Editor’s note: This story was originally published on April 23, 2024. It has been updated as of July 8, 2024.
Skydance Media CEO David Ellison may be able to withstand rolling a plane more than one time per second. But is the producer and part-time daredevil flier ready to take the reins of Hollywood studio Paramount Global?
Wall Street was not initially so sure. But on Sunday, Skydance Media reached an $8 billion cash and stock deal to merge with Paramount and acquire Shari Redstone’s National Amusements, which controlled about 77% of Paramount’s Class A voting stock.
Ellison, the son of mega-billionaire Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, has a passion for aerobatic flying and started out as an actor.