Ropes & Gray Advised National Amusements in Sale to Skydance Media Affiliates to Complete Paramount-Skydance Merger

Ropes & Gray advised National Amusements Inc. (NAI) in the sale of NAI to entities affiliated with the Ellison family and RedBird Capital for $2.4 billion. NAI, together with its subsidiaries, held approximately 77% of the voting stock of Paramount Global, which has merged with Skydance to create a new premier standalone global media and entertainment company. The closing of the merger was announced on Aug. 7 in a press release.  

The merger combines Skydance’s technology and creative capabilities with Paramount’s iconic IP and platforms. Importantly, the transaction preserves the over 100-year-old legacy of Paramount as one of Hollywood’s most iconic production companies and CBS’ stature as a cherished source of news and entertainment. It also maintains American jobs, fosters continued innovation and secures a prosperous future for the creative community at Paramount.

The Ropes & Gray team included M&A partners Jackie Cohen and Emily Oldshue, litigation & enforcement partners Peter Welsh and Marty Crisp, executive compensation & employee benefits partner Renata Ferrari, finance partner Byung Choi, real estate partner David Kaye, tax partner Scott Pinarchick, antitrust partners Michael McFalls and Ruchit Patel, and IP transactions partners Erica Han and Emily Karlberg. The team also included M&A associates Debbie Wang, Kasey Hughes, Alex Schubert, Matt Stranzl and Jeremy Hollings, executive compensation & employee benefits counsel Rebecca Liu, litigation & enforcement counsel Alison McLaughlin and Steve Kaye and associate Ani-Rae Lovell, finance associate Chandler Burnham, and real estate associate Mitesh Patel.