Skydance's Perrette names seven departing executives

JB Perrette, co-chair and chief business officer of Skydance's TV and direct-to-consumer divisions, named seven Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount executives who are leaving as part of the new structure. Perrette's internal memo, reported by Deadline, lists Dan Barnes, head of global ad revenue for HBO Max; Michael Bishara, EVP and GM of global streaming and digital networks at Warner Bros. Discovery; Jamie Cooke, EVP of Central Europe, Middle East, Turkey and Africa for Warner Bros. Discovery; Domenic DiMeglio, chief marketing and data officer for Paramount Streaming; Marco Nobili, international GM of Paramount+; Pank Patel, head of Paramount's international media networks; and Juan Sola, head of Latin American streaming for Warner Bros. Discovery. Perrette wrote that his role "purposefully bridges DTC and TV" and that the new structure would have "some leaders more dedicated to TV and others to DTC, and many leaders wearing both hats."

Efrain Miron, EVP and head of content strategy and licensing for Paramount direct-to-consumer, is stepping away from his current post to "explore other opportunities within the company," Perrette wrote. The memo also left the head of Pluto TV open, a post Perrette is seeking to fill with a leader who can harmonize the free service with subscription siblings Paramount+ and HBO Max. Tom Ryan, who co-founded the free streamer, and Jeff Schultz both left former parent Paramount over the past two years and were not replaced, Deadline reported. Pluto launched in 2014 and has been surpassed by Tubi and the Roku Channel.

The deal behind the memo

Perrette's memo followed Paramount's $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, which closed on 6 October. The combined company was renamed Skydance, with David Ellison as chairman and CEO and Ynon Kreiz as co-CEO. Perrette, who spearheaded the global expansion of HBO Max, is one of the few Warner Bros. Discovery executives to remain in a top Skydance role after the close.

In a separate memo titled "Day 1," Ellison and Kreiz told staff the integration "will bring change, including difficult decisions that affect our workforce." They said the combined company has nearly $70 billion in annual revenue and is targeting at least $6 billion in synergies, after Paramount had earlier set a goal of more than $6 billion in annualized savings over three years. Skydance has not disclosed how many jobs it expects to eliminate or on what timetable.

The deal closed less than a week after a federal judge in California approved a settlement between Paramount and 12 states that had sued to block it, AFP reported. Skydance shares ended their first day of trading down 2.7 per cent on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "SKYD."

Where the job exposure sits

Warner Bros.' production teams employed about 7,500 of Warner Bros. Discovery's 35,000 staffers, according to Variety figures cited by the New York Post before the deal closed. The Post also reported that Paramount peaked at nearly 20,000 employees in August, before Ellison laid off about 1,000 with plans to cut 1,000 more.

An August report commissioned by the Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity and the LA County Film Office projected up to 4,500 direct film and TV jobs at risk over three years, and more than 10,000 job-years exposed once indirect employment is counted. The report projected potential economic effects, not announced Skydance layoffs.

Gregory Orr, grandson of Warner Bros. founder Jack Warner, told the Hollywood Reporter that Paramount's "high debt," a combined $79 billion once the deal closes according to Ellison, "will lead to downsizing and consolidation at Warner Bros." Former FTC commissioner Alvaro Bedoya said on social media after the settlement cleared the deal: "Layoffs will follow."