Paramount Global announced on Monday that CEO Bob Bakish will be stepping down from his position. This development comes amidst ongoing merger negotiations with Skydance Media.
Bakish joined Viacom in 1997 and ascended the corporate ranks to become CEO in 2016. After the merger of Viacom and CBS, Bob Bakish assumed the CEO role for the combined entity in 2019 which was later renamed Paramount Global. Furthermore, Bakish will also be leaving the company’s board of directors.
Additionally, Paramount has announced the formation of an “Office of the CEO” to lead the company after Bob Bakish’s departure. The new leadership team comprises George Cheeks, president and CEO of CBS, Chris McCarthy, president and CEO at Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks, and Brian Robbins, head of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon. The three executives will work closely with Paramount CFO Naveen Chopra and the board of directors.
Paramount said on Monday that the new leadership is “working with the board to develop a comprehensive, long-range plan to accelerate growth and develop popular content, materially streamline operations, strengthen the balance sheet, and continue to optimize the streaming strategy.”
Furthermore, amid ongoing discussions of a potential merger between Paramount and Skydance Media, Bob Bakish is departing from Paramount. Discussions are slated to continue until May 3, and both companies are currently engaged in exclusive negotiations regarding the prospective deal. A special committee has been established to oversee the proceedings in preparation for this process.
According to a CNBC report, Bob Bakish has privately expressed disagreement with the proposed merger over its potential impact on common shareholders. Under the terms of the proposed agreement, nearly 50% of the merged entity would be controlled by Skydance and its private equity supporters, while common shareholders would retain ownership of the remaining portion of Paramount, which is expected to continue trading publicly.
Notably, the departure of Bob Bakish also coincides with ongoing negotiations between Paramount and cable company Charter Communications. Paramount has been engaged in discussions regarding the carriage of its television networks, including prominent channels such as CBS and MTV.