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California AG says no settlement talks scheduled with Paramount. Wednesday, 26 Aug 2026 | 7:28 AM MYT LOS ANGELES Aug 25 (Reuters) - California Attorney General Rob Bonta said on Tuesday there are no settlement talks scheduled with Paramount Skydance to resolve the antitrust suit seeking to block the studio's proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery. Bonta said he canceled a scheduled Monday meeting after details of confidential settlement discussions leaked to the press, which he said was "unacceptable." "If they are willing to clean things up... and engage in a way that is sincere and in good faith, we will be where we always will be with any party in any case that we're involved in, which is happy to meet," Bonta said at a press conference on public safety issues. Paramount has pushed for a settlement in the case, which is the last hurdle to the deal along with a parallel lawsuit by the Writer's Guild of America. The company faces amountain of fees and coststo keep the deal together if Bonta's lawsuit continues to a trial scheduled for March. Bonta and other states have so far won key rulings, giving them leverage if settlement talks continue. The studio said it was not the source of the leaks. A Paramount spokesperson on Monday said the company shares "Bonta's concerns about the public discussions and misreporting that has surrounded this deal." Bonta reiterated his concerns that the merger of two major Hollywood studios would result in higher prices for consumers, less choice and lower quality films and television series. He also cited a report from Los Angeles county that predicted 4,500 film and television jobs would be lost within three years of the companies combining their operations, exacting an economic toll on the community. The attorneys general are seeking remedies that address their concerns about the deal's potential impact on widely released films and basic cable TV service. "They know exactly what I'm asking for, and it's incumbent upon them if they wish to make proposals that align with what I'm looking for and what the other attorneys general are looking for," Bonta said. "They haven't." Bonta said promises to release a combined 30 films a year from Paramount and Warner Bros fall short of the remedies he and other attorneys general are seeking. (Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles, Editing by Franklin Paul, Cynthia Osterman and Nick Zieminski) Is this article useful?

California cancels potential settlement talks with Paramount. Aug. 24, 2026, 3:33 p.m. PT California's Attorney General abruptly canceled a Monday meeting with representatives from Paramount Skydance, which would have brought the two groups together to start discussing a potential settlement of the state's antitrust lawsuit challenging the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger. The attorney general, Rob Bonta, confirmed in a statement on Aug. 24 that his office had "pulled down this meeting," specifically accusing Paramount of leaking and misrepresenting parts of the settlement, and noted that Paramount's leadership had demonstrated "a lack of good faith." "As soon as Paramount stops playing games and engages sincerely, my office is happy to meet again," Bonta said in his statement. Bonta's accusations likely refer to a Wall Street Journal article published over the weekend that included confidential details of the potential settlement discussions. A spokesperson for Paramount told NBC News that the company also shared Bonta's concerns regarding "misreporting that has surrounded this deal." "As we have assured the Attorney General's office, Paramount has not been the source of the leaks of any of our confidential discussions with the AG's office," the Paramount spokesperson told NBC News. How the legal battle over the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger escalated. Bonta's decision to cancel talks with Paramount representatives is the latest twist in the controversial merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, after the companies announced on Feb. 27, 2026, that the pair had reached a $110.9 billion agreement. Prior to Monday's canceled meeting, Bonta had maintained a firm position that the state would pursue an antitrust lawsuit against the merger. Earlier in the month, Bonta even criticized Paramount's leadership, claiming they are attempting to "blackmail the state into letting an illegal deal" to fast-track the state's lawsuit. Specifically, David Ellison, the CEO of Paramount Skydance, is threatening to move the company out of California starting in October unless the state's attorney general agrees to resolve the merger via a settlement. "In a span of weeks, Paramount agreed to halt the merger until a court decision or until June 2027, asked for a November trial, and is now back with another attempt to blackmail the state into letting an illegal deal through," Bonta said on X. "Paramount has lost the plot as it continues to lose in court." Would a Paramount-Warner Bros merger lead to fewer movies? On July 13, California and several other states announced they would sue to block the proposed merger between Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Skydance, saying it would lead to higher prices, lower quality, and less content for film and television - among other alleged harms. The lawsuit argued that the merger would create a "media behemoth" and also "likely to substantially harm competition." Between the two movie studios, Warner Bros. and Paramount, create programming for movie theaters, audiences, and cable television distributors, and employ thousands throughout the entertainment industry. The attorneys general argue that the industry would be harmed if the merger were to go through as planned. The states point to previous media consolidation as a warning sign. After Disney acquired 21st Century Fox in 2019, the once-prolific 20th Century Fox film label was dramatically scaled back. Fox released an average of 16 films annually in the decade before the merger, but the studio is scheduled to release just six titles in 2026 and three in 2027. Antitrust critics contend the Paramount-Warner Bros. deal could similarly reduce the number of films and television projects produced, shrinking opportunities for workers, creators and consumers. Paramount CEO David Ellison has pushed back on concerns that consolidation would result in fewer films. Since announcing the deal, Ellison has pledged that the combined company would increase movie production, arguing that the merger would provide the scale and financial resources needed to make more theatrical releases and invest in a broader slate of films. Critics, however, note that similar promises were made during Disney's acquisition of 21st Century Fox. Paramount threatens to move studio out of California. About a week after the lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Paramount informed the court that it would not proceed with the lawsuit until June 1, 2026, unless the judge issued a ruling before then, according to court documents. However, on Aug. 5, Ellison met with his 12-member senior executive team to discuss plans to potentially move the company to another state starting Oct. 1, if talks between Bonta and the company did not budge, according to Puck News. Paramount Pictures is one of the oldest film studios based in California, founded in Los Angeles in 1912 and maintaining a presence in the state for over 100 years. Although Bonta initially slammed the idea of reaching a settlement agreement with Paramount, Xavier Becerra, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee and former Attorney General for California, urged the attorney general to settle the lawsuit during POLITICO's The California Agenda: Sacramento Summit. Becerra shared that antitrust lawsuits are "very difficult" to win and urged his predecessor to consider a settlement and pursue a deal that would benefit California's entertainment industry and families. "At the end of the day, is it good for the entertainment community in California? Does it benefit California families to have another merger occur?" Becerra said during the summit on Aug. 11. "I hope it settles before court. It is easier to stand in a conference room to settle than it is to stand in a courtroom." Noe Padilla is a Northern California Reporter for USA Today. Contact him at [email protected], follow him on X @1NoePadilla or on Bluesky @noepadilla.bsky.social. Sign up for the TODAY Californian newsletter or follow us on Facebook at TODAY Californian.

L.A. Mayor Karen Bass throws her support behind paramount-warner Bros. Discovery settlement. The mayor previously stated that she opposed the $111 billion merger deal unless jobs were preserved in the transaction. August 20, 2026 2:04pm Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has changed her tone on the proposed merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery. The mayor, who is running for reelection this year, previously opposed the $111 billion deal unless it avoided loss of jobs. But in a news conference on Thursday, Bass urged Paramount Skydance and California attorney general Rob Bonta to come to a quick settlement on the antitrust lawsuit from 12 state regulators that is currently challenging the transaction. "While there are varying perspectives on the proposed transaction, today we are united around one clear message: It is time for all parties to come to the table. The continued uncertainty is not good for workers, not good for productions and not good for the future of this industry," Bass said in a press conference. Bass added, "Too many productions are at a standstill, which means Angelenos are out of a job and they're not getting paid. As mayor, I cannot stand by as the job security of thousands of hardworking union members is being put at risk. That is why we are calling on Paramount, Attorney General Rob Bonta and all relevant parties to come together, engage directly and in good faith and work urgently to find common ground and keep our vital industry in Los Angeles." The remarks arrived one day after a report from the L.A. Department of Economic Opportunity and CVL Economics estimated that thousands of corporate, creative and production jobs will be at risk if the merger goes through. The report also pegged potential lost waves at $1.26 billion and lost economic value at $2.78 billion. Her statements prompted a sharp rebuke from the Writers Guild of America West union, which is opposed to the merger and has filed its own lawsuit to stop it. "We are disappointed that Mayor Bass has chosen to join Paramount's pressure campaign on public enforcers, to push through a merger that is being rightfully challenged as illegal and will lead to job losses in the entertainment industry," the union said in a statement on Thursday. "Her statement comes on the heels of a county report estimating thousands of jobs will be lost if the merger proceeds." The union continued, "Industry workers deserve a mayor who believes in upholding the law and protecting the working people of Los Angeles, not serving the interests of powerful corporations." Bass' remarks arrive as several major entertainment organizations have similarly called for a hasty settlement. Cinema United, the movie theater trade organization, once vociferously opposed to the merger, backed off on Tuesday and called for a settlement to avoid industry uncertainty. The previous week two unions, the Directors Guild of America and IATSE, also asked both sides of the antitrust lawsuit to come together and hash out a deal before the scheduled trial date of March 2027. IATSE's political division in California previously endorsed Bass in her run for mayor, citing her frequent communication with the union and efforts to boost production in L.A. You May Like