Tony Blair joins billionaire allies as adviser at newly created Hollywood giant Skydance

Tony Blair has secured a job advising the billionaire Ellison family behind the newly created Hollywood giant Skydance.The former Prime Minister has been appointed 'board adviser' at the firm, which was formed this week through the £80billion takeover of Warner Bros Discovery by Paramount Skydance.The blockbuster deal combined the Paramount studio behind films including The Godfather and Top Gun with Warner Bros, whose box office hits range from The Wizard of Oz and Casablanca to Barbie and Harry Potter.The new entertainment giant – named Skydance and led by chief executive David Ellison – also houses networks such as CBS and CNN and streaming services Paramount+ and HBO Max.Ellison is the son of tech billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison, a close ally of Donald Trump and long-standing friend of Blair dating back to his time in Downing Street. Tony Blair and Larry Ellison on the US tycoon's yacht in Sardinia in 2009 Tony Blair with Larry and David Ellison in February 2024In a statement after the Paramount-Warner Bros deal closed on Tuesday night, Skydance said Blair’s ‘global leadership experience and commitment to innovation position him as an invaluable adviser in shaping Skydance's strategic priorities’.David Ellison, chairman and chief executive of Paramount, said he was ‘honoured to have Tony join us as an adviser’.He added: ‘Tony has led at the highest levels of government, respected for his intellect, strategic vision and ability to bring people together around bold, forward-looking ideas. His global perspective and insight will be invaluable as we turn ambition into results.’The friendship between Blair and Larry Ellison goes back decades, to Blair’s time in Downing Street, and the US billionaire has since invested hundreds of millions into Blair’s policy institute.In a sign of their ‘bromance’, Blair wrote a fawning profile of Larry Ellison for Time Magazine when it named the tech tycoon among its 100 most influential people of 2024. That same year, he was pictured enjoying a lavish Mediterranean holiday on Larry Ellison’s superyacht.Last autumn, it emerged that Blair had secretly lobbied former business secretary Peter Kyle to meet with the tech billionaire whose firm, Oracle, could make millions of pounds from the controversial digital ID cards.Blair 'noted the work of the Ellison Institute... and recommended that SoS [Secretary of State Peter Kyle] sought a briefing on their work', according to official civil service minutes obtained by investigative website Democracy for Sale. He highlighted how the institute could become 'an excellent resource'.Announcing the merger between the Hollywood giants on Tuesday, David Ellison said: 'Today is a historic day, not just for Skydance but for our entire industry.‘From the start, our ambition was to bring these two storied studios together and create a stronger competitor, with the talent, resources, and reach to tell great stories in every genre, on every platform, for audiences everywhere. Now that ambition is a reality.'But there are fears that streaming prices may rise at Warner Bros’ HBO Max, home to The Sopranos and House of the Dragon, and Yellowstone host Paramount+.Mike Proulx, research director at Forrester, warned the ($80billion) £70billion of debt used to finance the deal could result in higher prices for subscribers.‘It’s hard to imagine that streaming price hikes aren’t in Skydance’s future,’ he said.The deal was finally completed after settlements with a coalition of US states led by California and a Hollywood writers union removed the main legal barriers to the merger.However, concerns remain about job losses among actors, writers and those working behind the scenes in Hollywood.Staff also fear the deal will lead to cuts at US television news channels CNN, which was owned by Warner Bros, and Paramount’s CBS.The deal underlines the power the Ellison family now holds in Hollywood, with some of the industry's most iconic brands under their control.In just 16 years, Skydance has gone from an independent studio to the centre of one of Hollywood's biggest power plays. Founded in 2010, it built its reputation as a financial backer and producer of Paramount's blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick.After merging with Paramount last year, Skydance set its sights on Warner Bros, entering a heated bidding contest with Netflix before emerging victorious.DIY INVESTING PLATFORMSAJ BellAJ BellEasy investing and ready-made portfoliosHargreaves LansdownHargreaves LansdownFree fund dealing and investment ideasinteractive investorinteractive investorFlat-fee investing from £4.99 per monthFreetradeFreetradeInvesting Isa now free on basic planTrading 212Trading 212Free share dealing and no account feeAffiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence.Compare the best investing account for you