Paramount has asked a US federal judge to require 12 states to post a $1.88 billion bond to cover potential costs from delays to its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, in a request filed Monday.
The studio faces a daily fee of roughly $7 million payable to Warner shareholders if the approximately $110 billion deal is not completed by Sept. 30. Paramount estimates those penalties could reach $1.3 billion by April and $1.7 billion by June, with additional financing costs if the merger slips into 2027. The company has threatened to relocate its headquarters from California to Georgia, Texas, or Tennessee as early as Oct. 1.
The states, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, filed their lawsuit on July 13, with a trial scheduled for March. The Writers Guild of America has also joined the legal challenge.