Banner Over Paramount Lot Calls CEO David Ellison Trump’s Ally Amid Merger Dispute
A plane flew over Paramount’s Hollywood lot towing a banner that called CEO David Ellison “Trump’s B!tch” as protest over the pending Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger.
A low-altitude flight over Paramount Pictures’ Hollywood lot displayed a banner reading “Ellison Is Trump’s B!tch!” on Thursday, targeting CEO David Ellison amid the looming Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger. The stunt coincided with Neighbors for Strong Communities planning a press conference outside the studio to highlight concerns that the merger could trigger a departure of the studio from California.
Ellison has warned he will consider moving the company out of the state if the deal is not closed by Oct. 1, when a $7 million-per-day penalty would start charging Warner Bros. investors. Simultaneously, members of the Block the Merger coalition assembled at the lot to thank state attorneys general for pursuing legal action to block the $111 billion transaction and to call for continued opposition, labeling the merger as “blackmail.”
Speakers included actress and First Amendment advocate Elyssa Phillips, Free Press co-CEO Jessica J. González, actor and Burbank councilmember Konstantine Anthony, and councilmember Nikki Perez. A spokesperson for Block the Merger said the group was not responsible for the airborne banner. No comment was obtained from Paramount.
Why it matters
The protest underscores growing opposition to a multibillion-dollar media merger that could impact California jobs and tax revenue.
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