Court freezes Paramount-Warner Bros. merger

A court on Monday granted a temporary restraining order that pauses the planned takeover in which Paramount's owners had sought to assume control of Warner Bros. Discovery, officials said. The order prevents any closing steps while the case proceeds, and it arrived after the parties had expected to conclude the transaction this week.

Paramount's owners had been aiming to complete the change of control by the end of this week, officials said, a timeline now disrupted by the court action. The restraining order is temporary by design, and its immediate effect is to freeze transfers of shares or governance authority until the judge issues further direction.

Court halts Paramount-Warner Bros. deal

Officials said the order follows a legal challenge that asked the court to block the transaction; the judge set the pause while reviewing claims raised in the filing. The ruling does not determine the merits of the underlying dispute; it only prevents completion of the merger pending additional hearings or briefing.

The pause tightens the calendar for the companies and investors: Paramount's owners had been targeting July 24, 2026 to finish the takeover, based on their public timetable this week. Markets will look for court filings, a scheduling order, or an explicit lift of the restraining order before that date.