Despite several discouraging setbacks on his way to sealing a deal to purchase Warner Bros., David Ellison, the CEO of Paramount Skydance, is not giving up. In his latest attempt to ease tensions over the industry-changing merger, Ellison is rolling out a new “make-good” for theater owners, pledging that the combined company will release at least 30 movies per year if the deal goes through.
Guarantees, Penalties, and the Threat of Media Monopoly
To prove his sincerity, Ellison is promising a traditional theatrical window for over 30 films per year, alongside scheduled home-release dates. Bloomberg reports that Paramount is offering binding three-year contracts to AMC and Regal, guaranteeing an exclusive 45-day theatrical run and a 90-day streaming moratorium, backed by financial penalties, to placate antitrust lawsuits from 12 state attorneys general. But while this terms-in-writing tactic aims to ease fears of output hoarding, it completely glosses over the merger’s scariest threat: media monopoly. The deal gives Paramount Skydance massive leverage over basic cable and news media, stoking legitimate concerns that Ellison could transform mainstream news outlets into far-right commentary networks.
Quantity Doesn’t Guarantee Quality
Another significant concern about the proposal is who decides which movies get released. What if the 30 movies are bombs? While Ellison isn’t in charge of a film’s quality or appeal, data can tell us which movies are box-office risks. Which pile will he choose from? What’s to stop Paramount from keeping the lion’s share of the potential blockbusters?
“In my career, ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation’ met financial expectations, ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ exceeded them, and ‘Terminator: Dark Fate’ fell short. I am proud of all these films, but nobody can dictate what audiences will love,” he wrote. “What I can promise is the work, and more of it.”
Why Fight for a Studio Falling Behind at the Box Office?
It’s worth noting that Paramount isn’t producing the year’s box-office burners, with movies like Pixar’s Toy Story 5, Universal’s The Odyssey, Sony and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and Lionsgate’s Michael among the biggest sellers in 2026. Why fight this hard if the studio isn’t releasing top-tier blockbusters? The answer likely lies beyond theatrical box office returns, in global IP control, streaming leverage, and broadcast power.
What do you think about Ellison sweetening the pot while the merger encounters one stumbling block after another? Can Ellison be trusted to share the best movies with theater chains? Does the idea of Paramount controlling more news networks disturb you? It should. Let us know in the comments section below.
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