Business Daily, Power Players: Can the Paramount–Warner merger survive?

Business Daily

Power Players: Can the Paramount–Warner merger survive?

16 July 2026

Available for over a year

This week, Will and Michelle speak to Reuters entertainment business correspondent Dawn Chmielewski about how the Paramount–Warner merger could reshape Hollywood. Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery want to combine in a $110 billion deal that would create an entertainment giant. Executives say it's the only way to survive the streaming wars, but now twelve attorneys general, regulators and a host of creators are saying "no deal". So how do Paramount and CEO David Ellison make this deal a reality? And what could it mean for what's on our screens, big, small or handheld?

Presenters: Will Bain and Michelle Fleury

Producer: Rebecca Smyllie

Editor: Stephen Ryan

You can email the team: businessdaily@bbc.co.uk

(Picture: California Attorney General Rob Bonta holds a press conference as he announces California will be suing to block Paramount's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery in Los Angeles, California, U.S. July 13, 2026. Credit: REUTERS/Daniel Cole)