Skydance chiefs talk studio future & TV output

Skydance co-chief execs David Ellison and Ynon Kreiz plan to house TV and streaming productions in a single studio without cutting back on TV output, but the future of the company outside of the US remains largely unclear.

Ellison and Kreiz took questions on Tuesday evening following completion of the $111bn deal, which saw Paramount’s shares replaced by a Skydance ticker that dropped 3% on its first day of trading (WBD shares no longer exist).

As part of its settlement with US states, Ellison had already promised to retain both Paramount and Warner Bros lots in LA, and the plans for those hubs are now emerging.

Ellison said the company would “absolutey keep both lots and… you’ll probably see us organise one around film, and television and streaming on the other.”

The Santa Monica animation studio will also be retained, as well as its East Coast offices, but there was no mention of what would happen outside of the US.

International questions

Skydance’s interests outside of the States range from the operations of streamers HBO Max, Paramount+ and Discovery+, AVoD unit Pluto TV, and broadcasters such as Reemah Sakhaan’s 5 in the UK, Network 10 in Australia, and TVN in Poland.

It also houses sprawling production assets that include Ronald Goes’ Warner Bros International TV Production unit, as well as CBS Studios International.

Nothing about operations outside of the US was mentioned during the press gathering or on Skydance’s earlier global townhall on Tuesday evening, Broadcast International understands.

Ellison and Kreiz have laid out their global senior leadership team and it is believed once their respective structures have been formally set, more word on international plans will be confirmed. A timeline is not yet known.

Skydance also confirmed it had no immediate plans to sell off cable networks or merge its TV production divisions.

Kreiz said the decision to keep Warner Bros TV, CBS Studios and Paramount TV Studios separate entities was focused on retaining “scale” and added the company is “not looking to reduce production output.”

The three production units count around 150 TV shows between them and Kreiz said he expected them to operate “semi-autonomously” to retain their independence.

Ellison also addressed his relationship with president Donald Trump and looked to play down the reportedly close friendship.

“For absolute clarity, we have not talked to any political leader of any party about news, other than to say that we want to be in the truth business and we want to be in the trust business, and we believe in complete editorial independence,” he said.

Two key execs - co-chair and chief content officer for TV George Cheeks and Channing Dungey, previously Warner Bros TV chairman - also sent memos to their respective divisions.

Cheeks has taken on a far-reaching remit at Skydance, with direct reports set to include Dungey, CBS Studios chief David Stapf (who in turn has led CBS Studios’ international operations) and Paramount TV Studios boss Matt Thunell.

Cheeks pointed to the “signifcant” work ahead and the “opportunity” available to the enlarged US studio, while Dungey confirmed she would be looking after Paramount’s Media Networks unit, which includes MTV, Comedy Central and BET.

She reports into Cheeks and co-chair JB Perrette, who sits across TV and streaming, and admitted it had been a “stressful time” for employees.

Dungey added that she would try keep staff informed ubt added she did not “have all the answers today — some things will come into focus quickly, while others will take more time to figure out.”