California Halts Talks With Paramount Over $110B Warner Bros. Deal

California's top government lawyer just walked away from the negotiating table — and he's not happy about it.

On Monday, California Attorney General (AG) Rob Bonta — the state's chief legal officer — canceled a scheduled meeting with Paramount Skydance, the media company. Bonta accused Paramount of a "lack of good faith," saying it leaked and twisted details of a private meeting held the previous Friday.

What's the fight about?

Paramount wants to buy another major media company, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), in a deal worth about $110 billion. But Bonta and 11 other state AGs filed a lawsuit in July to stop it.

Their concern is antitrust — laws designed to stop one company from becoming too powerful and squashing competition. The states argue that combining Paramount and WBD would create a media giant controlling a huge chunk of movies and basic TV programming.

Key facts to know:

• The deal's value: roughly $110 billion
• States suing to block it: 12 (led by California)
• The deal's closing was delayed until as late as June 2027
• A court trial is scheduled for March

Bonta said his office prefers to "resolve cases in the boardroom instead of the courtroom" — meaning he'd rather settle privately than fight in court. But he claims Paramount broke the trust by leaking meeting details and misrepresenting them. "As soon as Paramount stops playing games and engages sincerely, my office is happy to meet again," he said.

Bonta also said any settlement would need "robust structural remedies" — meaning Paramount might have to make big changes, like selling off parts of the business, to keep competition healthy.

Paramount has pushed back, calling the lawsuit a "misrepresentation of competition" and standing by its plan to buy WBD. Both companies declined to comment on the canceled meeting.

The bottom line: With talks stalled, this dispute now looks more likely to be settled in a courtroom than a boardroom — and the trial is set for March.

This is an AI-generated summary. Read the original article at: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/24/california-ag-bonta-paramount-settlement-meeting.html