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Paramount Global is set to be taken over by film production company Skydance. The move is widely interpreted as marking the end of an era for the Redstone family, who has wielded significant influence over Hollywood and the broader American popular culture scene as the owners of Paramount for the past three decades.
Bloomberg reports that Paramount has agreed to sell National Amusements, a family-owned company with about 77% of the stakes in Paramount Global, to Skydance. The transaction is valued at approximately $2.4 billion. Shari Redstone, daughter of former chairman Sumner Redstone, commented, “As a longtime production partner to Paramount, Skydance knows Paramount well and has a clear strategic vision and the resources to take it to its next growth stage. We believe in Paramount, and we always will.”
Skydance is acquiring National Amusements and taking over management rights, which has led to the dominant view that Skydance has acquired Paramount.
Founded in 1912, Paramount is a major studio representing Hollywood, known for investing in and distributing notable works such as The Godfather and Titanic. Since Sumner Redstone acquired it in 1994, the company has expanded its affiliates to CBS and MTV, continuing its aggressive management. However, it has recently faced difficulties due to massive debt and an overambitious expansion into the streaming business.
Skydance was founded in 2006 by David Ellison, the son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. Its notable works include The Terminator, Mission Impossible, and Top Gun: Maverick.
Regarding this merger, Bloomberg evaluated it as the “Ending Redstone Era,” and the AP interpreted it as “the end of a family reign in Hollywood and the emergence of a new power.”
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