Regulatory approval now stands as the final major hurdle for the largest media merger in a decade.The creative community and state attorneys general are mounting unusual opposition to the deal’s market dominance.
Paramount’s stock dipped despite a rich premium offer, revealing investor anxiety over Warner Bros.’ declining TV empire.
In a landslide vote that sent shockwaves through the entertainment industry, Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders have greenlit a monumental $110 billion acquisition of Paramount Skydance, paving the way for a new media behemoth.
The approval, announced Wednesday following a special meeting, saw an overwhelming majority of WBD stockholders endorse the merger agreement, a decision that immediately triggered a 3.8% drop in Paramount’s share price as markets recalibrated expectations for the supersized union.
While the vote was widely anticipated—given unanimous board support and favorable recommendations from multiple proxy advisory firms—the scale of the transaction has ignited fierce resistance from Hollywood unions, creatives, and a coalition of Democratic state attorneys general who have vowed rigorous scrutiny.
Pending clearance from federal regulators, the deal is now targeted to close in the third quarter of 2026. The financial mechanics of the merger have drawn particular attention: Paramount offered $31 per share at a time when Warner Bros. stock languished near $8 just one year ago, a massive premium that proved irresistible to most investors.
Yet the broader financial picture reveals deepening troubles beneath the surface. Warner Bros. closed 2025 with $37.3 billion in revenue, a 5% decline year-over-year, even as its studio division posted banner results.
The stark contrast lies in the company’s rapidly eroding television unit—home to CNN, Discovery, and Cartoon Network—which generates nearly half of all revenue but has become an accelerating drag on the entire enterprise. With this merger, Wall Street is now betting that size alone can offset structural decay, a gamble that has left analysts deeply divided.
