David Ellison has unveiled the senior leadership team that will oversee Skydance Corp. as the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger approaches its official closing.
Ellison will serve as chairman and CEO of the combined company, working alongside incoming co-CEO Ynon Kreiz. The former Mattel chief joins Skydance starting Monday. The merged operation’s movie studios, television networks and streaming businesses will report to both executives.
“I’m incredibly proud to introduce the team that will lead Skydance forward, a group that reflects the ambition behind this historic combination,” Ellison said in a statement. “Together, Paramount and Warner Bros. will form a creative-first home with the scale, imagination and technology to define entertainment for a generation.”
Movies, television and streaming
Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein will lead the film division as co-chairs of Skydance Motion Picture Group. Both previously served as co-chairs of Paramount Pictures. Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group leaders Pamela Abdy and Michael De Luca will not join the new company.
DC Studios will remain under co-chairmen James Gunn and Peter Safran, who are both part of Ellison’s business leadership team.
George Cheeks, previously chair of TV media at Paramount Skydance, has been named co-chair and chief content officer of Skydance TV.
On the direct-to-consumer side, HBO and HBO Max leader Casey Bloys will become co-chair and chief content officer of Skydance DTC. JB Perrette will hold dual responsibilities across the television and streaming operations, serving as co-chair and chief business officer of both Skydance TV and Skydance DTC. Perrette was previously Warner Bros. Discovery’s CEO and president of global streaming and games.
The appointments put Cheeks, Bloys, Goldberg, Greenstein, Gunn, Safran and Perrette on Skydance’s CEO business leadership team.
News and corporate leadership
Mark Thompson will continue to run CNN as CEO. Skydance’s announced news executive leadership lineup also identifies Thompson as chairman and editor-in-chief of CNN Worldwide. Bari Weiss will serve as editor-in-chief of CBS News.
Ellison and Kreiz will be supported by a six-member corporate leadership team. Andy Gordon has been appointed president, while Dennis Cinelli will serve as chief financial officer.
Makan Delrahim will take the roles of chief legal officer and president of global corporate affairs. Dane Glasgow has been named chief product officer, Rebecca Mall will serve as chief marketing officer, and Melissa Zukerman will become chief communications officer.
The structure places the combined company’s major creative, business, news and corporate functions beneath Ellison and Kreiz as Skydance prepares to absorb a collection of film, television, streaming and news operations.
The $111 billion combination
Ellison and his Paramount team reached the $111 billion agreement to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in February 2026. The transaction subsequently received regulatory clearances in 68 countries.
Its final approval arrived last week, when a judge approved Paramount’s settlement with 12 states. That settlement resolved an antitrust lawsuit brought in an effort to stop the merger.
The newly combined company takes the Skydance name from Ellison’s original independent movie production firm. It is expected to carry more than $80 billion in estimated net debt following the combination.
What Happens Next?
Kreiz is set to begin his role Monday as the merger officially closes and the new management structure takes effect. Skydance’s common stock is then scheduled to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange at the opening of trading on Tuesday, Oct. 6, under the ticker symbol “SKYD.”