On today’s episode of “Daily Variety” podcast, Variety’s Todd Spangler details the growing opposition within media and entertainment to Paramount Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. And Marc Malkin talks to documentary filmmaker Morgan Neville about his Focus Features documentary “Lorne,” about the enigmatic “Saturday Night Live” leader.
Actor Mark Ruffalo delivered a passionate statement via a video call that laid out what he sees as the stakes of the deal that will combine two historic Hollywood studios under the Paramount Skydance umbrella. That has industry insiders across the spectrum — from creatives and crew members to the highest of the C-suites — worried about the overall health of the entertainment sector.
“Ruffalo sounded a bit like a politician talking about kitchen table issues. He said this merger comes at a terrible time. it’s been just this massive decline in LA entertainment jobs in past years,” says Spangler, who is business editor for Variety. “And Ruffalo said, ‘I can personally say that Los Angeles right now is hanging by a thread.’ He may be exaggerating, but, I think he’s trying to make the case to the public at large that this is not going to be good for the movies you watch, the TV shows you watch.”
Ruffalo is one of 3,000 boldface names to sign an open letter urging regulators at the state and federal level to stop the merger. That begs two questions — will it make a difference, and will this coalescing opposition develop merger conditions that can be incorporated into the regulatory approval process. Paramount Skydance is hoping to close the deal by the end of September, which is ambitious given the crosscurrents in the marketplace.
“This is all pointing toward [Hollywood] rallying support for ways to attach some conditions. Set-asides or job guarantees — whatever they might be,” Spangler says.
At the April 14 premiere of “Lorne,” held on the Universal lot, Neville discussed the big question that has surrounded Lorne Michaels, the 81-year-old “SNL” producer: Who will take over “SNL” in the future? Neville admits the doc does not shed any light on this.
“I don’t think that’s ever going to happen,” Neville tells Malkin. “I think he is the show and the idea that somehow he would exist apart from the show is unimaginable to him. I mean, I don’t think he’s going to be running the show for another fifty years, so something is going to happen. And I think he knows that and he wants to protect the show. That’s what he’s always done. It’s what he’s done with his power. He’s protected ‘Saturday Night Live’ for fifty years.”
(Pictured: Filmmaker Morgan Neville, NBCUniversal chief Donna Langley, Lorne Michaels and Steven Spielberg)
Listen to Daily Variety on iHeartPodcasts, Apple Podcasts, Variety’s YouTube Podcast channel, Amazon Music, Spotify and other podcast platforms.
variety.com
#Hollywood #Marshals #Opposition #ParamountWBD #Deal #Matter
