Bob Bakish, chairman and chief executive officer of Viacom, attends day four of Allen & Company’s annual Sun Valley Conference, July 11, 2023 in Sun Valley, Idaho.
David A. Grogan | CNBC
Global Supreme CEO Bob Bakish is stepping down, the company announced on Mondayas merger talks with Skydance Media continue.
Bakish will also leave the company’s board of directors and will be replaced by the so-called “Office of the CEO.” Paramount will now be led by CBS chairman and CEO George Cheeks; Chris McCarthy, president and CEO of Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks; and Brian Robbins, head of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon. The company said the three executives will work closely with Paramount Chief Financial Officer Naveen Chopra and the board of directors.
In a statement released Monday, Paramount said new leadership is “working with the board to develop a comprehensive, long-term plan to accelerate growth and develop popular, relevant content.” physicalize operations, strengthen the balance sheet and continue to optimize the streaming strategy.” .”
Paramount also reported first-quarter earnings after the bell on Monday.
The departure of Paramount and Skydance Media a little closer about the possibility of a merger, CNBC previously reported. The companies are in exclusive negotiations to pursue the deal until May 3 and a special committee has been formed.
Bakish privately dissented from the merger, saying it would dilute common shareholders, CNBC reported. As part of the proposed deal, nearly 50% of the merged company would be owned by Skydance and its private equity backers, while common shareholders would own the remainder. Paramount, this part will remain publicly traded.
On Saturday CNBC reported Bakish could step down as CEO as soon as Monday and before the earnings release, after losing the confidence of Paramount Global controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, who may see his removal as a meant to accelerate the Skydance deal, CNBC reported on Monday.
The departure also comes as Paramount is in talks with cable company Charter Communications to syndicate its television networks including CBS and MTV. The deadline for those negotiations is Tuesday.
Special Committee – responsible for accepting or rejecting transactions – and Skydance, which is backed by private equity firms KKR and RedBird Capital Partners, have narrowed how they value Skydance’s assets as part of the merger, as well as the amount of equity needed to add to the company, CNBC previously reported.
Skydance plans to name CEO David Ellison to head Paramount if the deal goes through, CNBC previously reported.
– CNBC’s Alex Sherman contributed to this report.
