Skydance Television president Matt Thunell is set to add oversight of Paramount’s TV studios to his duties amid the pending closure of the Paramount-Skydance deal, Variety has confirmed.
Thunell will run a merged division comprised of his current studio Skydance Television, as well as Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios — effectively making him the replacement for Paramount’s now-ousted Chris McCarthy. The new combined TV operations will be called Paramount Television Studios, a revival of the original Paramount TV arm that shuttered in 2024.
Meanwhile, it will be business as usual for CBS Studios when it moves over to Skydance: David Stapf will remain at the top of the studio, which has more than 40 shows across broadcast, streaming and cable, reporting into George Cheeks.
Skydance TV is best known for producing the Amazon Prime Video hits “Reacher” and “Cross” and Apple TV+’s “Foundation,” while Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios is the proud home of “Yellowstone” creator Taylor Sheridan’s TV universe.
In this expanded role, Thunell will report to Dana Goldberg, newly appointed co-chair of Paramount Pictures and chair of Paramount Television.
McCarthy, former head of Showtime & MTV Entertainment Studios and Paramount Media Networks, became co-CEO of Paramount Global in April 2024 with Cheeks, then-president and CEO of CBS, and Brian Robbins, then-president and CEO of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon.
While McCarthy and Robbins are leaving upon the close of the Skydance deal, Cheeks will remain as chair of TV Media. He will serve under Skydance founder David Ellison, who will be the CEO of Paramount Skydance, and new president Jeff Shell (formerly chief at NBCUniversal).
Ellison is currently setting his leadership team for the merged company.
Representatives for Skydance did not immediately respond to request for comment Monday.
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