Hollywood workers rally against Paramount-Skydance deal [View all]

Source: Reuters

June 6, 2026 9:22 PM EDT Updated 6 hours ago


LOS ANGELES, June 6 (Reuters) - As ​he spoke at a gathering on Saturday to protest Paramount Skydance's (PSKY.O), opens new tab proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD.O), opens new tab, stand-up comedian Adam Conover framed the ‌ongoing media consolidation as an existential threat to an industry that made the United States a cultural power. "It's about to die, and that's why I feel so passionately about this issue," he said.

Conover was a featured speaker on Saturday at an event billed as the first stop in a three-city “Main Street vs. The Merger” tour bringing together entertainment workers, small business owners and politicians who ​oppose Paramount Skydance's plan to absorb Warner Bros. Discovery in a $110 billion transaction.

About 100 people gathered at Lumiere Music Hall in Los Angeles for the ​event, which was organized by advocacy groups, the Writers Guild of America and industry workers who wanted to voice their concerns ⁠about the merger.

U.S. antitrust regulators appear poised to approve the combination, amid assurances from Paramount Skydance that the deal would not hurt other studios or creative talent. ​CEO David Ellison has pledged that the combined Paramount and Warner studios would stay productive by releasing at least 30 films a year. But a group of U.S. states including ​California and New York are preparing a lawsuit to block the deal, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/hollywood-workers-rally-against-paramount-skydance-deal-2026-06-07/