California cancels talks over $110 billion Paramount-Warner deal, citing ‘bad faith’

California Attorney General Rob Bonta canceled a meeting with Paramount Skydance representatives scheduled for Monday to begin settlement talks over the state’s lawsuit seeking to block Paramount’s proposed $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, his office said. Paramount has pushed for a settlement in the case, which is the last hurdle to the deal along with a parallel lawsuit by the Writer’s Guild ‌of America.

The company ⁠faces a mountain of fees and costs to keep the deal together if the lawsuit continues to a trial scheduled ​for March. Bonta and his partner states have so far won key rulings, giving them leverage if settlement ​talks continue.