Paramount Eyes Elon Musk Investment As Warner Bros. Deal Nears Closure

Paramount executives are discussing approaching Elon Musk for an equity investment as the Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition nears closure.

Before Musk, Larry Ellison pledged over $40 billion in equity financing to get Warner to sell itself to Paramount. Then came the Saudi-backed investors, who offered to cover his costs in exchange for a combined equity stake of under 50%.

Will Elon Musk Return Larry Ellison’s Billion-Dollar Favor?

The WBD acquisition would not be the first time Musk and Larry Ellison entered an investment deal together. In 2022, the Oracle co-founder invested $1 billion in Musk’s Twitter purchase. Ellison also invested in Tesla in 2018 and served on its board of directors until 2022.

However, per Deadline, the Tesla CEO is no stranger to controversy. An investment in the parent company of CBS News and potentially CNN would be controversial, too.

Details of a potential Musk investment in Paramount could appear in future SEC filings, depending on its size.

Semafor offered mixed views, saying funding from the world’s richest man would be a notable vote of confidence in the combined Paramount-Warner Bros. company. The outlet also noted that capital from Musk or other financial heavyweights would give the company a broader investor base.

Paramount Faces One Last Legal Hurdle

Despite investor interest, Paramount remains a step away from finalizing the WBD acquisition due to its involvement in an antitrust lawsuit led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta.

Deadline reported that the suit, brought by 12 state attorneys general, required the company to agree to certain CNN guardrails. The terms also included fines tied to David Ellison’s commitment to release 30 movies a year and a temporary separation of the studios.

Other terms include a $1.5 billion investment in homegrown film production, job security, and employment. Additional domestic production would also be required if the federal government approves tax incentives. The final step would be approval from U.S. District Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin.

Martinez-Olguin, who scheduled a hearing for Thursday, September 24, wrote in an order that the hearing would “address certain outstanding questions regarding the factual and legal underpinnings of the parties’ proposed consent decree, as well as the implementation of the proposed consent decree.”

Musk’s Investment History Offers Clues To Paramount’s Interest

While Paramount has not officially confirmed whether the SpaceX founder is joining its team of investors, the businessman’s history offers a clue as to why he was considered.

Musk’s notable investments have solidified his status as a global visionary capable of leading several revolutionary companies. From Twitter (X) to Tesla and SpaceX, Musk has consistently invested in companies seeking to reshape their industries. He has also brought outside investors into some of his ventures.

Inside Musk’s $44 Billion Twitter Takeover

On October 28, 2022, Musk closed a $44 billion deal to take ownership of Twitter Inc. As Reuters reported at the time, he pledged $46.5 billion in equity and debt financing to cover the purchase price and closing costs.

Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Corp. committed $13 billion in loans under an ironclad deal that limited their ability to back out.

Musk’s $33.5 billion equity commitment included his 9.6% Twitter stake, valued at $4 billion, and $7.1 billion from Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal.

Musk’s xAI Lands $6 Billion Before Blockbuster SpaceX Merger

On May 26, 2024, Musk moved deeper into the tech world by announcing a $6 billion Series B funding round for his innovative xAI venture.

Several noteworthy investors backed the idea, and within a year, the AI venture had made several strides. These included the releases of Grok-1, Grok-1.5, and Grok-1.5V, all of which demonstrated advanced capabilities.

After Musk’s xAI merged with SpaceX, the combined company was valued at over a trillion dollars as of February 2026.

At the time, the transaction was also described as the largest merger of all time, valuing SpaceX at $1 trillion and xAI at $250 billion.

Also Read: Elon Musk Regrets Trump Alliance, Says He ‘Got Carried Away’

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