Michael Sozan

This is hugely important and cannot get lost. As Liz Cheney said, Jim Jordan was the congressman most involved with Trump’s plans to steal the election. Not only is he unfit to be Speaker, he should be expelled from the House, as I wrote in an @amprog report last April.

Damon Lindelof Warns Paramount-WBD Merger Will Turn Warner Bros. Lot Into a 'Ghost Town' thewrap.com/industry-news/…

Denis Villeneuve, J.J. Abrams, Bryan Cranston, Mark Ruffalo and over 1,000 other major Hollywood names have signed an open letter against the Warner Bros merger with Paramount. The letter warns that the deal will result in fewer jobs for creatives, higher costs and less choice for audiences.

Over 1,000 industry luminaries, including David Fincher, Kristen Stewart, Yorgos Lanthimos, Denis Villeneuve, and Rose Byrne, issued an open letter opposing the looming Paramount–Warner Bros. Discovery merger. Read the full letter: indiewire.com/news/breaking-…

🔥🔥🔥A thousand writers, directors, and actors signed a letter opposing the Paramount-Warner merger. That's a HUGE deal, since there was massive fear in the industry. It was organized by @MarkRuffalo, who is as far as I can tell the Mayor of Hollywood. Ruffalo almost single-handedly turned the town.

When an industry is being consolidated by a handful of powerful companies, there is an overwhelming dynamic of *fear* -- as in, If I speak out, will I get work in this town again? A thousand people have now popped that bubble, paving the way for everyone else to oppose this deal.

The only thing to fear is capitulating to despair. We have to fight, folks. We have to fight for what we care about. You are not alone. Believe me.

Joaquin Phoenix, Ben Stiller, Kristen Stewart and 1,000-Plus Hollywood Names Oppose Paramount-Warner Deal in Open Letter: 'Block the Merger' variety.com/2026/film/news…

More than 1,000 Hollywood professionals release an open letter opposing Paramount Skydance’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, arguing that the corporate tie-up would hurt an industry “already under severe strain.” nbcnews.com/business/media…

The federal government has agreed that the Pride flag can fly at the Stonewall National Monument in Manhattan — reversing its decision to remove it and dealing a blow to the Trump admin's nationwide assault on diversity initiatives.

ICE is end running the 4th amendment by buying up your personal data from shady data brokers without a warrant. I’ve been trying to rein this in for YEARS and I have federal legislation that would put a stop to this once and for all.

Paramount responds to the 1,000-plus Hollywood names who signed an open letter opposing the studio's deal to buy Warner Bros: "We hear and understand the concerns that some in our creative community have raised and respect the commitment to protecting and expanding creativity... This transaction uniquely brings together complementary strengths to create a company that can greenlight more projects, back bold ideas, support talent across multiple stages of their careers, and bring stories to audiences at a truly global scale—while strengthening competition by ensuring multiple scaled players are investing in creative talent. We have been clear in our commitments to do just that: increasing output to a minimum of 30 high-quality feature films annually with full theatrical releases, continuing to license content, and preserving iconic brands with independent creative leadership —ensuring creators have more avenues for their work, not fewer. We understand the concerns raised as a result of the disruptions caused to our industry by COVID, entry of big-tech, and changes in consumer behavior, but we promise this: Paramount remains deeply committed to talent, and this merger strengthens both consumer choice and competition, creating greater opportunities for creators, audiences and the communities they live and work in." variety.com/2026/film/news…

An array of Hollywood A-listers, including Kristen Stewart, Joaquin Phoenix, and Jane Fonda, have signed an open letter stating their “unequivocal opposition” to Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-m…

"They’re All About To Get F*cked": Damon Lindelof Reveals Blue-Collar Reason He Signed Anti-Paramount/WBD Merger Missive deadline.com/2026/04/damon-…

The WBD-Paramount merger is a consumer story just as much as a Hollywood story Fewer streaming options Less competition Content disappearing behind paywalls We're sounding the alarm State AGs: we have your back #BlockTheMerger blockthemerger.com/openletter

From CAP's @NeeraTanden: "A single corporation with so much control over the media that is also at the beck and call of the Trump administration is a danger to our democracy.”

FPF statement on film and television professionals speaking out against Paramount-Warner merger nytimes.com/2026/04/13/bus…

Elizabeth Warren says Amazon committed “bribery in plain sight” by spending $40M to buy MELANIA and "the American people deserve assurance that powerful corporations are not using their financial resources to gain political influence..." Amazon denies such a claim. variety.com/2026/film/news…

Important development from the U.K. Lots of ways that this terrible merger could still be slowed/stopped (including U.S. state attorneys general, EU, among others).

Mark Ruffalo, Kristen Stewart, Joaquin Phoenix and Lily Gladstone are just a few of the names who have signed on to an open letter opposing Paramount‘s proposed merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, calling the transaction one that will “threaten the sustainability of the entire creative community.” Other signatories include Noah Wyle, Rose Byrne, Lin Manuel-Miranda, Denis Villeneuve, Javier Bardem, JJ Abrams, Emma Thompson, Sandra Hüller and Ramy Youssef More details here: deadline.com/2026/04/paramo… (Photos: Getty)