Paramount is preparing to issue a large amount of pink slips next week, just a few weeks before the company is set to report its third quarter (Q3) financial earnings, according to multiple reports this weekend.
The layoffs are part of a broader restructuring of Paramount’s global operations following its merger with Skydance Media in August. The Q3 earnings report, which will be released in November, will be the first since the Paramount-Skydance combination closed.
Around 2,000 employees in the U.S. will be affected, with additional cuts expected across international operations, according to Variety. The reductions are part of a plan to eliminate up to $2 billion in costs across the combined company, a target that Ellison and his lieutenants have repeatedly cited since the merger closed.
Paramount’s restructuring mirrors similar moves across legacy media companies grappling with steep declines in traditional advertising and distribution revenue as audiences migrate to streaming. As of last December, Paramount reported 18,600 employees worldwide, down from 24,500 two years earlier, according to its most recent SEC filing. The company had already laid off 3.5 percent of its domestic workforce in June, while Skydance employed just over 500 people before the merger.
Paramount’s global properties include the CBS broadcast network; British public service broadcaster Channel 5; Australia’s Network 10; streaming platforms Pluto TV and Paramount Plus; a joint venture stake in streaming service SkyShowtime (operated with Comcast’s NBCUniversal); and pay television networks MTV, VH1, BET, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, Showtime, The Movie Channel, TV Land, Paramount Network, Spike TV, Game One and True Crime, among other assets.
Despite the forthcoming job cuts, Paramount Skydance has moved aggressively to lock in new content investments. Within days of the merger, the company announced a $7.7 billion seven-year deal for exclusive UFC broadcast and streaming rights, a partnership with Activision to produce a film based on “Call of Duty,” and the $150 million acquisition of journalist Bari Weiss’ digital outlet The Free Press. It also secured the Duffer Brothers, creators of Netflix hit “Stranger Things,” under a four-year exclusive deal to produce films and television projects.
Meanwhile, Ellison is pursuing an acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) that would help beef up Paramount’s content offering as it further competes in the streaming TV sector. WBD rebuffed an early offer from Paramount that would see channels like HBO, CNN, Cartoon Network and Discovery Channel come into Paramount’s control, certain reports said. WBD is in the process of spinning out its cable networks into a separate business, while retaining its more-lucrative film production and streaming units.
The Ellison family maintains full voting control of Paramount Skydance, with the Paramount takeover largely financed by Oracle founder Larry Ellison, David’s father.
Since closing the deal, Ellison has filled several senior executive roles. Makan Delrahim, who advised Skydance on the Paramount acquisition, was named chief legal officer; former Meta executive Dane Glasgow was appointed chief product officer; and Roku’s Jay Askinasi became chief revenue officer. Other key executives include Cindy Holland, Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, who lead major streaming and film units. George Cheeks, who previously ran CBS, now serves as Chair of TV Media.
In a July 2024 investor presentation, Shell said Bain & Co. had identified at least $2 billion in annualized cost savings, much of it expected to come from Paramount’s linear television business. The latest job cuts are expected to be the first significant step toward realizing that target.
In its most-recent earnings report that covered Q2 2025, Paramount disclosed overall revenue of $6.85 billion, up one percent from a year earlier. The company posted a $57 million profit, or 8 cents per share, reversing a $5.41 billion loss a year ago tied to cable network impairments.
Streaming continued to be a growth driver, with revenue rising 15 percent to $2.16 billion. Paramount Plus revenue surged 23 percent despite subscriber losses, ending the quarter with 77.7 million global customers, down by 1.3 million accounts. Paramount’s traditional TV networks business remained under pressure, with revenue declining six percent to $4.01 billion amid continued pay-TV erosion and weaker ad demand.
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