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>David Ellison has spent two years fighting to build his media empire. Now, he’s bringing in a heavyweight to help him run it.
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>Ynon Kreiz, outgoing CEO of Mattel, will serve as co-CEO of the combined Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery, to be named simply Skydance, when the merger closes on Tuesday.
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>The new entity will unite the storied film studios of Paramount and Warner Bros.; the CBS broadcast network; a sprawling portfolio of pay-TV networks that include CNN, TNT, MTV and BET; and streaming services Paramount+ and HBO Max, all under one roof.
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>The appointment of Kreiz to a top executive position alongside Ellison speaks to a governance question that has surrounded Ellison’s aggressive pursuit of the legacy media assets: The tech executive and son of billionaire Larry Ellison can buy it, but can he lead it?
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>Not even 18 months ago, Ellison was the CEO of film production company Skydance with a limited portfolio of hits, namely the Tom Cruise-led Mission: Impossible franchise and “Top Gun: Maverick.”
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>By August 2025, he was successfully closing an acquisition of Paramount, a deal worth around $8 billion. Roughly a month later, he started his campaign for WBD, spurring a back-and-forth bidding war that would ultimately result in a deal worth roughly $110 billion on an enterprise basis to merge two of Hollywood’s biggest media companies.
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>Kreiz is a 30-year veteran of the media space, arguably best known for ushering “Barbie” to the big screen in 2023. He’s earned a reputation as a turnaround man, with roots in entertainment despite his more recent stint in consumer goods.
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>He joins Paramount Skydance on Monday, and becomes co-CEO on Tuesday upon closing.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/03/david-ellison-ynon-kreiz-skydance.html
>
>Ynon Kreiz, outgoing CEO of Mattel, will serve as co-CEO of the combined Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery, to be named simply Skydance, when the merger closes on Tuesday.
>
>The new entity will unite the storied film studios of Paramount and Warner Bros.; the CBS broadcast network; a sprawling portfolio of pay-TV networks that include CNN, TNT, MTV and BET; and streaming services Paramount+ and HBO Max, all under one roof.
>
>The appointment of Kreiz to a top executive position alongside Ellison speaks to a governance question that has surrounded Ellison’s aggressive pursuit of the legacy media assets: The tech executive and son of billionaire Larry Ellison can buy it, but can he lead it?
>
>Not even 18 months ago, Ellison was the CEO of film production company Skydance with a limited portfolio of hits, namely the Tom Cruise-led Mission: Impossible franchise and “Top Gun: Maverick.”
>
>By August 2025, he was successfully closing an acquisition of Paramount, a deal worth around $8 billion. Roughly a month later, he started his campaign for WBD, spurring a back-and-forth bidding war that would ultimately result in a deal worth roughly $110 billion on an enterprise basis to merge two of Hollywood’s biggest media companies.
>
>Kreiz is a 30-year veteran of the media space, arguably best known for ushering “Barbie” to the big screen in 2023. He’s earned a reputation as a turnaround man, with roots in entertainment despite his more recent stint in consumer goods.
>
>He joins Paramount Skydance on Monday, and becomes co-CEO on Tuesday upon closing.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/03/david-ellison-ynon-kreiz-skydance.html
