00:00More than 2,000 film and television stars and creatives, including Joaquin Phoenix, Florence Pugh, Pedro Pascal, Ben Stiller, Bryan
00:08Cranston, and Jane Fonda,
00:10have now signed an open letter expressing unequivocal opposition to Paramount Skydance's pending $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.
00:20The letter warns the deal would further consolidate an already strained media landscape, reducing the number of major U.S.
00:28film studios to just four.
00:29And resulting in fewer opportunities for creators, fewer jobs, and less choice for audiences.
00:35The Justice Department is currently reviewing the merger on antitrust grounds,
00:39and the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority announced it expects to launch a formal investigation in the coming weeks.
00:46If completed, the deal would create the largest media conglomerate in U.S. history,
00:51spanning news, sports, movies, video games, theme parks, and more,
00:55all controlled by Paramount chairman David Ellison, a vocal supporter of President Trump.
01:01Paramount responded to the letter pledging to release a minimum of 30 high-quality feature films annually,
01:07with full theatrical releases, and saying the merger would give creators more avenues for their work, not fewer.
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