Will Paramount’s creation of Skydance test France’s cultural exception?

The completion this month of Paramount’s $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery has created Skydance: a media behemoth that, as a result of the transaction, comprises some of Hollywood’s most recognisable studios, including Warner Brothers, Paramount Pictures, HBO, Paramount +, a vast television portfolio, as well as news platforms, CNN and CBS. The takeover was months in the making and garnered much public attention. What started as a tête-à-tête bidding war at the end of 2025 against Netflix culminated in a federal ruling against the 12 US states that tried to block the transaction on antitrust grounds at the end of September – just a week before final approval. Read moreParamount completes takeover of Warner Bros, creating media behemoth Skydance As film industry opponents feared job cuts, media groups worried about the editorial independence of a news platform under David Ellison, whose family has close ties to Republican US President Donald Trump. But from a French perspective, the development may cultivate a narrative that is less a question of whether yet another media giant can succeed in presenting true competition against the likes of Netflix or Canal+, and mo...