Could a Sony-Apollo Joint Bid Stop a Paramount Shareholder Revolt? | Analysis

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But for now, Skydance Media still has until May 3 to turn exclusive talks with the studio into a deal.

Skydance CEO David Ellison, Apollo CEO Marc Rowan and Paramount Global Non-Executive Chair Shari Redstone
Skydance CEO David Ellison, Apollo CEO Marc Rowan and Paramount Global Non-Executive Chair Shari Redstone (Chris Smith/TheWrap)

Paramount Global majority shareholder Shari Redstone may by convinced that David Ellison’s Skydance Media is the company best suited to buy the venerable Hollywood company. But don’t count out Apollo Global Management just yet.

On Thursday, TheWrap learned that Sony Pictures has been in talks with Apollo about making a joint bid to acquire the Melrose studio, just weeks after the private equity firm made a solo offer to purchase Paramount for $26 billion, including the assumption of debt.

The Sony news quickly sent shares of Paramount up more than 11% in after-hours trading.

The potential bid comes as investors are staging a near-revolt against Paramount Global’s board — and a special committee of directors set up by majority shareholder Shari Redstone to consider bids — for its seeming insistence on only pursuing a deal for Skydance to buy the company. Some

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