California takes aim at Hollywood’s biggest media merger
Eleven states also object, arguing it would lessen competition.
LOS ANGELES — California Attorney General Rob Bonta, along with 11 other attorneys general, filed a lawsuit on Monday challenging the $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (Warner Bros.) by Paramount Skydance Corporation (Paramount). It was filed after the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division approved the merger.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court of Northern California. Bonta argued in the complaint that the merger would lead to higher prices, lower quality, and less content, ending fair competition.
As two of the biggest distributors that compete in the media market, the Paramount-Warner Bros deal would become the largest merger in the history of Hollywood.
Paramount agreed to acquire Warner Bros of all outstanding shares for $31 per share, at $110 billion. It previously battled with Netflix for the distribution company, which briefly acquired WB in December 2025 for $72 million with $28 per share in equity.
In the complaint, the California Attorney General states the merger would violate the Clayton Act. The 1914 U.S. law prevents anti-competitive business practices, including price discrimination and creation of monopolies and threats of blackouts.
“The merger will combine two of the five central players in the theatrical film distribution arena, resulting in Paramount having a 30% market share of all high-value blockbuster theatrical releases, and a similar share of the basic cable market, while owning 50 television networks,” said Tre Lovell, a Los Angeles-based entertainment attorney at The Lovell Firm. “Hundreds of millions, if not billions, of people enjoy and often depend on film, television and entertainment content around the world, and such a merger can have a significant, if not detrimental, effect.”
The Paramount-Warner Bros. merger is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2026, pending the lawsuit from other states.
The previous Paramount merger occurred in 2025, when it acquired Skydance Media at $8 billion. Paramount’s legal name was previously Paramount Global but was then renamed Paramount Skydance Corporation after the merger took place.
The current CEO of Paramount is David Ellison, who was previously the CEO of Skydance Media. He is the son of billionaire tech tycoon Larry Ellison. Paramount also owns other media channels, including CBS, MTV and Comedy Central.
The plaintiffs in the complaint have also stated that the defendants have engaged in the disruption of interstate commerce. Other entertainment industry experts have argued the merger would result in fewer content choices.
“You’re losing a buyer and talent, and there’s one less buyer to pitch,” said Seth Sch achner, a mana ging director of the Los Angeles-based media consulting firm Strat Americas. “Monopoly is an issue in the suit, poised to lose the buying of talent.”
The suit also notes the possibility of high-ticket prices at theaters. Paramount and Warner Bros. had been the biggest distribution competitors in Hollywood for decades.
It was reported in the Hollywood Reporter that Ellison was considering moving the company headquarters out of California during the ongoing lawsuit.
The company had argued the merger was necessary to compete with streaming tech giants, including Netflix, Apple and Amazon.
Bonta and the 11 attorneys general will continue to block the merger while it aims to complete the transaction.