Paramount to lay off 2,000 workers shortly after merging with Skydance

In widely expected job cuts after completing its $8 billion merger with Skydance, Paramount has begun layoffs set to impact about 2,000 employees.

Paramount initiated roughly 1,000 of those layoffs companywide on Wednesday (Paramount Skydance owns CBS News.) The rest of the cuts are expected to be made at a later date. In all, 2,000 job reductions amount to about 10% of Paramount’s total workforce.

“These decisions are never made lightly, especially given their effect on our colleagues who have made meaningful contributions to the company,” CEO David Ellison wrote Wednesday in a memo to employees.

The prospect of job cuts has hovered over Paramount employees for some time. Ellison on Wednesday reiterated that the company has been working to restructure since the completion of its merger in August, and noted that workforce cuts are “part of that process.”

It’s not uncommon for businesses to initiate layoffs following a merger. When Skydance completed its purchase of Paramount, the combined company said it would look for “opportunities to streamline its business.” Paramount is also rumored to have interest in buying Warner Bros. Discovery, the home of HBO, CNN and DC Studios, among other brands. 

Neither Paramount nor Warner has publicly confirmed talks. But Warner earlier this month signaled that it may be open to selling all or parts of its business in light of “unsolicited interest” it said it had received from multiple parties. The company has reportedly been resistant to Paramount’s initial approach. According to CNBC, which cited anonymous sources, Warner had rejected three offers from Paramount as of last week.