UPDATE 10/2 #2: Insiders say what Kreiz was really hired to do: save $6-7 billion, with thousands of layoffs coming in waves.
UPDATE 10/2: The combined company Kreiz will co-run now has a name: Skydance.
UPDATE 9/30: Hours later, the judge approved the merger settlement, so the deal that makes Kreiz Co-CEO can close as soon as next week.
It’s official. David Ellison has named Ynon Kreiz Co-CEO of the combined Paramount Warner Bros., effective when the merger closes.
Kreiz starts at Paramount on October 5 and joins the board of directors at closing. Ellison stays on as Chairman and CEO.
“In Ynon, I’m adding a partner with strong leadership and the operating firepower this integration demands,” Ellison said in the announcement, adding, “We’re like-minded, we see this business the same way and there’s no one I’d rather partner with.”
“The industry is at an inflection point, demanding evolution, investment, and a willingness to rethink business models,” Kreiz said.
What Ellison Keeps And What Kreiz Runs
The split works like this. Ellison keeps long-term strategy, creative direction, talent relationships, partnerships, technology, and how the money gets spent.
Kreiz runs the day-to-day and the work of stitching the two companies into one, with every business reporting jointly to both men.
Per the release, this was the plan all along: land both Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, then bring in a veteran operator to run them. RedBird’s Gerry Cardinale put it this way: “Great leaders accomplish great things. Historic ones know when to bring in the right partner to make it last.”
The combined company puts Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros., HBO and HBO Max, CBS, CNN, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and Skydance Animation under one roof, with a streaming platform expected to reach more than 200 million subscribers.
Third Big Move In Two Days
The announcement lands hours after Mattel revealed Kreiz’s exit and the rumor mill pointed straight at Paramount Warner Bros.
It also follows Tuesday’s news that Cindy Holland is out at Paramount, with HBO’s Casey Bloys expected to run all streaming.
Kreiz has run Mattel since 2018, where Barbie became 2023’s number one movie worldwide and the biggest Warner Bros. release ever. Before that he ran Maker Studios and Endemol, the company behind Big Brother, and co-founded Fox Kids Europe, with both Maker and Fox Kids sold to Disney. He already sits on Warner Music Group’s board.
And the man who made Barbie now helps run the studio that has until December to sign Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie, and Ryan Gosling for Barbie 2.
Kreiz starts October 5. The merger closes next.
