According to actors Benedict Cumberbatch, Alan Cumming, and Benedict Wong, the impending Paramount-Warner Bros. merger is a "TV and cinema calamity."
The trio penned an op-ed in The Guardian that lays out the dangers of the planned merger, starting with the consolidation of storytelling and acquisitions for independent projects. "Every merger of this kind narrows the funnel through which stories can reach audiences," the piece reads.
Cumberbatch, Cumming, and Wong raised the alarm on the job loss the merger could cause, citing prior mergers like Warner Bros.-Discovery and Paramount-Skydance. Both cases resulted in the loss of thousands of jobs. The actors also stressed that the merger would lead to one company controlling the UK's Channel 5 and CNN International.
"One owner controlling this much of the news, and the truth, endangers the public in a way no ordinary consolidation does," they write, noting Paramount CEO David Ellison's reported promise to President Donald Trump to make "sweeping changes" to CNN should the deal go through.
The Paramount-Warner Bros. merger has already faced opposition in the US, with 12 states, led by California, suing to block it. On July 24, Paramount agreed to delay the merger until after the antitrust trial.
Cumberbatch, Cumming, and Wong's focus lies with the UK, and encouraging its government to oppose the merger in similar fashion. They applaud the efforts of Lisa Nandy, the secretary of state for digital, culture, media, and sport. Through a statement to parliament and letters to Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros., Nandy has made clear that she is "minded to intervene" in the merger.
"Nandy has opened the door to intervention. She must walk through it, for the sake of everyone who makes UK television and film – and everyone who watches it," write Cumberbatch, Cumming, and Wong. "If she does not, we will be left without the ability to protect our industry and our culture from this consolidation. We must not push the public’s interest aside; we must stand up for it and block this merger."
