Executives at CBS Entertainment, Paramount+, MTV, BET and more have been hit in Paramount\u2019s latest round of layoffs, TheWrap has learned.<\/p>\n
Those impacted thus far include Paramount Global Content Distribution head of marketing Teri Fleming, CBS Entertainment senior vice presidents of current programming Pamela Soper and Amanda Palley; BET scripted programming and development senior vice president Rose Catherine Pinkney; MTV head of music & celebrity talent Wendy Plaut; MTV\/Paramount+ vice president of music program development and documentaries Amanda Culkowski; and CMT senior vice president of music and events production Margaret Comeaux.<\/p>\n
Also among those laid off Paramount+ vice president of programming Jeff Grossman and corporate communications SVP of Patricia Kollappallil; Paramount Media Networks and MTV Entertainment Studios chief markeing officer Amy Campbell; CBS Entertainment communications VP Andrea Ballas; CBS Media Ventures SVP of communications Leslie Ryan; BET senior vice president of talent & casting for original programming Robi Reed; Paramount+ vice president of brand and program marketing Gregory Heller; and Paramount Global Content Distribution SVP of communications Jennifer Weingroff.<\/p>\n
Additionally, CBS News\u2019 streaming companion shows to \u201cCBS Mornings\u201d\u00a0and \u201cCBS Evening News\u201d have both been canceled<\/a> and its race and culture unit has been disbanded, though that unit\u2019s head Alvin Patrick remains on staff. CBS News will also close its Johannesburg bureau.<\/p>\n This first round of layoffs under Paramount\u2019s new CEO David Ellison is expected to impact roughly 1,000 staffers on Wednesday with more cuts to come at a later date. The total cuts are\u00a0expected to impact around 2,000 employees<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cToday has been one of the most difficult days, and I want to take a moment to acknowledge the emotions we are all feeling. We are saying goodbye to many valued colleagues, some of whom have been part of Paramount Media Networks or CBS for decades, helping shape the culture, creativity, and legacy we all share,\u201d Paramount TV\/Media chair George Cheeks said in a memo to staff obtained by TheWrap. \u201cTo everyone impacted: your contributions have left a lasting imprint on our company. You\u2019ve made us better, and we are deeply grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhile these decisions are incredibly difficult, they are part of the changes needed to help Paramount move forward as a strong, future-focused company as we navigate a rapidly changing industry,\u201d Cheeks continued. \u201cThis means making tough decisions, including reducing the size of our workforce \u2013 choices that affect people who have contributed meaningfully to our success. We recognize the weight of this moment and remain committed to supporting our colleagues through this transition.\u201d<\/p>\n The cuts come as new owner Skydance looks to exceed $2 billion in cost savings. <\/p>\n In addition to layoffs, Paramount plans to find efficiencies in areas such as real estate<\/a>, procurement and workflow. Leadership also said they would look to transform Paramount into a technological leader in entertainment, with plans to use tools like virtual production and AI, as well as leverage Skydance\u2019s existing relationship with Larry Ellison\u2019s Oracle and move Paramount+, Pluto TV and BET+ to a unified tech stack next year.\u00a0<\/p>\n The media giant\u2019s new leadership will address Wall Street for the first time when it reports its latest quarterly earnings on Nov. 10. <\/p>\n \u00a0In August, Paramount president Jeff Shell warned that the layoffs would be \u201cpainful,\u201d but emphasized that the media giant doesn\u2019t want to \u201ccut its way to growth.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLayoffs are always hard, but we don\u2019t want to be a company that every quarter is laying people off,\u201d he added at the time. \u201cSo it\u2019s important to us to get done what we\u2019re doing in one bigger thing and then be done with it.\u201d<\/p>\n Prior to the closing of the Skydance merger, the media giant unveiled a plan last year to generate $500 million in cost savings, which included layoffs that occurred over three separate phases. That included a\u00a015% workforce reduction<\/a>\u00a0that impacted areas including communications, advertising and Paramount Television Studios. It also included a separate round impacting\u00a03.5% of its workforce<\/a>, which it blamed on declines in its linear TV business.<\/p>\n As of the end of 2024<\/a>, Paramount had approximately 18,600 employees globally across 32 countries and approximately 3,500 project-based staff. Meanwhile, Skydance has more than 500 employees, per\u00a0its website.<\/a><\/p>\n In addition to the formal layoffs, Paramount will begin a\u00a0phased return to office in January.<\/a>\u00a0Employees who decide not to return five days a week will be offered a severance package.<\/p>\n Despite the cuts, Paramount has also been spending big on content, striking new creative talent deals with Will Smith, James Mangold and \u201cStranger Things\u201d creators The Duffer Brothers, renewing its streaming deal with \u201cSouth Park\u201d creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone for $1.5 billion<\/a>, acquiring media rights for the\u00a0UFC for $7.7 billion<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Zuffa Boxing<\/a>\u00a0and greenlighting new Paramount+ series like\u00a0\u201c9\/12\u201d starring Jeremy Strong<\/a>\u00a0and the legal thriller \u201cDiscretion\u201d starring Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n It also is\u00a0aggressively bidding to acquire all of Warner Bros. Discovery<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 a significant shift for the media landscape that if successful would\u00a0give Paramount more scale and an arsenal of content<\/a>\u00a0to better compete with Netflix and Disney.\u00a0<\/p>\n Shares of Paramount are up 35% in the past year, past six months and year to date, but are down 18.5% in the past month.<\/p>\n
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