Paramount CEO David Ellison says the Warner merger is still on track

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Set us as preferred Paramount Skydance Chief Executive David Ellison isn’t waving a white flag.After Paramount agreed Friday to delay its proposed merger with Warner Bros.Discovery to battle a stiffer-than-anticipated antitrust challenge from California Atty.

Gen.Rob Bonta and 11 other state attorneys general, Ellison is resetting expectations.

In a Monday memo to employees, Ellison wrote that he still believes his mammoth merger will be consummated in the coming months.Paramount stock has lost about 20% of its value since the beginning of July amid concerns that the company will have to shoulder higher costs to get its $111-billion Warner Bros.acquisition across the finish line.

Friday’s agreement with the state attorneys general to delay the merger’s close until after an antitrust trial, which will likely be held in 2027, also was unsettling to shareholders and some employees.Paramount Skydance shares closed at $8.03, down 2.19% Monday afternoon.“Let me be clear: we remain highly confident that this transaction does not pose any legal issues, and we will complete it and bring these two companies together,” Ellison wrote in the memo shared with media outlets.

Hollywood Inc.State attorneys general, led by California AG Rob Bonta, plan to ask for a trial in 2027 -- after the midterm elections.Paramount’s internal teams and Warner Bros.

have been diligently working to lay the groundwork for the two rival companies to integrate their operations.The rush had been on because Ellison wanted to close the deal this week — or at least by the end of September — to avoid a higher payout to Warner shareholders.

However, Paramount suspended such ambitions on Friday, agreeing to delay the merger until after a trial to litigate the merits of the antitrust case brought by Bonta and the other Democrats.Oregon, Washingto...