The entertainment industry is bracing for a seismic shift as Paramount Skydance, the newly merged powerhouse formed from Paramount Global and Skydance Media, prepares to cut approximately 2,000 U.S. jobs starting the week of October 27, 2025. This sweeping round of layoffs, reported by multiple outlets including Variety, Reuters, and The Desk, marks one of the most significant restructurings in Hollywood in recent years and signals deep changes ahead for both the company and the wider media landscape.
The move comes just months after the high-profile merger between Skydance Media and Paramount Global was finalized in August 2025. According to Reuters, the layoffs are not limited to the United States; additional job cuts are expected internationally, with full details anticipated in the company’s upcoming third quarter earnings report, scheduled for November 10, 2025. The Q3 report will be the first since the merger closed, and industry watchers are eager to see how the new entity’s finances stack up after such dramatic restructuring.
Paramount Skydance’s decision to trim its workforce is part of a broader plan to eliminate up to $2 billion in costs across the combined company, a target that CEO David Ellison and his executive team have repeatedly emphasized since the merger. As The Desk reports, this cost-cutting drive is seen as essential for operational efficiency and long-term competitiveness as the company navigates a rapidly changing media environment.
The timing of the layoffs is notable. They come just weeks before Paramount Skydance is set to release its crucial Q3 earnings and as the company continues to grapple with the same headwinds facing much of the legacy media sector: declining traditional advertising revenue, shrinking pay-TV audiences, and the costly transition to streaming. Paramount’s most recent financial disclosures, as reported by The Desk, showed overall revenue of $6.85 billion in the second quarter of 2025—a modest 1% increase from the previous year. However, the company’s traditional TV networks business saw revenue drop by 6% to $4.01 billion, while streaming revenue jumped 15% to $2.16 billion.
It’s not the first time Paramount has had to make tough staffing decisions. As of December 2024, the company reported 18,600 employees worldwide, down from 24,500 just two years earlier. In June 2025, Paramount had already laid off 3.5% of its domestic workforce. Skydance, in contrast, was a much leaner operation prior to the merger, employing just over 500 people. The latest cuts, as Variety notes, are expected to be the first major step toward achieving the $2 billion in annualized savings identified by consulting firm Bain & Co. in a July 2024 investor presentation.
The impact of these layoffs will be felt across the entertainment giant’s sprawling portfolio. Paramount Skydance controls a vast array of assets, including the CBS broadcast network, British public service broadcaster Channel 5, Australia’s Network 10, streaming platforms Pluto TV and Paramount Plus, and a joint venture in SkyShowtime alongside Comcast’s NBCUniversal. Its cable and pay TV networks are household names: MTV, VH1, BET, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, Showtime, The Movie Channel, TV Land, Paramount Network, Spike TV, Game One, and True Crime, among others.
Despite the looming job cuts, Paramount Skydance has shown no signs of slowing its investment in content. Within days of the merger’s completion, the company announced a blockbuster $7.7 billion, seven-year deal for exclusive UFC broadcast and streaming rights. It also inked a partnership with Activision to produce a film based on the popular “Call of Duty” franchise and spent $150 million to acquire journalist Bari Weiss’ digital media outlet, The Free Press. Additionally, the Duffer Brothers—creators of Netflix’s “Stranger Things”—were signed to a four-year exclusive deal to produce films and television projects for the studio.
Ellison’s ambitions extend even further. According to The Desk, he is actively pursuing an acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery (WBD), a move that would bring channels like HBO, CNN, Cartoon Network, and Discovery Channel under the Paramount Skydance umbrella. However, WBD has so far rebuffed these overtures and is instead spinning out its cable networks into a separate business, while holding onto its lucrative film and streaming assets.
Leadership at the new company has also undergone a shake-up. The Ellison family, backed by Oracle founder Larry Ellison, retains full voting control of Paramount Skydance. Since the merger, several key executive appointments have been made: Makan Delrahim, who advised Skydance on the acquisition, is now chief legal officer; former Meta executive Dane Glasgow has taken the role of chief product officer; and Jay Askinasi, formerly of Roku, is chief revenue officer. Other major players include Cindy Holland, Dana Goldberg, and Josh Greenstein, who oversee streaming and film divisions, while George Cheeks, the former head of CBS, now chairs TV media.
The broader context for these cuts is an industry in flux. Legacy media companies across the board are struggling to adapt to the streaming era, with many forced to make painful reductions in staff and programming. Paramount’s restructuring is reminiscent of similar moves at competitors like Disney and Warner Bros Discovery, both of which have also slashed jobs in recent years to rein in costs and refocus their business models.
For employees, the news is understandably grim. The layoffs will affect a wide range of roles, from creative talent and production crews to marketing, sales, and administrative staff. While some industry observers see the cuts as a necessary evil to ensure the company’s survival in a cutthroat streaming market, others worry about the long-term impact on creative diversity and the health of Hollywood’s workforce. The company has not released official statements addressing the layoffs, and, as Reuters notes, Paramount Skydance did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Market analysts and investors are watching closely to see how the cuts—and the company’s aggressive content investments—will play out in the coming quarters. Paramount’s Q3 earnings, due in November, will offer the first real glimpse into whether the merger and subsequent restructuring are having the desired effect on profitability and growth. In the meantime, the entertainment world is left to ponder: Is this the beginning of a new era for Hollywood, or just the latest chapter in a story of ongoing disruption?
As the dust settles, one thing is clear: the Paramount Skydance merger and the resulting layoffs mark a turning point for the company and the industry at large, setting the stage for further consolidation and transformation in the years ahead.
