My heart truly goes out to the rank and file of what remains of Paramount Global during this holiday season, and it sure appears that a lot less of it will exist once we enter the New Year. THE WRAP’s chief deep diver Lucas Manfredi dropped this dour update yesterday on the progress of the company’s sale and weeding out process just as many departments were sending out e-cards along with resumes:
Paramount Global under Skydance Media is exploring combining all of Paramount’s TV networks, including CBS and MTV, into one unit and consolidating teams across departments including programming and marketing, according to Bloomberg.
David Ellison, who will run Paramount as chairman and CEO after the $8 billion transaction closes in the first half of 2025, is also looking to cut staff and trim the amount of original programming at the cable networks, the outlet reports. As for leadership changes, Bloomberg reports that Paramount co-CEO George Cheeks is expected to stay following the merger, but co-CEO Brian Robbins is expected to depart the company, though a final decision hasn’t been made. The outlet added that the future of co-CEO Chris McCarthy, the third member of the “office of the CEO” remains “less certain.”
Having been part of a similar weeding out process of a multi-headed hydra that served as a placeholder for running a business, I can’t say I’m surprised by anything that Manfredi is conveying. Cheeks just happens to be in charge of the business unit that Ellison is intent on keeping intact and, moreover, he seems to have political capital unlike his current partners in crime, as DEADLINE’s Anthony D’Alessandro and Jill Goldsmith elaborated in their version of this news:
Chatter indicates that Cheeks looked well positioned to stay on as he oversees CBS, the division that has the least overlap with Skydance and one that has been doing well. The broadcast network added new hits this year including Tracker, Matlock and Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage that are delivering strong ratings.
There had been questions about Cheeks’ relationship with Ellison’s incoming No. 2 Jeff Shell, though sources have indicated the two are currently on good terms after smoothing over any past fractures. Cheeks resigned from NBCUniversal in early 2020 just weeks after Shell replaced Steve Burke as NBCU CEO, following a sweeping restructuring that impacted Cheeks’ role at the company.
But in this case, someone with Cheeks’ skill sets is apparently far better suited for the task that Ellison and Shell are ultimately charging this business unit’s head with executing. Make the most you can with the fewest resources, and stay out of the way of anything truly innovative and creative. As Manfredi reminded, they all but telegraphed this playbook earlier this year:
During a call with investors back in July, Ellison and Jeff Shell, who will serve as Paramount’s president, gave an initial outline for their plans to turn Paramount into a tech hybrid, leverage animation and sports content and rebuild the Paramount+ streaming service. On that call, Shell referred to Pluto as a “very strong and powerful asset,” while RedBird Capital’s Andy Gordon said a merged Skydance and Paramount sees an opportunity in the tech platforms for Paramount+ and Pluto to drive “a lot more efficiency” and “further cash flow generation.” During a call with reporters in July, Shell referred to CBS as a “cornerstone” asset that would be part of its plans going forward.
Not a peep about the cable networks, which indeed have been hemorraging viewers but yet still provided the company with arguably its most impactful series of the last decade, which the Deadline duo tersely reminded its readers about:
McCarthy has overseen the Taylor Sheridan universe, which has delivered a string of hits including tentpole Yellowstone, 1923, Tulsa King and most recently Lioness, as well as the revamp of Paramount+ with Showtime with shows like the upcoming Dexter reboot and The Agency.
And as for Robbins, in addition to his current decent run atop the film studio which, as DEADLINE also noted, under his tenure has generated several No. 1 box office hits this year in IF, Bob Marley: One Love and Smile 2, as well as solid tentpoles in Gladiator II and A Quiet Place: Day One, in a domestic box office year at the studio bound for $800 million-plus., he has a pretty strong creative background of his own, having headed Nickelodeon during an era where PAW PATROL has become a global multiplatform hit as well as being the partner of Mike Tollin on such groundbreaking series as SMALLVILLE and ONE TREE HILL. It more than makes up for his mediocre hosting of a ill-conceived children’s version of PICTIONARY when he was first starting out.
But unlike Cheeks, he doesn’t have a pre-existing relationship with the incoming czars. As D’Alessandro and Goldsmith yet again noted, (s)ome insiders believe Robbins, who oversees both Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon, will be departing and was always meant to as Ellison is planning to have Skydance Head of Production Dana Goldberg lead Paramount’s film business.
So it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Quelle surprise.
I’m told by those that know Cheeks well that he’s a decent hang and a pretty good poker player. Not a bad business affairs executive, either. But creative? Not even among his top ten best qualities. Even CBS’ successes are a direct result of long-entrenched programming that new shows were teed up to succeed as adjacencies and/or brand extensions of. That ratings success isn’t being driven by anyone under the age of 50, and, besides, since they are currently not subscribing to Nielsen that success comes with an asterisk.
Shell of all people knows how crucial having true creatives in the house is to successfully engineering growth. When he oversaw FX he entrusted the likes of Peter Liguori, Kevin Reilly and John Landgraf to deliver the goods. At NBCUniversal, including its cable networks, he had a slew of top-notch creatively-oriented leaders such as Bill McGoldrick and a second act of Reilly that built tentpole, award-winning programming that eventually translated to enduring success on streaming platforms. In the current pantheon of Paramount talent, McCarthy and Robbins come closest to the skill sets of those aforementioned stars. So you tell me who Cheeks will be able to count on to help him with what is arguably an even more herculean salvation?
And all the ability to cost-cut, eliminate redundancies and make deals don’t amount to much if you don’t have something in your arsenal that’s actually giving people a reason to notice and appreciate you. It sure appears that whatever such possibilities might be out there are heading anywhere but Paramount’s TV networks.
Sure, I’d covet the job of running them; heck, I’d take almost ANY job offered to me at this point. You might be tempted by the salary and, of course, the potential buyout down the road. But the actual act of running a business that includes brands like MTV, Nickelodeon and BET, let alone CBS, is far different from what it was even at the outset of this decade. It’s one thing when the “M” was taken out of MTV, but now it looks likes the “TV” part is following suit.
I, for one, wouldn’t be feeling all that great about overseeing an effective decapitation of businesses that really meant something to a lot of people not all that long ago–and, on a pure numbers basis, still do. But perception is reality, and in the world of billionaire techies, they tend to see that world through brown-tinted glasses.
So I guess congratulations are in order, George, or soon will be. You’re apparently gonna be Admiral of the Nebraska Navy.
Until next time…