Paramount Global looks to be finally closing in on a buyer and out of the long list of suitors that it has attracted in the past six months, it’s Skydance Media that’s reached a preliminary deal to buy it, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters today (July 3).
The two companies aren’t strangers to each other, having worked together on producing movies like the action blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick and sci-fi favorite Star Trek Into Darkness. But before you get too excited about the potential merger and what that will mean for Paramount’s streaming service, there’s still the chance that it might fall through.
The Wall Street Journal reported when it originally broke the story that the deal also included a 45-day period where bidders can still submit offers, which is why there have been recent reports like this one from CNBC that said potential bidders like Warner Bros. Discovery and Comcast’s NBCUniversal are circling again.
Negotiations for a potential Paramax Plus had fallen through in February only to be picked up again by Peacock, which was later joined by Sony in April, so there are still plenty of candidates in the race. The companies will be able to make alternative offers up until August 17 based on the grace period, which is when we’ll likely next hear if the deal with Skydance will go ahead.
How would Skydance change Paramount Plus?
Paramount Global is home to iconic film studios behind classics like Titanic, Indiana Jones, and The Godfather, the broadcaster CBS, cable networks like MTV Entertainment and Nickelodeon, and of course its streaming arm, which includes Paramount Plus and its FAST service Pluto TV.
By joining with Skydance, Paramount will have access to its ventures in TV, which has worked on shows like Grace and Frankie, Reacher and Foundation, interactive entertainment such as virtual reality content, and its animation studio, which made Luck. Could this mean we see it expand its animation department off the back of a potential deal? Marrying both companies’ smarts in the area would be an advantageous move but nothing’s certain.
It could also eventuate that a deal is reached that doesn’t include all of Paramount Global’s current assets. A day before the announcement of the Paramount and Skydance preliminary deal, Bloomberg reported that Paramount executives were renewing talks to sell off its Black Entertainment Television (BET) network assets, which includes the streaming service BET Plus.
Nothing as of yet has been finalized so there’s still time to enjoy the best Paramount Plus movies and best Paramount Plus shows. As the younger media business, can Skydance save the old Hollywood company Paramount by the brim of its fedora hat (much like Indie was able to in Temple of Doom)? Or will it be the tragic sinking ship we saw in Titanic?
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amelia.schwanke@futurenet.com (Amelia Schwanke)
