Paramount Global ousts CEO Bob Bakish, replaces him with trio of execs as it eyes Skydance merger
NY Post
Paramount Global pushed out CEO Bob Bakish on Monday — removing a major opponent to the media giant’s possible merger with Skydance Media.
Bakish, who had run Paramount since 2019, will be replaced by a three-headed “Office of the CEO” –consisting of George Cheeks, President and CEO of CBS; Chris McCarthy, President and CEO, Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks; and Brian Robbins, President and CEO of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon, the company said.
“I have tremendous confidence in George, Chris and Brian,” Paramount board chair Shari Redstone said in a written statement after cutting ties with Bakish, long viewed as her right hand.
“They have both the ability to develop and execute on a new strategic plan and to work together as true partners.”
The announcement came shorty before the debt-saddled company announced its quarterly earnings after the bell.
As expected, Bakish did not lead the earnings call, which kicked off at 4:30p ET and abruptly ended 10 minutes later.
