Over 1,000 Hollywood bold-faced names released an open letter Monday morning, expressing “unequivocal opposition” to Paramount‘s megadeal to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery.
The letter, which was released by a consortium of groups including Norm Eisen’s Democracy Defenders Fund and Jane Fonda’s Committee for the First Amendment, counts a who’s who of signers, including actors like Bryan Cranston, Glenn Close, Ben Stiller, Don Cheadle, Jason Bateman and Ted Danson, directors like J.J. Abrams, Denis Villeneuve and Yorgos Lanthimos, producers like Ted Hope and Mark Duplass, and multihyphenates who include Lin-Manuel Miranda and David Chase.
You can see the full list of signatories here.
“This transaction would further consolidate an already concentrated media landscape, reducing competition at a moment when our industries — and the audiences we serve — can least afford it,” the letter states. “The result will be fewer opportunities for creators, fewer jobs across the production ecosystem, higher costs, and less choice for audiences in the United States and around the world. Alarmingly, this merger would reduce the number of major U.S. film studios to just four.
“We are deeply concerned by indications of support for this merger that prioritize the interests of a small group of powerful stakeholders over the broader public good,” the letter continues. “The integrity, independence, and diversity of our industry would be grievously compromised.”
The letter is notable not only for its star power, but for the fact that many of the people who signed it work or have worked for one or both of the studios seeking to merge. Abrams, for example, has an active deal with Warners through Bad Robot, and Villeneuve will release Dune 3 through Warners later this year. Chase has a new project in the works at HBO, while Bateman is starring in the HBO series DTF St. Louis.
It also includes Lost and Watchmen creator Damon Lindelof, who shared his complicated thoughts on the matter on Instagram.
“When I was asked to sign a letter that openly opposed the sale of Warner Brothers to Paramount/Skydance, I felt two things; the first was that yes, absolutely, of course I opposed it. The second was oh shit, I’m afraid to say so publicly,” he wrote. “Fear is embarrassing. No one wants to be the guy puking in the boat in Saving Private Ryan. They want to be the ones storming the beach. So why was I afraid?
“Some implied retaliation? Being put on some list of rabble-rousers? Getting kicked off the beloved Warner Brothers backlot I have called home for the last fifteen years?” he continued. “I actually sort of know my (potential ) new boss, David Ellison – We produced a few things together not too long ago and I found him to be bright, ambitious and passionate. He loved movies and trusted the people he made them with. But still… Better not to risk it. Me opposing an inevitable merger would be pointless and signing a letter that will evaporate into the shitstorm of an unrelenting news cycle would be even more pointless.”
The letter concludes by calling for California Attorney General Rob Bonta and other regulators to block the deal.
Paramount released a response Monday morning, noting the “significant disruption” facing the industry from big tech companies.
“We hear and understand the concerns that some in our creative community have raised and respect the commitment to protecting and expanding creativity,” the Paramount response states, reaffirming the company’s commitment to continue licensing content, and to release at least 30 movies per year theatrically. “We understand the concerns raised as a result of the disruptions caused to our industry by COVID, entry of big-tech, and changes in consumer behavior, but we promise this: Paramount remains deeply committed to talent, and this merger strengthens both consumer choice and competition, creating greater opportunities for creators, audiences and the communities they live and work in.”
The full text of the letter opposing the deal is below.
As filmmakers, documentarians, and professionals across the movie and television industry, we write to express our unequivocal opposition to the proposed Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger.
This transaction would further consolidate an already concentrated media landscape, reducing competition at a moment when our industries—and the audiences we serve—can least afford it. The result will be fewer opportunities for creators, fewer jobs across the production ecosystem, higher costs, and less choice for audiences in the United States and around the world. Alarmingly, this merger would reduce the number of major U.S. film studios to just four.
Our industry is already under severe strain, in large part due to prior waves of consolidation. We have witnessed a steep decline in the number of films produced and released, alongside a narrowing of the kinds of stories that are financed and distributed. Increasingly, a small number of powerful entities determine what gets made—and on what terms—leaving creators and independent businesses with fewer viable paths to sustain their work.
Media consolidation has accelerated the disappearance of the mid-budget film, the erosion of independent distribution, the collapse of the international sales market, the elimination of meaningful profit participation, and the weakening of screen credit integrity.
Together, these factors threaten the sustainability of the entire creative community. That includes endangering the professional lives of the tens of thousands of workers who help make up that community in predominantly small businesses and independent companies embedded in local economies and communities nationwide.
We are deeply concerned by indications of support for this merger that prioritize the interests of a small group of powerful stakeholders over the broader public good. The integrity, independence, and diversity of our industry would be grievously compromised.
Competition is essential for a healthy economy and a healthy democracy. So is thoughtful regulation and enforcement. Media consolidation has already weakened one of America’s most vital global industries—one that has long shaped culture and connected people around the world.
Fortunately, someone is doing something about all this. California Attorney General Rob Bonta and his colleagues in other states are reportedly scrutinizing the merger and considering legal action to block it. We are grateful for their leadership, and stand ready to support all efforts to preserve competition, protect jobs, and ensure a vibrant future for our industry, for American culture, and for our single most significant export.
You can read the Paramount response below.
We hear and understand the concerns that some in our creative community have raised and respect the commitment to protecting and expanding creativity.
Importantly, as creators we know firsthand that this is also a moment when the industry has been facing significant disruption—and the need for strong, creative-first and well-capitalized companies that can continue to invest in storytelling has never been greater.
This transaction uniquely brings together complementary strengths to create a company that can greenlight more projects, back bold ideas, support talent across multiple stages of their careers, and bring stories to audiences at a truly global scale—while strengthening competition by ensuring multiple scaled players are investing in creative talent.
We have been clear in our commitments to do just that: increasing output to a minimum of 30 high-quality feature films annually with full theatrical releases, continuing to license content, and preserving iconic brands with independent creative leadership —ensuring creators have more avenues for their work, not fewer.
We understand the concerns raised as a result of the disruptions caused to our industry by COVID, entry of big-tech, and changes in consumer behavior, but we promise this: Paramount remains deeply committed to talent, and this merger strengthens both consumer choice and competition, creating greater opportunities for creators, audiences and the communities they live and work in.
