Paramount Global’s Debt Rating Downgraded to Junk by S&P

“The assumption on my part was always that Frasier had grown,” says Frasier EP and star Kelsey Grammer as he joined a panel for the Paramount+ series at Deadline’s TV Contenders. “He’s an older man now – wiser, smarter, hopefully funnier and a little less hysterical about some things but still a man of honed, refined tastes and insists on living well.”

We are right in the middle of that time of year where we learn whether shows are renewed or canceled, and we just found out what’s happening to two series in the Star Trek universe!

CinemaCon, looking to reassure movie theater owners and executives that they had what it takes to keep audiences flocking to cinemas through 2024 and beyond. And despite odes to the magic of the big screen experience, there was a whiff of desperation in the artificially-oxygenated, cigarette-perfumed air of Caesars Palace, where the annual exhibition trade show takes place.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Four members of Paramount Global‘s current 11 board of directors will step down, the company disclosed, coming as the company has stepped up talks with Skydance Media about an M&A deal. The four directors — Dawn Ostroff, former chief content and advertising business officer of Spotify; Nicole Seligman, former president of Sony Entertainment; Frederick Terrell, vice chairman of investment banking at Wells Fargo; and Rob Klieger, partner at Hueston Hennigan LLP, who had served as legal counsel to Sumner Redstone — will not stand for reelection at Paramount Global’s annual meeting, set for June 4.

After “Babylon” bombed in theaters in late 2022, many wondered what the future would hold for director Damien Chazelle, if he had any future in Hollywood left. Well, sorry to disappoint, Chazelle haters: his “poison pen letter” to Tinsel Town didn’t oust him from the industry after all, and he’s ready to make his sixth feature over at Paramount.   READ MORE: Damien Chazelle Says After ‘Babylon’ Flop, He Won’t Get That “Kind Of Budget Anytime Soon” News of Chazelle’s next project comes out of CinemaCon courtesy of The Playlist’s Gregory Ellwood.

Both based on toys and animated series, Paramount’s “G.I. Joe” series has never been the blockbuster that “Transformers” were in their heyday.

LAS VEGAS – Things are rocky for Paramount Pictures at the moment. While studio CEO and Chairman Brian Robbins and his team presented highlights of their upcoming 2024 slate, reports were breaking of corporate shareholders coming out publicly against a proposed merger with Skydance Media.

After three successful seasons, the supernatural drama series, “Evil” will return for its fourth and final installment this summer. Yesterday, Paramount+ revealed the official trailer and premiere date for the critically acclaimed original series.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Charter Communications is about to play a guest-star role in the corporate drama surrounding Paramount Global. As if Shari Redstone’s media empire wasn’t under enough pressure, Paramount Global now is in the final few weeks of its most recent carriage agreement with Charter, the nation’s second largest cable operator behind Comcast. The two companies are in renewal discussions, the outcome of which will have significant influence on Paramount’s ability to deliver the free cash flow that media investors are expecting from the company that has lately posted big losses on streaming operations.

EXCLUSIVE: Sony Pictures Television has finalized a new licensing deal with Paramount Global for comedy series The King of Queens to continue to be available on Paramount linear cable networks. The new pact also includes for the first time streaming rights on Paramount+ for all nine seasons and on Pluto TV for some (currently Seasons 1-3).

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Private-equity giant Apollo Global Management made a $27 billion offer to acquire all of Paramount Global this week, sources familiar with the bid told Variety. However, the special committee set up by the Paramount Global board of directors to consider M&A options declined to engage with the bid. Apollo submitted an all-cash bid on Sunday, March 31, to acquire Paramount Global in a deal worth more than $27 billion of total enterprise value, encompassing equity and debt, according to people familiar with the situation.

UPDATED with stock price: Shares of Paramount Global jumped more than 15% Wednesday afternoon with Skydance chief David Ellison in pole position to clinch a majority stake of National Amusements.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Paramount Global and its parent company are moving closer to an agreement with Skydance Media for an exclusive window for acquisition negotiations as Shari Redstone and David Ellison inch toward a deal to bring their companies together in a three-way transaction. The New York Times on Tuesday reported on the rumors that have been swirling around Hollywood for the past few days.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Tom Ryan co-founded the free, ad-supported streaming service Pluto TV, which launched 10 years ago with a linear TV-like grid and a cluster of “live” channels stocked with online videos. Viacom, one of Paramount Global’s two predecessor companies, acquired Pluto TV for $340 million in cash in January 2019.

While “Star Trek” has flourished on the small screen and within many of Paramount+’s series like “Picard,” Trekkies haven’t experienced a film in theaters since 2016’s “Star Trek Beyond.” But there seems to be some tentatively good news on the horizon regarding the long-in-development “Star Trek 4.” Variety reports that the studio has hired Steve Yockey to write the newest incarnation of the “Star Trek 4” script, which is being described as a final installment.

Wellington Love has started the w/Love production company, and already has an inaugural slate of projects lined up.

David Ayer may never get to release his director’s cut of “Suicide Squad,” but he’s maintaining relevancy thanks to the success of “The Beekeeper.” Ayer’s latest made $152.6 million at the global box office off a $40 million budget: a big enough success to guarantee that he’ll at least make mid-budget movies for the foreseeable future. READ MORE: ‘The Beekeeper’ Red Band Trailer: Jason Statham Is Out For Revenge In David Ayer’s New Action Film And that’s precisely what Ayer has up next.

EXCLUSIVE: Fresh off the success of his action pic The Beekeeper, David Ayer is continuing to stay busy. The director has signed on to helm Paramount Pictures’ Heart of the Beast. Damien Chazelle and Olivia Hamilton are producing under their Wild Chickens Productions banner as part of their first-look deal with the studio. Ayer and Chris Long will also produce under their Cedar Park Entertainment banner.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer What does the future hold for Paramount Global? The odds of a seismic M&A event seem to be increasing: Private-equity firm Apollo Global has reportedly offered $11 billion for Paramount’s Hollywood studios. Short of carving up the “mountain of entertainment,” as the Paramount+ tagline boasts, analysts say the overture could drive up bidding for the entirety of Paramount Global — which is what Shari Redstone, who owns a controlling stake in the media conglomerate, is understood to prefer. Given that backdrop, let’s consider what Paramount Global comprises — and the potential effect of selling it off in its entirety or in pieces.

Shares of Paramount Global popped in afternoon trade on a report that Apollo Global has made an $11 billion bid for the company’s film and TV studio. The private equity giant has been in and out of the mix of suitors, which also include David Ellison‘s Skydance Media and Byron Allen.