Paramount Skydance–Warner Bros. Discovery merger faces Hollywood worker protests

On June 6‑7, about 100 entertainment workers, small‑business owners and politicians gathered at the Lumiere Music Hall in Los Angeles to protest Paramount Skydance’s proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. The rally, organized by the Writers Guild of America and other advocacy groups, featured stand‑up comedian Adam Conover, who warned, “It’s about to die, and that’s why I feel so passionately about this issue.”

Protesters argue the merger threatens jobs, citing the AT&T‑Time Warner deal that led to the cancellation of Conover’s show and a broader decline in Hollywood employment since 2022. California has lost over 17,000 positions from 2019‑2023, sound‑stage occupancy has fallen to 62 % in early 2025, and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees reports a 36 % drop in hours for its members. Post‑production firm Different by Design fears fewer buyers for documentaries such as the Oscar‑winning “Navalny.”

U.S. antitrust regulators appear ready to approve the deal, but a coalition of states including California and New York is preparing a lawsuit. California Attorney General Rob Bonta could argue the merger reduces competition among studios and harms workers, drawing on the 2022 Penguin Random House‑Simon & Schuster precedent.