Ellison family invests $17B in $110B Warner Paramount merger
Big shakeup in the media world: David Ellison and his family just put $17 billion into merging Warner Bros. Discovery with Paramount Skydance.
They bought about 1.4 billion shares at $12 each, making this part of a massive $110 billion deal, one of the biggest ever in entertainment.
Sovereign funds and partners add $29B
The Ellisons were not alone: three Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds were slated to contribute $24 billion, plus RedBird Capital Partners ($4 billion) and Shinsegae Group ($1 billion) joined the party.
This merger now brings together iconic studios, TV channels, and two major streaming platforms under one roof.
Fun fact: before this, the Ellisons and RedBird had already put in $8 billion to buy control of Paramount, and Larry Ellison even put up Oracle shares as collateral for loans.
Despite all this action, Skydance's stock still dipped 9% since the merger closed on October 6, 2026.