/2023
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
This story about the best film schools in the U.S. first appeared in the College Issue of TheWrap’s awards magazine.
Before diving into this list — TheWrap’s seventh annual film school rankings — keep one critical caveat in mind: The dream campus for one student can turn out to be an academic nightmare for another. It’s all subjective and to some degree a barrel full of apples and oranges. After all, the best schools for learning how to direct aren’t necessarily the best for learning how to write or produce. Just because a college or university has a high number on these pages doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right place for you.
That said, there is something of a science to how we put together these rankings. For starters, TheWrap reached out to every school listed and collected data points on everything from class size...
Before diving into this list — TheWrap’s seventh annual film school rankings — keep one critical caveat in mind: The dream campus for one student can turn out to be an academic nightmare for another. It’s all subjective and to some degree a barrel full of apples and oranges. After all, the best schools for learning how to direct aren’t necessarily the best for learning how to write or produce. Just because a college or university has a high number on these pages doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right place for you.
That said, there is something of a science to how we put together these rankings. For starters, TheWrap reached out to every school listed and collected data points on everything from class size...
- 10/31/2022
- by TheWrap Staff
- The Wrap
On February 1, 2004, Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake performed live at the halftime show of Super Bowl Xxxviii. The duo performed Timberlake's song "Rock Your Body" and gyrated suggestively. Then, as had been choreographed, Timberlake removed a piece of Jackson's costume, intending to reveal her bustier. He, however, accidentally pulled off too much of said costume. Jackson was exposed for half of a second, but it scandalized the world, and the phrase "wardrobe malfunction" immediately entered the lexicon. Many late-night talk show hosts were eager to joke about it, and some media watchdog groups clucked their tongues in disapproval.
CBS, who broadcast the Super Bowl, was ultimately not charged any fines, nor was MTV who produced it, although MTV was banned from producing any further halftime shows. The scandal caused a schism within Viacom, CBS' and MTV's parent company. Les Moonves, head of the CBS side, began to develop increasing shared animosity toward Tom Freston,...
CBS, who broadcast the Super Bowl, was ultimately not charged any fines, nor was MTV who produced it, although MTV was banned from producing any further halftime shows. The scandal caused a schism within Viacom, CBS' and MTV's parent company. Les Moonves, head of the CBS side, began to develop increasing shared animosity toward Tom Freston,...
- 10/18/2022
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Rupert Murdoch is considering getting the whole gang together again — a new combination of the two big media companies his family controls.
Murdoch has proposed an exploration of the potential for a merger of Fox Corp. and News Corp., two entities his family split apart in the summer of 2013. according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed by the latter and a statement by Fox Corp. The Wall Street Journal previously reported the decision, which would be considered by special committees of each company’s board of directors.
News Corp. said that it “formed a Special Committee composed of independent and disinterested members of the Board to begin exploring a potential combination with Fox Corporation” after it received “letters from K. Rupert Murdoch and the Murdoch Family Trust.” There is no guarantee a merger will result from the discussions, the company said. Fox offered a similar assessment.
Murdoch has proposed an exploration of the potential for a merger of Fox Corp. and News Corp., two entities his family split apart in the summer of 2013. according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed by the latter and a statement by Fox Corp. The Wall Street Journal previously reported the decision, which would be considered by special committees of each company’s board of directors.
News Corp. said that it “formed a Special Committee composed of independent and disinterested members of the Board to begin exploring a potential combination with Fox Corporation” after it received “letters from K. Rupert Murdoch and the Murdoch Family Trust.” There is no guarantee a merger will result from the discussions, the company said. Fox offered a similar assessment.
- 10/14/2022
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Addicted to Succession? Well, here’s the real thing: An explosive new book will spill all about the power struggle to control Paramount.
Penned by two acclaimed New York Times reporters — James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams — Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy promises a juicy glimpse behind the scenes of the media empire built by Sumner Redstone, the colorful and cutthroat chairman of ViacomCBS (renamed Paramount in February) who died in 2020 at 97.
The Hollywood Reporter can exclusively reveal the cover of the book, on sale Feb. 14, 2023, which features six central figures of the saga seated around a conference table beneath a looming portrait of the late mogul.
Pictured from left are Redstone’s girlfriend Manuela Herzer, former Viacom chief Philippe Dauman, Redstone’s grandson Brandon Korff, ex-Redstone girlfriend Sydney Holland, CBS chairman Les Moonves and Redstone’s daughter Shari Redstone,...
Addicted to Succession? Well, here’s the real thing: An explosive new book will spill all about the power struggle to control Paramount.
Penned by two acclaimed New York Times reporters — James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams — Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy promises a juicy glimpse behind the scenes of the media empire built by Sumner Redstone, the colorful and cutthroat chairman of ViacomCBS (renamed Paramount in February) who died in 2020 at 97.
The Hollywood Reporter can exclusively reveal the cover of the book, on sale Feb. 14, 2023, which features six central figures of the saga seated around a conference table beneath a looming portrait of the late mogul.
Pictured from left are Redstone’s girlfriend Manuela Herzer, former Viacom chief Philippe Dauman, Redstone’s grandson Brandon Korff, ex-Redstone girlfriend Sydney Holland, CBS chairman Les Moonves and Redstone’s daughter Shari Redstone,...
- 10/4/2022
- by Seth Abramovitch
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
“It was like a palace of pitching. There’s never been any place like it.”
An agent friend was describing the sprawling and frenetic Netflix reception lobby, which was an almost weekly destination for him and clients. It was so packed with dealmakers that projects were often re-shaped and re-packaged even before the Netflix pitch took place.
Given news of 450 layoffs at the streamer, the pitching palace has become a cathedral of calm. With Netflix likely to lose 2 million global subscribers this quarter, its present priority is to trim costs while building an ad-supported tier to generate fresh revenue.
The behavior of Netflix employees has reflected this change. “I’m taking pitches for shows all morning, then checking out job possibilities in the afternoon,” reports one Netflix executive I’ve known for years. “If I hear one more person lecturing me about ‘resilience,’ I’ll deck him.”
Inevitably, turbulence in...
An agent friend was describing the sprawling and frenetic Netflix reception lobby, which was an almost weekly destination for him and clients. It was so packed with dealmakers that projects were often re-shaped and re-packaged even before the Netflix pitch took place.
Given news of 450 layoffs at the streamer, the pitching palace has become a cathedral of calm. With Netflix likely to lose 2 million global subscribers this quarter, its present priority is to trim costs while building an ad-supported tier to generate fresh revenue.
The behavior of Netflix employees has reflected this change. “I’m taking pitches for shows all morning, then checking out job possibilities in the afternoon,” reports one Netflix executive I’ve known for years. “If I hear one more person lecturing me about ‘resilience,’ I’ll deck him.”
Inevitably, turbulence in...
- 6/30/2022
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
It was an intimate cocktail party. Tom Cruise wore a cheerful smile so I couldn’t resist the opportunity to test it. “For someone who’s just been fired, you look very happy,” I said. “Sumner Redstone figured you would be angry by the press release.”
“I’m not really fire-able, if that’s even a word,” Cruise replied, his smile intact. “Besides, prods from CEOs never anger me.”
The media briefly fed on the studio press release, but as it turned out, Redstone and Paramount went into retreat mode within a week. Paramount’s long-standing deal with Cruise’s production company had elapsed a month earlier, but the CEO forgot to check his facts before issuing his statement, so Cruise looked smart in ignoring the Hollywood rhetoric (details below).
The incident took place 15 years ago, but I was reminded of it this week as Cruise was again winning some important battles on his latest,...
“I’m not really fire-able, if that’s even a word,” Cruise replied, his smile intact. “Besides, prods from CEOs never anger me.”
The media briefly fed on the studio press release, but as it turned out, Redstone and Paramount went into retreat mode within a week. Paramount’s long-standing deal with Cruise’s production company had elapsed a month earlier, but the CEO forgot to check his facts before issuing his statement, so Cruise looked smart in ignoring the Hollywood rhetoric (details below).
The incident took place 15 years ago, but I was reminded of it this week as Cruise was again winning some important battles on his latest,...
- 5/26/2022
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
James Bond franchise architects Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli have been set to receive the 2022 Pioneer of the Year Award from the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation. The honor will be bestowed September 21 during a ceremony at the Beverly Hilton.
The Pioneer of the Year Award honors leaders in the movie industry whose career achievements and commitment to philanthropy is exemplary. The award, handed out for more than 70 years, is part of a gala to support the foundation’s Pioneers Assistance Fund, which provides financial assistance to individuals in need in the distribution and exhibition community.
Wilson and Broccoli have produced nine 007 films together: GoldenEye (1995), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The World Is Not Enough (1999), Die Another Day (2002), Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008), Skyfall (2012), Spectre (2015) and last year’s No Time to Die which marked the final Bond appearance by Daniel Craig.
“We are thrilled that Michael and Barbara will be receiving this well-deserved honor,...
The Pioneer of the Year Award honors leaders in the movie industry whose career achievements and commitment to philanthropy is exemplary. The award, handed out for more than 70 years, is part of a gala to support the foundation’s Pioneers Assistance Fund, which provides financial assistance to individuals in need in the distribution and exhibition community.
Wilson and Broccoli have produced nine 007 films together: GoldenEye (1995), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), The World Is Not Enough (1999), Die Another Day (2002), Casino Royale (2006), Quantum of Solace (2008), Skyfall (2012), Spectre (2015) and last year’s No Time to Die which marked the final Bond appearance by Daniel Craig.
“We are thrilled that Michael and Barbara will be receiving this well-deserved honor,...
- 4/21/2022
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
David Zaslav, who is famously gregarious and high-energy, has been oddly quiet lately with an absence of media interviews or social events on his schedule. Even his regular booth at the Polo Lounge has been somnolent.
That’s about to change: Zaslav arrived back in Hollywood yesterday and the industry has been forcefully reminded that “the deal” is real.
As federal regulators and other random bureaucrats remove their barriers, the long-awaited entity called Warner Bros. Discovery becomes a functioning reality in four short weeks.
There are high expectations of imminent moves that will impact the power structures spanning television, movies and news.
For over a year the managements of Warner Bros, CNN, HBO and beyond have labored in a bureaucratic cloud, with executives implementing policies they knew were likely evanescent.
So now starts the guessing game. Who will be anointed to fill the $43 billion power vacuum? Barred from occupying offices...
That’s about to change: Zaslav arrived back in Hollywood yesterday and the industry has been forcefully reminded that “the deal” is real.
As federal regulators and other random bureaucrats remove their barriers, the long-awaited entity called Warner Bros. Discovery becomes a functioning reality in four short weeks.
There are high expectations of imminent moves that will impact the power structures spanning television, movies and news.
For over a year the managements of Warner Bros, CNN, HBO and beyond have labored in a bureaucratic cloud, with executives implementing policies they knew were likely evanescent.
So now starts the guessing game. Who will be anointed to fill the $43 billion power vacuum? Barred from occupying offices...
- 2/17/2022
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
When you look at a show like Succession, it’s not difficult to draw real-life parallels between the Roy family and other prominent families in the media — in the show’s patriarch, Logan Roy, it’s not difficult to see similarities to media tycoons like Rupert Murdoch or the late Sumner Redstone, who was involved in a […]
The post Hmmm, Doesn’t Brian Cox’s ‘Succession’ Character Remind You Of Somebody? appeared first on Hollywood Outbreak.
The post Hmmm, Doesn’t Brian Cox’s ‘Succession’ Character Remind You Of Somebody? appeared first on Hollywood Outbreak.
- 10/20/2021
- by Hollywood Outbreak
- HollywoodOutbreak.com
A day after the European premiere of season three of his HBO series Succession at the London Film Festival, the show’s creator, Jesse Armstrong, took to the stage with comedian Nish Kumar to discuss the art of screenwriting.
In between dispensing pearls of wisdom for aspiring comedy writers, Armstrong recalled a varied and eclectic career that, surprisingly, began on children’s TV with shows such as ITV’s My Parents Are Aliens and BBC’s The Queen’s Nose.
Armstrong discussed his work with veteran writing partner Sam Bain, recalling how an unsuccessful pitch for a stoner comedy called Spencer, about a “mildly sarcastic” video store clerk, was a rare misfire for the duo, who went on to create popular Channel 4 shows such as Peep Show and Fresh Meat. They would go on to collaborate with Armando Iannucci on BBC’s...
In between dispensing pearls of wisdom for aspiring comedy writers, Armstrong recalled a varied and eclectic career that, surprisingly, began on children’s TV with shows such as ITV’s My Parents Are Aliens and BBC’s The Queen’s Nose.
Armstrong discussed his work with veteran writing partner Sam Bain, recalling how an unsuccessful pitch for a stoner comedy called Spencer, about a “mildly sarcastic” video store clerk, was a rare misfire for the duo, who went on to create popular Channel 4 shows such as Peep Show and Fresh Meat. They would go on to collaborate with Armando Iannucci on BBC’s...
- 10/16/2021
- by Damon Wise
- Deadline Film + TV
Tom Freston, a founder of the MTV network, once observed: “What’s fascinating about the future is that so many people claim to understand it.” In 2006, Freston, then CEO of Viacom, was fired by Sumner Redstone, who explained that “Freston doesn’t understand the future.” As it turned out, Redstone had failed to understand the present.
The incident was brought back to mind last week when Sumner’s daughter, Shari, led the charge to dismiss Jim Gianopulos as Paramount’s CEO. Again, “the future” was the issue. And the muddled leaks further confused the present.
Gianopulos’ departure had an “end of an era” aura to it because he and Disney’s Alan Horn have long been revered as movie statesmen, representing a supportive, mentoring style of studio management. Sony’s Tom Rothman remains the lone generational survivor – more on him below.
Inheriting the top film post at Paramount will be Brian Robbins,...
The incident was brought back to mind last week when Sumner’s daughter, Shari, led the charge to dismiss Jim Gianopulos as Paramount’s CEO. Again, “the future” was the issue. And the muddled leaks further confused the present.
Gianopulos’ departure had an “end of an era” aura to it because he and Disney’s Alan Horn have long been revered as movie statesmen, representing a supportive, mentoring style of studio management. Sony’s Tom Rothman remains the lone generational survivor – more on him below.
Inheriting the top film post at Paramount will be Brian Robbins,...
- 9/16/2021
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
Tom Cruise, now approaching age 60, has never reacted calmly to frustration. This week his carefully structured life was put on hold by delays of his two heralded mega movies: the Top Gun sequel and the seventh Mission: Impossible.
Can Hollywood survive another year without Cruise? Or can Cruise?
Star egos drift into paranoia even in the best of times and these are the worst, with celebrities worldwide finding themselves parked on the sidelines. Apart from movie delays, China now has declared war on celebrities and pop stars in general. Could others follow suit? (More on that below.)
Celebrity narcissism is normally cringe-inducing, but this time I empathize with Cruise for both his candor and tenacity. “I need the action,” Cruise once told me, a semi-crazed look in his eyes. He had just produced and starred in Lions for Lambs, a courageous anti-war movie about two young soldiers who’d served in Afghanistan.
Can Hollywood survive another year without Cruise? Or can Cruise?
Star egos drift into paranoia even in the best of times and these are the worst, with celebrities worldwide finding themselves parked on the sidelines. Apart from movie delays, China now has declared war on celebrities and pop stars in general. Could others follow suit? (More on that below.)
Celebrity narcissism is normally cringe-inducing, but this time I empathize with Cruise for both his candor and tenacity. “I need the action,” Cruise once told me, a semi-crazed look in his eyes. He had just produced and starred in Lions for Lambs, a courageous anti-war movie about two young soldiers who’d served in Afghanistan.
- 9/9/2021
- by Peter Bart
- Deadline Film + TV
“I want to have the real deal. I want to be able to get married and have a baby,” 39-year-old pop legend Britney Spears told a Los Angeles judge on Wednesday.
In an emotional, 23-minute plea to L.A. Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny, Spears went on to detail exactly how the conditions of her conservatorship are standing in the way of her modest goals, referring specifically to her desire to have her intrauterine device, or Iud, a form of long-term birth control, removed. Spears said her guardians oppose the decision.
In an emotional, 23-minute plea to L.A. Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny, Spears went on to detail exactly how the conditions of her conservatorship are standing in the way of her modest goals, referring specifically to her desire to have her intrauterine device, or Iud, a form of long-term birth control, removed. Spears said her guardians oppose the decision.
- 6/25/2021
- by Tessa Stuart
- Rollingstone.com
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