It’s a high-stakes game of Hollywood chicken.
asserted
It → ’ → chicken
It appears Rob Bonta called David Ellison’s bluff this week when the CEO of Paramount Skydance reportedly back-channelled a threat to the California Attorney General’s office — and the Los Angeles Mayor’s office — that he’d officially announce Paramount’s move out of California, regardless of a settlement in the ongoing antitrust case.
uncertain
he → appear → case
“Mayor Bass is taking [Paramount’s threat] seriously, Governor Newsom is taking it semi-seriously.
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Newsom → take → it
But Bonta believes he has a relatively strong anti-trust case,” said a knowledgeable source.
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source → believe → case
“And while Bonta would rather settle, he’s also willing to go to trial — and he also thinks that Ellison is acting a little crazy.”
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Ellison → settle → trial
On Wednesday, TMZ reported that Paramount notified Bonta and Bass that the studio was imminently announcing its intention to leave California.
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studio → report → California
But no announcement has, at least so far, been made.
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announcement → make → ?
(Paramount is not commenting.)
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Paramount → comment → ?
But TMZ then walked back its original story, saying talks were still ongoing.
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talks → walk → story
Making the move messier, a court-supervised settlement conference between the parties is already scheduled for October 14 and 15.
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conference → make → October
“David is used to getting his way and I think he’s so angry and frustrated right now that he could be saying, ‘I’m going to show them and I’m going to punish them because no one thinks I will do this,’” said a source.
uncertain
source → use → this
Bonta’s office would not confirm or deny whether settlement talks are occurring.
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talks → confirm → ?
“It’s no secret that Paramount has been making this threat, despite its alleged commitment to California and Hollywood,” read a statement to P6H yesterday.
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statement → ’ → P6H
“What Paramount decides to do is Paramount’s choice alone.
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decides → decide → What
We’ll continue to apply the law without fear or favor and continue to be open to coming to the table for good faith discussions.
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We → continue → discussions
As the clock ticks down, one showbiz pro half-jokingly told us yesterday of the California quandary.
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pro → tick → quandary
“You know the perfect person who should be in power in this situation?
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who → know → situation
He’s the former governor, he’s a movie star.
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he → ’ → ?
It’s a dereliction of a lot of peoples’ duty [if] California can’t find a way for this to work.
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this → ’ → way
All bets are off for what comes next.
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what → come → ?
The adults at the table really need to step up.”
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adults → need → table
Bonta has indicated he’s open to talks, but said any resolution would require “robust structural remedies.”
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resolution → indicate → remedies
According to several sources, Bonta’s main conditions are keeping Paramount and Warners independent from one another for a period of time, and ensuring they are actually competitive.
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they → accord → time
The other major condition is that Paramount and Warner Bros. cable assets would not merge.
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assets → merge → ?
Beyond the shockwaves created by TMZ’s bombshell report, top showbiz execs were unfazed by the news of Paramount’s alleged exodus.
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execs → create → exodus
“It’s all negotiations and positioning… meaningless,” huffed one veteran entertainment CEO.
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CEO → ’ → ?
Another showbiz vet said of Paramount’s latest threat: “Not going to happen.
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vet → say → threat
They’re about to go into settlement talks.
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They → ’re → talks
This has to be a BS thing for Bonta.”
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This → have → Bonta
Either way, Wednesday’s headlines pulled Bass further into the fray as the Paramount suit becomes a hot-button issue in LA’s mayoral race.
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suit → pull → race
Bass’ upcoming mayoral challenger, Nithya Raman, opposes the Paramount-WBD merger, and thinks the case should be decided in court.
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case → oppose → court
But Bass has called for a “swift and urgent resolution” to the dispute.
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Bass → call → dispute
One top political strategist told us of the political fallout from Paramount’s potential move: “If [Paramount] really was to leave, the repercussions are almost incalculable.
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repercussions → tell → move
The AG is not playing ball and is resistant.
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AG → play → ball
[Bass and Newsom] would like to see this all taken care of for all the obvious reasons.
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this → like → reasons
Who wants to lose a studio to another state?
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Who → want → state
It’s much bigger than that,” said the insider.
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insider → ’ → that
Local showbiz watchers have been wondering what happens to the famed Paramount lot if the studio leaves.
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studio → wonder → lot
“You know who’s gonna buy the lot?
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who → know → lot
OnlyFans,” a source joked, (we think?).
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we → joke → ?
…and 12 more, not listed.
The Aporia
