Meet David Ellison, Larry Ellison’s Son and Paramount’s New CEO

• Skydance Media, owned by David Ellison, finally reached a merger agreement with Paramount Global on Sunday.
• Founded in 2006, Skydance has produced hits such as “Top Gun: Maverick” and “True Grit.”
• Ellison is the 41-year-old son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, who is worth nearly $160 billion.

David Ellison is set to become CEO of Paramount after Skydance Media finally agreed to a deal Sunday night following months of negotiations.

The 41-year-old founded Skydance in 2006 with the help of his father Larry Ellison, the co-founder of Oracle who is now worth nearly $160 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Since then, Skydance has enjoyed considerable success with films such as “Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol” and “Baywatch,” and a total box office of more than $8 billion. The merger agreement values ​​Skydance at $4.75 billion.

His biggest success was “Top Gun: Maverick,” which became the second-highest-grossing film of 2022 after grossing nearly $1.5 billion worldwide.

After seeing the original “Top Gun” movie as a child, David Ellison became obsessed with aviation. His billionaire father bought him a plane when he was 13, and they took flying lessons together. At 17, Ellison began competing in air shows, performing aerobatics.

He gave up racing after starting a film major at USC, which he later dropped out of, Ellison told Kara Swisher on an episode of The New York Times’ “Sway” podcast.

Before becoming an entertainment executive, however, Ellison had a brief foray as an actor.

In 2006, he appeared in a Skydance film called “Flyboys,” about American pilots who flew for the French Air Force during World War I.

The film cost around $65 million to make, but was a failure after grossing only around $18 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Since she got behind the camera, Ellison’s company has had a relationship with Paramount that dates back to 2011, when Skydance co-financed Joel and Ethan Coen’s “True Grit” with the studio.

The film was a critical and commercial success, garnering 10 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and grossing approximately $200 million at the box office.

Ellison’s sister Megan is also active in the film industry. Her production company Annapurna Pictures has produced Oscar-nominated films such as “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Her,” “American Hustle” and “Phantom Thread.”

The Paramount deal is still subject to a 45-day “go-shop” clause and possible review by the Federal Trade Commission, but hurdles aside, Ellison will become one of the youngest executives at a major entertainment company.

He said he was committed to “energizing the company and strengthening Paramount with contemporary technology, new leadership and creative discipline.”

However, with the headwinds facing Hollywood, Ellison may find it even more difficult to revive Paramount’s fortunes than finally reaching a buyout deal with majority shareholder Shari Redstone.