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Paramount Skydance is preparing to cut around 2,000 jobs in the US, with further reductions expected globally, as the newly merged company begins a sweeping cost-reduction plan.
The layoffs, scheduled for the week of October 27, come under David Ellison’s leadership following Skydance Media’s $8 billion merger with Paramount Global. The cuts are part of a plan to save $2 billion, with much of the restructuring focused on the company’s linear TV operations.
In August, Jeff Shell, president of Paramount Skydance and former NBCUniversal CEO, said he expected the company to act quickly to deliver efficiencies before its third-quarter earnings report in November.
Traditional media pressures drive change
Paramount, the parent company of CBS, Paramount Pictures, Paramount+, Pluto TV, MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, and BET, has faced ongoing revenue declines as audiences shift from pay TV to streaming.
According to the company’s most recent SEC filing, Paramount employed 18,600 full- and part-time staff worldwide at the end of 2024, down from 24,500 two years earlier. A 3.5% reduction in domestic staff took place in June, just before the merger. Skydance, by comparison, has a workforce of “more than 500” employees, according to its website.
Despite the coming cuts, Paramount Skydance continues to invest heavily in new content. Within weeks of the merger, it announced a $7.7 billion, seven-year deal for exclusive UFC rights, a film partnership with Activision to adapt Call of Duty, and the $150 million acquisition of The Free Press, the media outlet founded by Bari Weiss. The company also signed the Duffer Brothers, creators of Stranger Things, to a four-year exclusive deal.
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Ellison eyes further expansion
While executing layoffs, Ellison is reportedly exploring another major acquisition - Warner Bros. Discovery - though the company’s initial $20-per-share offer was rejected as too low. The Ellison family, backed by Oracle founder Larry Ellison, retains 100% voting control of Paramount Skydance.
Since the merger, Ellison has made a series of senior hires to steer the new organization, including Makan Delrahim as chief legal officer, Dane Glasgow as chief product officer, Jay Askinasi as chief revenue officer, and veteran executives Cindy Holland, Dana Goldberg, and Josh Greenstein overseeing key film and streaming divisions. George Cheeks, who previously led CBS, remains in post as Chair of TV Media.
In a July presentation to investors, Shell said Bain & Co. had identified more than $2 billion in potential annualized savings, confirming that a significant share would come from streamlining legacy TV operations.
The layoffs are part of the first phase of Ellison’s declared strategy to transform Paramount Skydance into a more agile and profitable entertainment company.
