Last week a surprise last-minute bid looked to possibly derail the previously announced merger between Paramount and Skydance Entertainment. Now the man behind the new bid announced he’s dropping out.
Bronfman out
Last Wednesday Seagrams heir and former Warner Music CEO Edgar J. Bronfman Jr. surprised Hollywood and Wall Street with a $6 billion bid to take over Paramount, getting the board to extend the 45-day ‘go shop’ period after their July announcement of an agreement to merge with Skydance Media. That bid was followed up with a strong rebuttal from Skydance, threatening to pull out of their agreement if Paramount didn’t stop negotiating with Bronfman.
Thankfully before things could get ugly, Bronfman dropped his bid Monday afternoon. In a statement released to the media, Bronfman confirmed his investor group had notified Paramount’s board they are “exiting” the go-shop process and ending their bid, adding “It was a privilege to have the opportunity to participate,” and “We continue to believe that Paramount Global is an extraordinary company, with an unrivaled collection of marquee brands, assets and people.” The statement ended with a congratulations to the Skydance team. Bronfman’s abrupt withdrawal comes after skepticism emerged regarding the funding for his $6 billion bid, with the deadline to submit the final offer coming on Tuesday. According to the New York Times, “when pressed, Mr. Bronfman did not provide Paramount’s advisers with detailed evidence that his backers had enough capital on hand for a deal.”
In a statement, Paramount has confirmed the “go-shop” period for the pending Skydance Media merger has ended, according to Deadline. Chair of the Paramount’s Special Committee Charles E. Phillips, Jr. stated: “Having thoroughly explored actionable opportunities for Paramount over nearly eight months, our Special Committee continues to believe that the transaction we have agreed with Skydance delivers immediate value and the potential for continued participation in value creation in a rapidly evolving industry landscape.” Paramount now expects the Skydance transaction to “close in the first half of 2025.”
Star Trek’s future again in Skydance’s hands
As for Star Trek, we are back where we were last month. Skydance has outlined a plan to “reevaluate” Paramount’s franchises to fuel a “powerful and repeatable IP ecosystem.” In a presentation to shareholders, Star Trek was one of the key franchises highlighted to illustrate this strategy. Skdyance (and future Paramount) CEO David Ellison also noted how he had a long-standing relationship with Paramount, including acting as executive producer on the last two Star Trek feature films. Incoming Paramount President Jeff Shell also talked about seeing Paramount+ becoming part of an “ultimate bundle,” endorsing Paramount’s previously stated goal to find a joint venture partner for the streaming service that is currently home to Star Trek TV and movies. Shell also expressed how Paramount in general could be looking for more licensing opportunities, which could impact Star Trek either in terms of the catalog of previous films and television, or possibly for new originals.
From the July 8 Paramount/Skydance investor presentation
As always, TrekMovie will continue to monitor the situation and report on any major developments.
Keep up with all the corporate news that can impact Star Trek here at TrekMovie.com.
It wouldn’t be Hollywood if there wasn’t a little drama…..
It looks like Bronfman just wanted to get his name in the papers. His bid could not even pass basic vetting, and he was wasting people’s time with a fake offer.
Unless Ellison wants to find it himself do not expect a proper new Trek movie until 2026-2027 they are unlikely to greenlight a 9 figure budget before the merger has completed are they!
They don’t own it yet. It has to be business as usual until then, so if it manages to go into production by early 2025…
At the rate theatrical Trek movies are announced and killed, I wouldn’t be surprised if we never see another one. If the Section 31 streaming movie works, that is what will probably be the future of Trek movies.
We will get another theatrical movie at some point, but I don’t think it will be within the next 5 years at the rate things are going. But I agree, they should just stick to streaming movies for now until Paramount is more confident it can bring in bigger profits. Right now, everything seems to be in flux to say the least, especially concerning Star Trek.
I would love to be proven wrong though…but haven’t so far. ;)
Maybe they should wait to find out how well Section 31 actually does before deciding whether to stick to streaming movies ;-)
If they can’t get a big enough audience to make a streaming movie successful then that bolds even less for another $100+ million theatrical movie.
That said Section 31 does look pretty awful lol. So I guess that isn’t a fair assessment if it’s just bad. And there isn’t a single frame of that trailer I liked. That’s how much I hate it. I was even advocating they should put it in theaters for a week or something like Netflix does with some of their movies. Not anymore.
Maybe they will do it but I wouldn’t see it in theaters. At the very least the reviews would have to be really strong to waste a minute in my car to go see it or pay any money. But I’ll definitely watch it on streaming regardless of reviews.
If and when one is greenlit it’ll be a frugal production, in the 125MM range. If won’t be an FX extravaganza – Chris Pine wasn’t wrong suggesting a little less emphasis on blowing shit up would be helpful….
Agreed. And you heard me say this for awhile, anything over $130 million is suicide at this point. These movies have zero hype with even hard-core fans these days. Newbies won’t care much at all. It’s no longer 2009.
No later then 2029? You’re more pessimistic than I am….
Lol yeah. But imagine if in 2016 someone said they couldn’t imagine a movie being made no sooner than 2021 and people would’ve said they were nuts.
We’re now 3 years past that and still no movie in sight. No casting rumors, production timelines, script updates, writer or director interviews or an opening date of any kind. Just the press releases announcing a movie and little else per usual.
This is where we are for 8 years and counting now.
BTW, it’s now been 2 years since Matt Shakman left the Kelvin movie to go back to Marvel and do Fantastic Four. That movie is now filming while Trek is still in the same stalemate after he left.
It really is mind blowing when you think about it, 8 years.. going ‘beyond’ the Nemesis-ST09 gap (that was itself a huge gap like the 007 Dalton-Bronson gap),but unlike that its supposed to be the same cast/crew…
as bad as Beyond was (imo), and its underperforming (which I guess is the main reason there’s been no ST4) its also to do with all the legal stuff, the focusing on TV trek (doing an almost version of Kelvin Trek on TV now with SNW), the money demands of the cast etc ..just tons of reasons NOT to make another lol
Wonder what would’ve happened had we got Orci’s ST3 instead of Beyond that summer of ’16.. (probably the same I guess, but at least they’d be a better movie more in sync with ST09/ID)
It’s now September of 2024. My guess is 2027 would be the earliest now if they got moving early next year. They clearly are not out to get anything by the 60th anniversary made considering they have done absolutely nothing in terms of pre-production this year.
and so often things from the old regime get dusted so the new suits can have something new to do and lest anything good from the old powers that be take the shine off the new guys
ST not at the top of paramount’s priorities with all this mess to clear up.
Maybe to offer a different perspective: Skydance has been a partner on the last 2 Kelvin movies so there is at least a chance they have also been involved in the development process of any theatrical Star Trek movies Paramount is working on.
Instead of bringing everything to a complete halt for several years while they reassess, it may be a positive sign to potential investors if they can show that the new Paramount can actually get a movie into theatres (and ideally turn that movie into something of a financial success as well).
Thank you Mr. Bronfman. Short, but pointless.
Maybe just to keep Skydance honest?
Hopefully they can rebrand the Star Trek IP into something better.
Agreed 👍
They should adopt the Disney model: release a new show every 6-8 months and a new movie every 2-3 years, or establish a “Marvel”-style movie universe timeline. Produce *Star Trek Legacy* specifically for the fans. Develop a stronger merchandising platform, opting for LEGO over Playmobil. Paramount Plus should be the exclusive home for all *Star Trek* content, with only Paramount/Pluto streaming the movies or shows. Consider creating amusement parks or attractions at Universal, or even building a dedicated park. Revive the Las Vegas experience and make the *Star Trek* brand more dynamic and engaging, similar to what’s been done with *Star Wars*.
Now write the business proposal for that – we want to pour billions into a sci-fi franchise with no demonstrated prospect for a return on that level of investment. You seem to be suggesting that making Trek more like Wars will attract an audience.
And Star Wars is having problems (They’ve just cancelled The Acolyte).
They didn’t cancel Acolyte. Before the series dropped, the creator was very clear and insistent that it was scoped as a single-season story. This S2 thing only came up towards the last few episodes, probably in a bid to try and drum up ratings given it’s fairly dismal numbers and reviews.
Disney’s Star Wars and Marvel models have developed sizable cracks though.
Marvel has had to pivot substantially after underwhelming box office, reviews and ratings for multiple films and shows, as well as casting missteps. Deadpool and Wolverine’s success was built on the previous work done by a non-Kevin Feige team and creatively still benefits from that.
Star Wars has seen wildly varied critical reactions to films and series, and I’d say is a victim of a major dilution of the brand after so much product getting released. The Acolyte’s underwhelming performance was as big a wake up call as the Solo prequel’s.
So neither is a perfect template for Paramount as it tries to juggle multiple shows and restart the films, all while having less money to burn than Disney. Star Trek is popular and doing well on streaming, but it’s still a niche audience that’s occasionally captured the zeitgeist and crossed over into blockbuster ratings and box office.
As for theme parks and merchandise, that’s tricky too. Yes, Disney is still making bank from the above, but those franchises are specifically built for that. Older Trek fans do indulge a smaller pricier collectors’ market. Younger fans haven’t really been catered to a ton in the last decade, but also haven’t embraced much when toys emerge as of late. Many game and toy companies have famously had trouble making the license worth their while. Star Trek The Experience was a success, but no one remounted it when it closed, despite the Borg 4D ride being fairly new and people at the time saying it was just moving homes. Paramount Parks is no longer really a thing, sadly, so I don’t know if a dedicated Trek or even Paramount theme park that included say, Transformers, Sonic, Mission: Impossible, Nickelodeon and Top Gun would be viable. It’s probably worth licensing out to Universal or Six Flags if they are interested and generating some interest and revenue from an attraction/ride.
Looking at this years hit movies id suggest Paramount had best get working on a multiverse movie with a ton of cameos/nostalgia/’big swings’ and hard core space action/horror for the anniversary. Like now ..
Lol you have such an obsession with this multiverse idea, although every concept we heard from every canceled movie have sounded like straight forward adventure of the week storylines.
And the next movie, at least for now, is the Starfleet origin story based in the prime universe. It sounds like it will be a smaller bare bones type of movie that takes place mostly on Earth. I wouldn’t expect Riker, Kirk and Archer to suddenly show up in it together.
I just wouldn’t get my hopes up the movie will be anything that ambitious or with that level of scope based on everything we heard so far.
Really hoping against hope the next movie is like a David mamet character study, perhaps contained to a shuttlecraft. Stagecoach in space, anyone?:
Lol so minimalist they can shoot it in someone’s backyard.
At least it will have a small enough budget to make a profit off of it. Finally someone listened to me.
M Night made SPLIT with his own money, something under 10 mil I think. If you got old-time fx people to do ‘traditional miniature work’ and in-camera tricks, I bet you could really maximize a minimal investment. Come to think of it wasn’t DREDD kind of a minimalist movie? Will have to see it again, I think it was all just in a high-rise.
Godzilla Minus One was (supposedly) made for 15MM and was very well received. I enjoyed it – haven’t been able to bring myself to watch the English dubbed version on Netflix, though.
Helped to have a director who could do a lot of the VFX himself and at least plan them efficiently with all that tech knowledge yet was also great with the actors and characters. Rare to find that.
Then just watch it with subtitles.
Godzilla Minus One was so good. A clinic in how to reboot a property while remaining faithful to the core spirit of the original. It’s not about the monster.
I’ll catch some flack for this, but Shuttlepod One was one of a handful of Enterprise episodes actually worth watching.
Not from me, love that episode.
100%. I love a good two-hander play.
I think you are correct about ST4 being a straight forward ‘adventure of the week’, so far its been the Hemsworth/Relics thing (director SJ Clarkson of Madame Web), then the Tarantino Piece of the Action gangster film (including some time travel according to the screenwriter Mark L Smith, so maybe some City on the Edge?), Noah Hawleys space pandemic? standalone not connected to any established Trek (rumoured with Cate Blanchett/Rami Malek) , then whatever Matt Shakman was working on (there was literally no hints on the plot unlike the rest, maybe he was going to do something multiversey? as didn’t he touch upon that in WandaVision? as well as different eras of tv which may have cone in handy for a multiversey type Trek), there may have been on or two more I can’t remember ..
I’m kind of hoping the earth base Origins Trek film gets canned for doing a 4th kelvin film first
My only guess is the Starfleet movie is happening because it’s just infinitely cheaper. Why else would that go first when they been working on a Kelvin movie literally 8 years now.
But yeah it’s another ‘new regieme’ so we’ll see. Maybe they will decide to do the Kelvin movie instead. Or just scrap both and come up with something totally different since I think most people feel the Kelvin movies probably has no real chance to be big blockbusters anymore. I’m fine with any of those options.
Sadly my cynical view is these movies will still be stalled a year from now because as someone else said they are clearly not the priority anymore. You said you would like to see a movie for the 60th and the fact there has been zero movement for an anniversary that is basically 2 years away next week tells me they didn’t care about the anniversary at all. Because they probably had no intention of making any movie until they git a new buyer.
Best guess maybe we will get something in 2027 but all we been doing is moving the date another year back for like 6 years now lol.
Until a movie actually enters production we will probably be doing this for several more years.
Availability of the cast?
For…8 years?
Zoe Saldana has somehow found a way to be in 5 MCU movies with huge casts, including Infinity War and Endgame and shot them back to back.
Funny how Marvel has no problem getting all these big actors to be in one movie when they make a billion dollars. Schedules seem to clear up fast with those movies.
Lastly, it helps to actually call them first. Chris Pine has said in interviews no one has called him about the movie in years. So it’s not that lol.
That really tells you that the Kelvin cast has a better finger on the pulse on what’s really been going on in the back rooms at Paramount then what’s known publically. The cast has remained very viably employed, and I’d imagine their representatives, to a person, have told their clients you’d be nuts to walk away from a paying gig on a promise from Paramount that a Trek feature is starting……soon.
Well, I was really talking about why this Origins movie (which we’ve only know about for, what… six months?) moved ahead of Kelvinverse 4. What happened in the prior seven years since Beyond is water under the bridge (and we’re getting to the point that a book could be written about it!) What happens this year is what matters. Are Pine & Co. available when the soundstages will be available?
If no, then move to Plan B.
Of course, there is no indication Plan B is anywhere close to happening, either.
One presumes that they have actually been working on a movie for eight years. Beyond having some writers take a crack at it, there’s little to suggest any concept got much further than that.
I think it was once reported that the Noah Hawley Star trek movie was close to starting pre-production when it was shut down.
I want a Star Trek Muppets movie.
I want a Muppets *anything* – talk about a company wasting a property…
That’s a decent cautionary tale for anyone who honestly thinks Disney would devote as much attention and resources to Trek as one of its also-ran IPs versus what Paramount does with Trek being a “crown jewel” to them. I really don’t think people see the big picture there.
Section 31 will be ready for the anniversary. For what you just described, a very FX heavy flick, it would need to be in principal photography now to be ready for an anniversary showing.
A bit of an over sensenationl take to say Star Trek is “back” in Sky Dance’s hands. It never left. Paramount was simply considering a competitive bid as part of a legal binding clause they had in the agreement with Sky Dance.
Finally! Get this merger done and let us fans know about the status of Star Trek!!
Easy. The status of Trek is that more shows, movies, and merchandise will be produced. Some day. By someone. In the future.
Skydance has always been the best possible outcome, so this is good news.
I’ve always liked the idea of Apple buy Paramount though.
Apple, like Disney, was clearly not interested.
It’s a nice idea because they could afford it and wipe out the debt and the people in charge of AppleTV+ have demonstrated a decent amount of good taste. And Trek being owned by a storied sleek technology company obviously has emotional appeal to some. But Apple doesn’t want to suddenly be in charge of a complicated media empire full of broadcast assets including tv stations, a news organization, and distribution outlets. That would put them under extra government scrutiny and tie them up in things that have nothing to do with their brand identity. The shows and films they invest in now serve as a carrot for their services and tend to have enough critical sheen and at least polish to associate Apple with quality. That would change if they suddenly owned Teen Mom, Jersey Shore and Big Brother.
Besides, they are starting to tighten the purse strings – Foundation has been hit by cost disagreements and fewer theatrical releases are in the cards for their movies after they picked a bunch of recent flops.
I figured they would buy Paramount and then sell the parts they don’t want. Buying Paramount would give their AppleTV+ a huge library of movies and shows which the service badly needs (it currently has a few good new shows and almost nothing else.) Apple would get a still relatively prestigious movie studio. And CBS might be worth it if only for the NFL rights.
Sounds like a recipe for more job losses than the Skydance bid will lead to.
Nooooooooo! I wanted the Star Trek/Baby Geniuses crossover!!!!!
😢😭