Skydance has reshuffled the leadership of its television and streaming distribution desk, the unit that handles carriage and platform packaging for the merged company, Variety reported on 4 November 2026 from a 3 November internal memo by distribution president Ray Hopkins. Eight executives who came from Paramount or Warner Bros. Discovery are departing. The changes were first reported by Reuters, Variety notes.
Key facts
- Merger context: Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery combination closed 6 October 2026 (Variety)
- Distribution president: Ray Hopkins, reporting to JB Perrette (co-chair and chief business officer, Skydance TV and DTC)
- Co-EVPs of distribution: Sarah Bergman (ex-WBD EVP networks and streaming distribution) and Mickey Carter (ex-Paramount EVP of distribution), sharing negotiation and partnership oversight
- Scope cited: CBS O&Os, 55 basic cable networks, Paramount+, HBO Max, Discovery+, Pluto TV and more than 100 FAST channels
- Cost target cited: $6bn in annualised savings from the combination; voluntary buyouts offered per 26 October memo from David Ellison and Ynon Kreiz
Who is leaving
Variety names the eight departing executives as Rivka Golomb, Kelly Kane, Jeff Cross, Rich Palermo (all WBD), David Comisar and Kurt Davis (CBS/affiliate side), Deena Demasi (Paramount) and Ken Kay (Showtime). Cross remains a senior adviser to the distribution business after Rick Baker takes the EVP deputy general counsel, distribution role, the memo says. Scott Miller, formerly WBD president of networks and streaming distribution, exited when Hopkins was appointed.
Who is staying and rising
Beyond Bergman and Carter, Hopkins’s memo places Brad Shipley (EVP, business development and strategy, including Pluto TV/FAST and Skydance Global Sports Group distribution lead), Patrick Cavanaugh (EVP and CFO, distribution finance), Rick Baker (EVP, deputy GC), Joe Bahr (SVP, partner operations), Andrew Borak (SVP, marketing), Bob Aguanno (SVP, CBS affiliate relations) and John Bagwell (SVP, associate general counsel).
Why it matters
Affiliate and platform distribution is where the merged Skydance converts linear and streaming inventory into carriage fees and packaging power. Folding Paramount and WBD teams into one chart with dual EVPs is the first public structure for that desk after the 6 October close. Related FilmBunch coverage includes Skydance’s earlier four-region international split, the UK Sky–ITV public interest intervention notice and Cinemark’s latest US circuit earnings. More under Distribution & Streaming and Money & Policy.
Our reading
For cable and streamer partners, the signal is a single Hopkins-led negotiation desk with Bergman and Carter sharing the top commercial seat, not eight parallel legacy relationships. The next evidence is which major affiliate or platform renewal carries both names, and how far the wider year-end layoff wave extends beyond this distribution chart.