Skydance Media CEO David Ellison (Shutterstock image)
Lawmakers Question Skydance Media CEO David Ellison About Possible ‘Side Deal’ With Trump
July 22, 2025
Three U.S. Congressional lawmakers are questioning Skydance Media CEO David Ellison about a possible “side deal” with President Trump regarding Paramount Global’s $16 million settlement payment on July 2.
In a July 21 letter, Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) are seeking answers about any backdoor agreements made with Trump to help further Skydance’s $8 billion acquisition of Paramount, which includes Paramount Pictures, the Paramount+ streaming platform, CBS, Comedy Central, BET and MTV, among other properties.
Trump’s Federal Communications Commission must approve the deal before it can close.
Citing a media report, the lawmakers said Trump has publicly stated that the settlement was worth “about $16 million plus $16 million, or maybe more than that in advertising … So it’s like $32 [million] to maybe $35 million.”
“This admission appears to corroborate reporting that claims you reached a ‘side deal’ with the President, the terms of which involve CBS airing public service announcements ‘and other broadcast transmissions’ worth between $15 million and $20 million that ‘support conservative causes supported by President Trump,'” the senators wrote in the letter.
Paramount denies the existence of any agreements involving conservative public service announcements.
The lawmakers also question whether the July 17 announcement regarding the 2026 cancellation of the long-running “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” which has routinely been critical of Trump and other Republicans while promoting left-wing causes, was done to facilitate the merger closure. Paramount is on the hook for a $400 million termination fee to Skydance if the merger fails to close.
“These reports raise fresh questions about corruption in the Trump Administration and [the] President’s willingness to accept payments from entities with significant policy interests before agencies he controls,” read the letter.
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The lawmakers are seeking answers to the following seven questions by Aug. 4.
1. Is there currently any arrangement under which you or Skydance will provide compensation, advertising, or promotional activities that in any way assist President Trump, his family, his presidential library, or other Administration officials?
a. If so, what is the nature of this arrangement? What will you or Skydance provide, and what have you discussed receiving in return from the Trump Administration?
b. Have any Skydance board members been involved in any of these discussions, or have you been involved in these discussions only in your personal capacity?
2. Have you personally discussed with President Trump, any of his family members, any Trump Administration officials, or presidential library fund personnel any matters related to the Paramount-Skydance transaction? If so, what was the nature of these discussions?
3. Were you or any other Skydance executives involved in discussions about settling President Trump’s lawsuit against CBS? If so, please provide information regarding the timing, nature of, and participants in these discussions, including whether the pending transaction with Paramount was discussed.
4. Has Skydance agreed or have you personally agreed to make changes to Skydance’s content or Paramount’s or CBS’s content at the request of the Trump Administration, to facilitate approval of the transaction? If so, please describe those requests.
5. Were you or other Skydance executives involved in discussions about canceling ‘The Late Show With Stephen Colbert’? If so, please provide information regarding the timing, nature of, and participants in these discussions, including whether the pending transaction with Paramount was discussed.
6. Does Skydance have any policies, procedures, or guidance related to compliance with 18 U.S.C. 201 or any other laws governing public corruption? If so, please provide a copy of those policies and procedures.
7. Does Skydance conduct any trainings for its staff or executives related to compliance with 18 U.S.C. 201 or any other laws governing public corruption? If so, please provide details regarding these trainings.
Paramount has publicly stated cancellation of “The Late Show,” which will go off the air next May, was due to financial reasons amid a general decline in audience interest in the late-night talk show format. “The Late Show” was reportedly losing up to $40 million a year for the CBS network.