\n\tAs the new reality set in, the questions multiplied.<\/p>\n
\n\tParamount<\/a> Skydance shocked the entertainment industry on Feb. 26 with the news that it had reached an agreement <\/a>to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery<\/a>, muscling aside Netflix to pull off the kind of come-from-behind victory that is usually the stuff of inspirational sports movies.<\/p>\n \n\tIn the days that followed, industry insiders circulated during a busy pre-Oscars awards season weekend in Los Angeles that included the Producers Guild Awards, the Actor Awards and the Eddie Awards. The upshot was a lot of tongues wagging about a deal that will surely change the Hollywood landscape as two pillars of the town \u2014 Warner Bros. and HBO \u2014 are absorbed into the Paramount Skydance structure. Yes, those assets have changed hands twice in less than six years (to AT&T and then Discovery Inc.) \u2014 but they\u2019ve never been taken over by a direct-rival media firm with a whole lot of overlapping operations.<\/p>\n \n\tThere\u2019s a sense of whiplash around WBD because the tables turned so quickly in favor of David Ellison<\/a>\u2019s Paramount Skydance despite Netflix having a signed agreement. There\u2019s also a sense of mourning for an era that is clearly ending.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cFor those of us in our 50s, we grew up with HBO and Warner Bros. being a gold standard. So to have those things change is very difficult. It\u2019s emotional,\u201d Scott Stuber, an alum of Netflix and Universal Pictures, told Variety at the PGAs. \u201cIt\u2019s a big change.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThe scope of that change promises to be stunning. Here are key ques- tions that inquiring minds want answered sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n \t\t1.) Warner Bros. Pictures Is Riding High \u2014 Will It Matter?\t<\/p>\n \n\tArguably no one in Hollywood has a hotter hand than Warner Bros. Pictures co-heads Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy. The film chiefs have topped the box office with blockbusters like \u201cWeapons\u201d and \u201cA Minecraft Movie.\u201d And they\u2019ve established a reputation for betting on visionary filmmakers like Paul Thomas Anderson (\u201cOne Battle After Another\u201d) and Ryan Coogler (\u201cSinners\u201d), which paid off with 30 Oscar nominations in 2025. But Ellison already has Josh Greenstein and Dana Goldberg in place at Paramount Pictures. Will he allow De Luca and Abdy to operate as a separate island, or will he put too many layers of authority over them, making it hard for them to stick around? There\u2019s also skepticism that the combined studios can come up with the 30 theatrical releases Ellison has promised to deliver <\/a>annually. And then there\u2019s the treasure required to produce such a sprawling slate. Most major studio releases cost $75 million to $200 million, and if the sale goes through, Warner Bros. and Paramount might not have a lot of cash to throw around.<\/p>\n \t\t2.) It\u2019s Not TV \u2014 It\u2019s a Tile on Paramount+?\t<\/p>\n \n\tWhat will become of HBO? That\u2019s a question that people inside and outside WBD want answered ASAP. Less urgent but still a source of curiosity is whether the HBO Max brand simply goes away. Speaking to Wall Street analysts on March 2, Ellison indicated that HBO and its CEO, Casey Bloys, will retain some autonomy<\/a>. \u201cWe do plan for that to be able to operate with independence,\u201d Ellison said, \u201cso that HBO can, candidly, do what it does incredibly well. \u2026 But by bringing the platforms together, all of our content will be able to reach even a broader audience than we can do stand-alone.\u201d Ellison faced no questions about HBO Max, which probably is the answer in itself.<\/p>\n \t\t3.) Can WB and Paramount Avoid Debtor\u2019s Prison?\t<\/p>\n \n\tThe media and entertainment industry\u2019s consolidation binge has been fueled by debt, and the WBD-Paramount merger is no exception. On a call with analysts on Monday, Ellison acknowledged that the combined company will be saddled with a staggering $79 billion in debt but was optimistic that $6 billion in cost savings would be achieved thanks to synergies. But that still leaves the company highly leveraged \u2014 exactly the same situation that led David Zaslav and his team to find a buyer for Warner Bros. Discovery. It\u2019s also the predicament that previous owner AT&T faced <\/a>when it sold the company less than four years ago. That\u2019s the thing about borrowing money: At some point, it needs to be repaid.<\/p>\n \t\t4.) Who Does David Ellison Think He Is?\t<\/p>\n \n\tNobody would deny that Ellison, who has snagged two of Hollywood\u2019s legendary studios in record time, has chutzpah. And as the son of a centibillionaire, he\u2019s got deep pockets. What Ellison lacks, however, is a track record of successfully running a major conglomerate. Skydance, the production company he founded in 2006, had some wins, including co-financing \u201cTop Gun: Maverick\u201d and five \u201cMission: Impossible\u201d films. Outside of the Tom Cruise business, things were bumpier. Most of Skydance\u2019s biggest movies were based on IP that was around long before its founding. The films that Ellison\u2019s team developed were more of a mixed bag, including such forgettable fare as \u201cFountain of Youth\u201d and \u201cHeart of Stone.\u201d It\u2019s not exactly the kind of CV that would make Irving G. Thalberg jealous.<\/p>\n \t\t5.) What\u2019s Next for Netflix?\t<\/p>\n