After it was announced that Paramount Skydance acquired Warner Bros. Discovery last week, Hollywood is anticipating changes are coming.
And in a reported piece from the Los Angeles Times, one of those changes will involve redundant assets including real estate.
Paramount’s most notable properties are the legendary studios in Burbank and Hollywood, where films classic films such as Titanic, The Godfather, Sunset Boulevard and Breakfast at Tiffany’s, among many others, were worked on.
“Both of these studios are in the core [30-mile zone,] the inner circle of where Hollywood talent wants to be,” entertainment property broker Nicole Mihalka told the L.A. Times. “It’s very prime real estate.”
In 2024, when Sony and Apollo bid for Paramount, they planned to sell the Paramount property, but the L.A.Times noted, “there is no indication that Paramount would part with its namesake lot.”
For now, the outlet reports that Paramount’s plan is to keep both studios operating with each separate studio releasing about 15 films a year. However, the goal is to eventually consolidate many of the studio operations around the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank to eliminate redundancies with the Paramount lot on Melrose Avenue, people close to David Ellison said.
Paramount is not looking to destroy their lot, but instead evolve other parts of it and rent space for commercial offices and possible retail use, allowing for construction of up to 1.9 million square feet its locations. The L.A. Times also reports that the space may be leased out for film productions, including those of Paramount and HBO’s combined streaming options.
Mihalka added that both the Warner Bros. and Paramount lots “are two of the most prime pieces of real estate in the country.” She continued, “These are legacy assets with a lot of potential to be [tourist] attractions in addition to working studios.”
Netflix was on the track to acquire Warner Bros., though the company backed out of the bidding war on Feb. 26. Paramount ultimately won said bidding war, in $111 billion megadeal that will see Paramount pay $31 per share for WBD.
