Actors Benedict Cumberbatch, Alan Cumming and Benedict Wong have called on the UK government to block the proposed $111 billion Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger, warning that the deal could cause “immense harm on the British public” by threatening jobs, independent filmmaking and media diversity.In a joint op-ed published in The Guardian, the actors urged UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy to intervene in the blockbuster merger, saying Britain’s film and television industry is at a critical moment.
‘We have a responsibility to the public’
Explaining why they decided to speak out, the trio wrote, “As actors and public figures who have spent our careers in the arts in Britain — working with British crews, on British stages and sets — we have a responsibility to the public who support, enjoy and consume the art we make.”Calling the merger a threat to the country’s creative industries, they added, “The U.K. is being threatened by a media merger that would harm our workers, our culture and the public — but we can stop it.”The actors also welcomed Lisa Nandy’s earlier indication that she was “minded to intervene” and noted that a coalition of 12 U.S. states, led by California, has already filed a lawsuit seeking to block the merger, arguing it would “raise prices, shrink the number of films made and degrade the quality of what audiences see.”
Paramount remains confident despite legal challenge
Their comments come as Paramount agreed to delay completing the takeover until a U.S. court rules on whether the transaction violates antitrust laws.Responding to the legal challenge, a Paramount spokesperson said the delay was the “fastest and clearest way to prove that this transaction is good for competition, good for consumers, and good for creators, a conclusion dozens of competition authorities around the world have already reached.”Paramount CEO David Ellison has also repeatedly said the merger would embrace “cutting-edge innovation” and bring fresh momentum to the entertainment business.
‘The fight against this merger now runs on two fronts’
Despite the ongoing U.S. lawsuit, Cumberbatch, Cumming and Wong argued that Britain must make its own decision.They wrote that the legal challenge in the United States “confirms the danger; it cannot, however, do the U.K.’s work for it.”The actors added, “The fight against this merger now runs on two fronts, and Nandy commands one of them. Should her department decide to intervene, it may prove one of the most important decisions any culture secretary has taken for U.K. film, television and media in a generation.”
Warning over jobs, filmmaking and news media
The trio stressed that Britain’s entertainment industry is about far more than what audiences watch on screen.“U.K. film and TV are not just images on your screens; they are lives and livelihoods of thousands of workers and families, whose work supports local economies,” they wrote, noting that the industry supports around 180,000 jobs and generated £6.8 billion in production spending last year.Calling the sector a national asset, they added, “It is one of the things the U.K. still does better than almost anyone, and a cultural heritage we must protect.”The actors also said they have watched “with growing alarm” the impact of media consolidation on creative storytelling.They pointed out that independent film acquisitions at Sundance have fallen sharply in recent years, writing, “Award-winning documentaries – films that won Oscars and topped festival juries – have struggled to find commercial distribution because they touched subjects the remaining handful of buyers found inconvenient. Every merger of this kind narrows the funnel through which stories can reach audiences.“
‘In plain English, that means redundancies’
Referring to Warner Bros.’ estimated $84 billion debt and the company’s plan to deliver around $6 billion in synergies, the actors wrote, “In plain English, that means redundancies, cancelled productions, fewer films commissioned and fewer risks taken.”They added, “That is precisely what makes the Paramount-WBD merger so dangerous,” pointing to previous industry mergers that resulted in cancelled productions and thousands of layoffs.The actors also expressed concern about the consolidation of major news organisations, including Channel 5, CNN International and CBS News.They wrote, “The CNN and CBS news archives [are] among the world’s most important broadcast news collections, with more than 4.25m videos, images and media spanning nearly half a century of history. If one commercially interested owner controls access to both, they control the raw material of our historical memory.”The trio further claimed, “Paramount’s chief executive reportedly told Donald Trump that he would make ‘sweeping changes’ to CNN if the deal went through.”‘This is not someone else’s argument. It is ours.’Concluding their appeal, the actors defended their decision to publicly oppose the merger.“Actors are often told to stay out of legal arguments,” they wrote.“We understand the instinct. But we have spent our lives on enough U.K. sets, worked alongside enough U.K. crews and watched enough brilliant work from the U.K. struggle to find a buyer to know that this is not someone else’s argument. It is ours.”
Court temporarily pauses merger
Meanwhile, David Ellison sought to reassure Paramount employees in a company-wide memo after the company agreed to pause the merger while legal proceedings continue.“We remain highly confident that this transaction does not pose any legal issues, and we will complete it and bring these two companies together,” Ellison wrote.He added, “We believe this is the right path because the facts and the law are on our side, and a full hearing will demonstrate why the plaintiffs’ arguments should not prevail.”A U.S. federal judge has since granted a 14-day temporary restraining order, temporarily preventing Paramount from completing the takeover while the court considers a request for a preliminary injunction. A hearing is currently scheduled for August 3, although the date could change. If the deal is not completed by September 30, Paramount could reportedly begin paying millions of dollars per day to Warner Bros. investors under the merger agreement.
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