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Another Day in Sharidise

So what happens if Shari Redstone can’t close her Paramount deal by the fall—as is becoming increasingly likely? A $300 million payment to the Ellisons, another $250 million to Byron Trott, the potential liquidation of National Amusements, and that’s only the start. (This is not investment advice.)

shari redstone
The current hurdle facing Shari Redstone, who controls Paramount Global through her family’s ownership of National Amusements, is figuring out how to settle Trump’s flimsy 60 Minutes lawsuit without making it look like a bribe, or getting the Paramount board of directors into a whole heap of legal trouble. Photo: Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
William D. Cohan
June 4, 2025

It’s been almost a year since the Ellisons and RedBird Capital struck a deal to merge Skydance Media into Paramount Global, while simultaneously recapitalizing the company and keeping it publicly traded under their control. Any deal where a broadcast license changes hands—in this case, CBS’s—can take a while to receive the necessary regulatory approvals. When GE sold NBCUniversal to Comcast more than a decade ago, some 14 months passed between signing and closing. So, the ticking clock of 11 months and counting shouldn’t be that much cause for concern.