Hollywood Week: Paramount Warner Bros Deal Update, Global Greenlight, LA Lakers Sold, Nick Reiner Indictment
- Details
- Category: Haute This Issue
- Published on Saturday, 15 August 2026 06:20
- Written by Janet Walker
As Paramount CEO David Ellison's attempt to secure Warner Bros. Discovery has hit a costly snag in the United States, the international community has overwhelming approved the $110 billion merger and gave the deal the greenlight.
Texas or Tennessee
Paramount CEO David Ellison presented a plan this week to his executive board to move the Paramount headquarters to a more welcoming state, indicting there has been considerable development of an alternative option, should no movement toward a settlement be made by October.
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Ellison has issued an ultimatum to California Attorney General Rob Bonta, and the other 11 Attorney General's involved in the antitrust lawsuit, unless a settlement is reached he will relocate the famed studio.
Moving the Paramount-Skydance headquarters to Austin, Texas, the home state of Oracle Headquarters, the technology company owner by Larry Ellison, is a logical and fiscally sound move. He has also stated that Tennessee is a possibility, Nashville is also home to an Oracle hub as each of these states have more attractive incentives and more appealing costs of living.
In previous statements the AG's have stated concessions are not what they are seeking, they are seeking a permanent injunction against the merger. Bonta, has also stated the threats to move the company out of California is "blackmail."
It's doubtful the AG's will be bullied by Ellison's ultimatums, but with the court date set for March, the ticking fee, which is roughly $650 million per quarter or $7 million per day, for each day after the September 30, 2026 agreed upon closing deadline.
Even for someone of Ellison's wealth the two quarters the $ 1.3 billion in ticking fees appears to be squeezing him into implementing cost saving measures, one of which is the moving the company and selling the famed backlot, which has been valued at $4 billion.
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California versus the World
With the recent approval by Mexico, the Skydance-Paramount Warner Bros Discovery merger has secured all necessary global regulators to advance the deal, indicating international regulators see the merger differently and as the company will be releasing films, streaming and broadcasting across global jurisdictions, each expected nation needed to authorize the deal.
"We are grateful that competition authorities in nearly 70 jurisdictions worldwide have independently and thoroughly reviewed this transaction and reached the same conclusion: it is pro-competitive, pro-consumer and pro-worker," said David Ellison, the CEO of Paramount, in a statement Friday. "Despite this overwhelming global consensus, the litigation brought by the state of California and 11 other state AGs remains the final obstacle to completing a combination that will create a stronger competitor with greater capacity to invest in premium content, support creative talent and workers and deliver more high-quality entertainment to audiences," reported The Hollywood Reporter.
The Movie Making Capital of the World
The thought of Ellison moving his company, Paramount-Skydance along with Warner Bros. Discovery, two of the five major Hollywood studios anywhere outside of the movie making capital of the world, has many feeling a wave of anxiety.
According to The New York Times, "as part of potential relocation plans out of California, Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison indicated he would sell the studio's famed Hollywood backlot and the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank if the merger proceeds, intending instead to leave behind a smaller, localized "robust creative campus" or "creative hub" in Los Angeles."
Before the litigation, Ellison had stated he had no intention of moving the company, and from all appearances planned to keep both the creative and executive headquarters in and around Los Angeles and Southern California, since the litigation, he has soured somewhat on those initial plans. Should he decide to exit the area, it will be one more devastating blow to the movie making capital of the world.
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Los Angeles Lakers Sold
The Los Angeles Lakers, inventors of the showtime game and winners of 12 NBA championships, have been sold to former Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger and Joshua Kusher, brother to the president's son-in-law. It is the second sale for the team in one year.
During the 2020 pandemic Iger served as an advisor to Kusher's Thrive Capital, a Venture Capital firm. After Iger passed the torch as CEO and Chairman of the Board of the Walt Disney Corporation to Josh D'Amaro, the most asked question, and the one that prompted debate among business executives and pundits, was, what would Iger do after Disney.
This week, that question, has apparently been answered when it was announced that Iger would partner with Kushner to purchase the Los Angeles Lakers for $2.5 billion over the $10 billion price tag Mark Walter, owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers paid for the NBA champions just one year ago.
"As lifelong NBA fans, we are deeply honored for the opportunity to become stewards of the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the most iconic sports franchises in the world," Kushner and Iger said in a statement. "We have immense respect for the leadership and vision of Jerry and Jeanie Buss. Our long-term commitment is to build on that foundation, compete at the highest level, and serve this extraordinary team, its fans, and the city of Los Angeles," The Los Angeles Times reported.
The Los Angeles Lakers are a star-studded jewel, and one of the highest valued team's in the NBA. While the NBA franchise owners will need to approved the sale, with Iger boarding the deal, and his lifetime commitment to Los Angeles, the sale will undoubtedly be approved.
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Reiner Indictment Unsealed
A Los Angeles Grand Jury has returned an indictment against Nick Reiner, formally accusing him of murdering his parents, Hollywood-producer and director, Rob Reiner and Michelle Singer Reiner, in December 2025, and included additional charges of "lying in wait."
"This was a profound betrayal by someone who was loved and trusted by the very people he is accused of killing," Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan J. Hochman said. "The indictment unsealed today also adds a special circumstance allegation that the defendant committed the murders by means of lying in wait. We hope that by having a grand jury return an indictment in this case it will bring us one step closer to a trial and achieving justice."
Reiner, 32, is accused of lying in wait on December 14, 2025, and fatally stabbing Rob Reiner, 78, and Michelle Reiner, 70, in their Brentwood home. The murders occurred after the younger Reiner, and his father had an argument at a Christmas Party held at the home of Conan O'Brien.
The indictment was returned in July, 2026, and unsealed August 12, 2026. The grand jury indicted Reiner on two counts of Murder with the special circumstances allegations of committing multiple murders, and murder by means of lying in wait, and special circumstances of using a knife.
Reiner, who has been held without bond, since his arrest shortly after the murders, will remain held without bail.
If convicted Reiner faces either life in prison or the death penalty. Los Angeles County District Attorney, Nathan J. Hochman has not made the determination if he will seek the death penalty.
At present, Reiner is being represented by Public Defender Kimberly Greene. Although, a petition to secure the legal service of high profile attorney, Alan Jackson, has been submitted to the court. Jackson, initially represented Reiner, and due to the family alleged withholding of funds, he withdrew his services, and stated to the press, "under California State Law Nick Reiner is not guilty."
The petition to secure part of Reiner's irrevocable trust for his legal fees has not yet been ruled on.
No trial date has been set.
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Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five award-winning screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," a non-fiction narrative, "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," and "Songs of Freedom: A Collection of Biblical Teachings," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Authors Guild, the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.
