Paramount TV studios to shut down as Shari Redstone-led media giant begins slashing 2K jobs ahead of likely Skydance merger
The famed Paramount Television Studios will fade to black as part of a wider cost-cutting effort by parent Paramount Global ahead of its expected merger with Skydance Media, company brass said.
The entertainment giant’s three co-chief executive officers announced the closure of the studio – known for producing shows like “The Offer,” “Reacher” and “13 Reasons Why” – along with the start of a mass culling that began whacking 2,000 jobs Tuesday.
In a memo to staff, Paramount Global co-CEO George Cheeks said the decision to close the studio isn’t based on its performance, but rather “the result of significant changes in the TV and streaming marketplace and the need to streamline our company.”
Current TV shows and development projects will transition to Paramount’s sister production unit, CBS Studios, he said, noting that well-respected Paramount Studios head Nicole Clemens, will leave the company as a result.
Her departure follows other bigwigs who have been pushed to the sidelines by the debt-riddled conglomerate – home to CBS, MTV, BET, Nickelodeon, the Hollywood movie studio and the Paramount+ streaming service.
Last week, longtime “CBS Evening News” anchor Norah O’Donnell announced she will exit the last-place broadcast after the 2024 presidential election.
The network also announced a major overhaul to the nightly news show’s format.
Those decisions came after the ouster in June of controversial CBS News president Ingrid Ciprian-Matthews.
Paramount bosses said Tuesday that the job cuts would be carried out in three phases and would continue throughout the rest of the year.
It is anticipated that 90% of the cuts would be completed by the end of next month, according to the memo obtained by The Post.
“The industry continues to evolve, and Paramount is at an inflection point where changes must be made to strengthen our business,” the co-CEOs — Brian Robbins, Chris McCarthy and Cheeks — wrote in the memo.
“We know that having to part ways with teammates whose contributions have been instrumental to our success is incredibly hard,” they added.
Paramount announced it would lay off 15% of its workforce and wrote down the value of its cable networks by nearly $6 billion as it reported its earnings last week.
During a call with analysts, McCarthy, who heads Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks, said the cuts will be primarily in marketing and communications departments at the company, with some “right-sizing” in other areas including legal, finance and other corporate functions.
The executives said they anticipated that the job cuts would save the company $500 million in annualized costs.
The stock has lost almost a third of its value so far this year.
Shares of Paramount ticked down 0.3% to $10.29 Tuesday.
Last month, Shari Redstone, the daughter of the late media mogul Sumner Redstone, reached an agreement to sell her controlling stake in Paramount Global to a group of investors led by Skydance founder David Ellison for $8 billion.
The deal has a 45-day “go-shop window” for better offers that ends Aug. 21.
A consortium that includes Skydance, RedBird Capital Partners and Ellison’s father, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, is expected to assume control of Paramount Global in the first half of next year.
