Tony Gilroy says Paramount-Warner Bros. merger will “destroy” a “healthy” business

Tony Gilroy used the world premiere of his new film at the New York Film Festival to condemn the planned Paramount-Warner Bros. merger, telling Variety it will “destroy” what he called a “healthy and beautiful business.” His comments came on Friday night at Alice Tully Hall, where Behemoth! screened as the festival’s centerpiece, and they arrived days before the deal is due to close.

Key facts: Gilroy and Behemoth!

Detail	What Variety reported
Event	World premiere of Behemoth! at the 64th New York Film Festival, Friday night
Venue	Alice Tully Hall
Budget	$36 million
Star	Pedro Pascal, as a cellist returning to Hollywood film scoring
Producer comment	Sanne Wohlenberg warned of limited possibilities for filmmakers
Merger timing	Tentatively set to close Tuesday, Oct. 6

What Gilroy said

Gilroy’s argument, as Variety recorded it, is that Hollywood is healthier than its critics claim. “People say the movie business is in trouble,” he said. “You go around, you stand anywhere you want, what do people talk about? Did you see this? Did you see that? What episode are you on? The business is solid, and to destroy the architecture that made it so in the name of venture capital, it’s tragic.”

Variety said Gilroy fears the merger threatens the industry he has worked in for more than three decades. His film, produced on a $36 million budget, was described by the outlet as a mid-budget, adult-oriented drama, the kind of movie that once sustained Hollywood’s theatrical business and helped filmmakers like him build their careers.

The film at the center of the debate

Behemoth! stars Pedro Pascal as a gifted cellist who re-immerses himself in the world of Hollywood film scoring, according to Variety. It is Gilroy’s first major project since he finished work on the Emmy-winning series Andor. The festival chose it as its centerpiece, placing it after James Gray’s star-studded opening-night film Paper Tiger and ahead of Ava DuVernay’s closing-night documentary 14th.

Introducing the film, Gilroy praised the festival’s lineup as a bright spot in a turbulent Hollywood. “Thank you for making [the festival] so elegant and glamorous, and for surrounding us with so many amazing films,” he told the audience. “The way this is curated this year, this is a freakin’ lineup!” He added: “When so many things go to shit in Hollywood, this is like a thank you. Thank you for letting us bring our soufflé to your groovy party.”

He also thanked Matt Greenfield and his colleagues at Searchlight Pictures, the Walt Disney Company-owned indie studio that also produced Andor. “This is not an easy movie to greenlight, and it’s not an easy movie to sell,” Gilroy said. “But here we are. We’re here. We got here calmly, gracefully, no drama, and our joie de vivre intact.”

The merger and what it changes

Variety reported that Skydance has tentatively set Tuesday, Oct. 6, to close the transaction. The outlet said the deal will consolidate what it called Hollywood’s traditional Big Five studios, Disney, Universal, Sony, Warner Bros. and Paramount, under just four corporate owners. Variety also noted that David Ellison had just announced that both historic studios would sit under a company named Skydance, and that Ellison has maintained Paramount and Warner Bros. will keep separate studio identities.

Not everyone connected to the film is convinced that will be enough. Producer Sanne Wohlenberg told Variety that the industry is living through “turbulent and uncertain times” and that “it never seems to get any easier.” She said she believes it is necessary to “take a deep breath and keep believing that things will be circular and come back,” pointing out that “there have been many, many bad times.” But she warned that the industry is “steering into one, which will make the competitive nature of the industry and possibilities for a filmmaker alarmingly limited.” “And it shouldn’t be like that,” she added. “I think we will survive it and I hope for better times.”

Why the remarks matter

Gilroy’s comments are notable because they came from a filmmaker standing on the stage of a major festival with a film that, in his own telling, was hard to finance and hard to sell. His position, as reported, is not that Hollywood lacks an audience but that the structure supporting that audience is being dismantled for financial reasons. Wohlenberg’s remarks make a related point from the producing side: fewer corporate owners may mean fewer places for a filmmaker to take a project.

Variety did not report a response from Paramount or Skydance. The deal is still tentatively set to close on Tuesday, after which both studios are due to sit under the Skydance name.

Frequently asked questions

What did Tony Gilroy say about the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger?

Variety reported that Gilroy said the merger would “destroy” a “healthy and beautiful business” in the name of venture capital, calling it “tragic.” He spoke at the world premiere of Behemoth! at the New York Film Festival.

When is the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger due to close?

Variety reported that Skydance has tentatively set Tuesday, Oct. 6, to close the merger.

What is Behemoth! about?

Variety described it as a film starring Pedro Pascal as a gifted cellist re-immersing himself in Hollywood film scoring. It was the centerpiece of the 64th New York Film Festival.