For months now, Rob Bonta has been the center of attention in Hollywood. For many in town, the California attorney general is seen as the last hope to stop the $110 billion merger of Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery and the consolidation of two sprawling studio conglomerates by the Ellison family. To others he’s a political operative eager to attack a legally sound transaction to score points with Democrats in an election year. The lawsuit Bonta filed today on behalf of 12 blue states claims the WarnerMount transaction will harm three separate markets: wide-release movies, tentpoles (a distinct market, Bonta argues), and cable TV channel distribution. Shortly after filing, Bonta joined me and Lucas Shaw on The Town to discuss the case. Curated excerpts of the conversation are below…