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Paramount's CEO trio told employees it was "business as usual" until its mega merger with Skydance formally closes, while reminding them that layoffs loom.
Paramount's board approved the merger Sunday, marking the end of tumultuous talks that were nearly torpedoed in June when owner Shari Redstone walked away from the negotiations.
Skydance CEO David Ellison, the son of Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, will serve as chairman and CEO of the newly combined company, and former NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell will serve as its president.
Still, the deal is far from sealed — and may yet face Federal Trade Commission (FTC) scrutiny over antitrust concerns.
In a note to staff obtained by Deadline, Paramount co-CEOs George Cheeks, Brian Robbins, and Chris McCarthy said the transaction would likely close in the first half of 2025, due to "regulatory approvals" and other factors.
Until then, the execs are moving forward with a plan that includes "streamlining teams, eliminating duplicative functions and reducing the size of our workforce," they wrote. They also said Paramount would explore "divesting some of our assets."
A rep for Paramount declined to comment on who would be impacted by the layoffs.
The trio had discussed job cuts earlier this year. At an investor meeting in June, they shared plans to run Paramount as a stand-alone company.
This included $500 million in cuts, The Los Angeles Times reported, including layoffs, asset sales, and a joint venture for Paramount+.
At a town hall meeting last month, the CEOs said they'd made progress in identifying duplicative roles, Variety reported, including in the legal and corporate marketing departments, but did not provide a timeline.
In February, Paramount cut 800 jobs — about 3% of its workforce.
In terms of potential asset sales, Variety reported that BET, VidCon, and the Paramount Pictures lot could be in play.
