The plot thickens for the potential merger between Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Skydance, because artificial intelligence has reportedly entered the conversation. Though multiple parties have been said to be interested in acquiring WBD following the company's sale announcement—such parties include Netflix and Apple—the biggest contender to become the studio's new owner appears to be Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison.
The company has so far sent in three bids, each adding new things to make the proposal more attractive for the WBD board (one of the added perks was making WBD CEO David Zaslav co-CEO of a merged Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery). All three bids have been rejected, but Ellison seems determined to acquire the studio. Now, an interesting report has come out about the CEO's purported plans should WBD end up merging with Paramount.
In a report about the current potential-merger situation, Bloomberg stated that Ellison intends to "take advantage of new technologies, like artificial intelligence, to produce more films and TV shows." According to Bloomberg's sources, he intends for a potentially merged Paramount-WBD to have an output of 30 movies per year.
In the span of only a few years, AI has become a potential disruptor in the industry. Multiple creatives (such as Guillermo del Toro, for example) and guilds have spoken about the use of the technology. In fact, its use was a major point of contention in the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Yet, at the same time, more and more creatives and executives appear to be leaning toward employing the technology. Many high-profile productions have already used it—a good example being Marvel Studios' Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.
However, given the contentiousness of artificial intelligence, many such productions don't openly advertise their use of the technology. In the cases where AI use is uncovered, apologies or statements on the matter are usually released. However, if WBD does indeed merge with Paramount, and Ellison's purported plans come to fruition, the CEO would take the first major step in normalizing AI usage in Hollywood. After that, it would only be a matter of time before other studios follow suit and AI becomes openly commonplace in the entertainment industry.
As of now, Warner Bros. Discovery has not accepted bids from potential buyers, so there is still some time before we know what actions a potential new owner of the company will take. However, given how strong a contender Paramount seems to be in the race to buy the studio, it's likelier than not that Ellison will end up acquiring it. Thus, Bloomberg's report may provide a reasonable idea of what to expect from WBD should it merge with Paramount.