Private equity firm Apollo Global Management reportedly offered $11 billion to acquire Paramount Pictures and the Paramount TV studios group, as reported by Reuters. This information arrives after it has been released that the company was exploring opportunities for a takeover. The film studio has an expansive movie library that includes films such as "The Godfather" and "Breakfast at Tiffany's", as well as blockbuster franchises like "Mission: Impossible", "Star Trek" and "Transformers".
Should Apollo succeed in its bid for Paramount Pictures, it could potentially combine the studio with another of its Hollywood investments, Legendary Entertainment, for which Apollo invested $760 million to acquire a minority stake in 2022, the studio behind such films as "Dune" and "Godzilla vs. Kong". Apollo has previously invested in news and entertainment companies, including “American Idol” owner CKx in 2011, as well as having or previously holding stakes in Barnes & Noble, Cox Media Group, Legendary Entertainment, Redbox and Sirius Satellite Radio. It also bought Yahoo Inc. from Verizon in 2021.
According to The Financial Times, Shari Redstone, the media conglomerate's controlling shareholder through her stake in parent company National Amusements, denied Apollo's offer for the studio and is instead negotiating a rival deal with billionaire David Ellison. Moreover, media entrepreneur Byron Allen has previously submitted a $30 billion offer for Paramount Global, including debt and equity. Allen is focused on acquiring the television networks and stations, and selling off other assets, such as the film studio, according to one person familiar with his thinking. Additionally, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav met with Paramount CEO Bob Bakish in December 2023 about a potential merger, though talks on the matter were halted last month.
Shares of Paramount surged as much as 12% during March 20 trading session, reaching a market capitalization of $8.6 billion.