Paramount Bid Could Trigger a Major Shakeup at DC Studios
Paramount Skydance’s push to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery is already sparking talk of a wholesale DC Studios shakeup, with the DCU’s roadmap back on the drawing board. A deal isn’t close, but industry chatter points to sweeping leadership and slate changes if Paramount takes the reins.
File this under: things that could seriously reshuffle the DCU, but also might never happen. There is new chatter that if Paramount manages to merge with Warner Bros. Discovery, James Gunn and Peter Safran might not have the same level of say over what gets made at DC Studios.
So, what is this merger talk exactly?
This all comes from a Puck report (surfaced via Brandon Schreur at SuperHeroHype) that frames a potential Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery tie-up. The way it gets described is a little tangled: you will see the phrase 'Paramount Skydance' floating around, with the gist being that David Ellison (Skydance) has been pushing hard to combine with David Zaslav’s Warner Bros. Discovery. None of this is close to official. It’s early, and the deal would be massive and messy.
Worth flagging: the report specifically says Paramount Pictures declined to comment when asked. No surprise there.
Why DC Studios is the pressure point
Warner Bros. Pictures owns DC Studios, which is run by James Gunn and Peter Safran. Right now, the two essentially function as the DCU’s showrunners. According to Puck’s read, their creative control could get diluted if a Paramount/WBD combo actually happens.
The most eyebrow-raising detail: the report name-checks Paramount Pictures co-chair Josh Greenstein (yes, that attribution is doing laps online) as being very eager to team with 'Weapons' filmmaker Zach Cregger on a DC movie if the companies join forces. That doesn’t mean a Cregger DC film is happening. It’s more a signal that, under a new corporate roof, the decision-making flow could shift.
"As things now stand at Warner Bros., James Gunn and Peter Safran control who directs DC movies, choices they make after they have developed scripts to their liking. It sounds like change may be in the wind if, indeed, the Ellisons prevail."
Paramount, again, isn’t commenting. Beyond that, there are no concrete details to hang a release-date hat on. This is all vibes and positioning until lawyers start filing paperwork.
Where the DCU stands right now
In the meantime, Gunn and Safran’s plan is still very much moving:
- December 2024: Creature Commandos (animated) kicked off the new DCU.
- Also on deck: Superman, plus Peacemaker Season 2.
- 2026: Supergirl, directed by Craig Gillespie and starring Milly Alcock; Lanterns, a series with Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre; and a Clayface movie co-written by Mike Flanagan with Tom Rhys Harries playing the Batman villain.
- July 2027: Man of Tomorrow, the follow-up to Superman.
The bottom line (for now)
There’s a scenario where Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery combine and DC Studios becomes less of a Gunn/Safran fiefdom and more of a studio-first decision tree. There’s also a scenario where nothing changes because the merger never clears the mountain of hurdles in front of it. For the moment, it’s a lot of noise and one very pointed suggestion about how the power balance at DC could tilt if the Ellisons get their way. Until then, business as usual.