Judge Freezes Paramount's $110 Billion Warner Bros. Takeover for 14 Days

A federal judge on Monday froze Paramount Skydance's roughly $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, granting a 14-day temporary restraining order that abruptly halts one of the largest media mergers ever proposed. U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín issued the pause after hearing arguments last week from a coalition of 12 Democratic-led state attorneys general who contend the deal would strangle competition across the film and television business.

The lawsuit is being led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who cast the ruling as an early but significant victory. "This is a critical first win in our case to ensure this megamerger never sees the light of day," Bonta said. The states argue the combination would lessen competition in three specific markets: wide-release theatrical film distribution, top-grossing theatrical distribution and basic cable licensing — harming movie theaters, cable distributors and, ultimately, audiences.

Paramount rejected that framing and vowed to fight on. "This merger is lawful, pro-competitive, and will benefit consumers, creators, workers, and the entertainment industry," the company said in a statement. Executives had been racing to close the transaction, which was originally expected to be finalized by September, and the Justice Department cleared the deal on antitrust grounds in June. That federal sign-off had left the states as the last major obstacle, and Monday's order shows how aggressively Democratic attorneys general are prepared to use their own antitrust powers even after Washington steps aside.

The combined company would be led by Paramount, controlled by David Ellison, and would instantly become one of the most powerful forces in entertainment, spanning broadcast, cable, film and streaming. Supporters argue the scale is necessary to compete with tech giants like Netflix, Amazon and Apple, which have poured billions into original programming. Opponents counter that fusing two of Hollywood's historic studios would give a single owner outsized control over what films reach theaters and what shows land on the country's living-room screens.

The stakes are enormous for Hollywood. Merging the two companies would unite Paramount's CBS and MTV networks and its Paramount+ streaming service with Warner Bros. Discovery's CNN and HBO and the HBO Max platform, forging one of the largest portfolios of studios, cable channels and streaming assets under a single owner. The deal has drawn fierce opposition from filmmakers, actors and industry unions, hundreds of whom signed open letters warning against further consolidation in an already-concentrated media landscape.

The restraining order is temporary, and the coalition can seek additional extensions when the 14 days expire, potentially dragging the fight out for months. For now, the ruling injects fresh uncertainty into a transaction that both companies had treated as all but done, and it hands state regulators a rare procedural win at a moment when federal antitrust enforcers had stepped aside. A full hearing on whether to block the merger outright is expected in the weeks ahead.