Tennessee is courting David Ellison’s Paramount, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.
In a letter to Ellison on July 2, Tennessee Deputy Governor Stuart McWhorter urged the Paramount CEO to relocate the studio’s corporate headquarters amid a rift with California over its $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.
“Our success is rooted in fiscal discipline, low taxes, predictable governance, and a steadfast belief that government needs to be a partner in private-sector growth,” stated the letter. “Corporations that select Tennessee find greater than a positive business climate — they discover a state committed to helping them succeed.”
The invitation was delivered as California signaled its intent to dam the deal. Paramount has prolonged what it perceived as an olive branch within the leadup to the filing of Monday’s lawsuit by committing to provide 30 movies per 12 months with a 45-day theatrical window, a suggestion that was ultimately rejected.
Leaving California isn’t optimal considering Paramount relocated out of Recent York last 12 months, but a longtime adviser to Ellison tells THR that “all the things is on the table.”
It’d be a serious blow to production within the state and Los Angeles, where filming levels are near historic lows, if the studio were to reallocate much — and even any significant chunk — of its $30 billion in spending to competing regions like Recent York, Recent Jersey, the U.K. or Canada. The studio has several productions shooting within the state, including Matlock, NCIS and Tracker.
A Paramount spokesperson verified the authenticity of the letter but otherwise had no comment.
If it were to maneuver, Paramount would join firms like FedEx, HCA Healthcare and Autozone within the state.
“As Paramount Skydance writes its next chapter, Tennessee offers a compelling proposition: a state where creativity and technology converge, where talent is developed intentionally, and where innovation is embraced,” McWhorter wrote. “We might welcome the chance to share our vision for the way Tennessee could help shape the long run of Paramount Skydance and its talented team.”
Ellison and his family have deep ties to Tennessee, where he lived on and off for 11 years from 2014 to 2025. He sold his home within the state after Paramount’s bid to accumulate Skydance closed.
Also an element: Plans by Oracle, led by Ellison’s father, to construct an enormous campus in Nashville. Co-CEO Clay Magouyrk also resides in Tennessee.
On Monday, a coalition of 12 state attorneys general led by California has sued Paramount to stop its $111 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.
Days before the lawsuit was filed, Semafor reported that Ellison’s advisers have been pushing the exec to go away California and shift production spend away from the state.