One of Hollywood's founding studios has put a date on a possible departure from California, and Texas is among the three states it is considering.
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison is prepared to begin relocating the company's operations out of California as soon as October unless its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery is resolved through a settlement with state Attorney General Rob Bonta, Variety reported, confirming reporting first published by the newsletter Puck.
The mechanics
The obstacle is an antitrust suit brought by 12 states seeking to block the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger. Ellison told senior executives at an Aug. 5 meeting that if the deal does not close by Sept. 30, the company begins exiting California on Oct. 1, and that the Paramount Skydance board has signed off, according to Variety.
Paramount has not selected a destination. Variety reported the company is weighing Georgia, Texas and Tennessee. Ellison's rationale, as he described it to his leadership team, was financial: lower taxes and more business-friendly policies, particularly once a "ticking fee" payable to Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders begins. He also raised the possibility of selling the company's Los Angeles studio lots.
Bonta responded on X, calling the plan an "attempt to blackmail the state into letting an illegal deal through" and saying, "It didn't work the first time, on the eve of our July lawsuit, and it won't work this time." He has said any settlement would require structural remedies such as divestitures rather than behavioral commitments. Paramount declined to comment.
