Paramount Begins Job Cuts, Closes a TV Production Studio

(Bloomberg) — Paramount Global began laying off staff Tuesday after the entertainment company said last week it planned to slash 15% of its US-based workforce, amounting to roughly 2,000 positions.

Most Read from Bloomberg

As part of the move, management this week will close Paramount Television Studios, one of the company’s production arms. The unit’s shows include Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Reacher and The Spiderwick Chronicles.

In an internal memo viewed by Bloomberg, the company’s three co-chief executive officers told staff on Tuesday that the job cuts would take place in three phases and continue throughout the rest of the year. They expect 90% of the layoffs to be completed by the end of September.

“The industry continues to evolve, and Paramount is at an inflection point where changes must be made to strengthen our business,” the co-CEOs said in the memo.

Paramount’s role in television dates back decades and includes famous acquisitions such as Desilu Productions, the TV business founded by Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball. The operation became part of CBS when Paramount’s then-parent company, Viacom, split in two in 2005.

The Paramount Television brand was revived in 2013 and produced a number of shows for other outlets, including Apple TV+ and Amazon Prime. All current shows and development projects will transition to the existing CBS Studios production arm, according to the company.

While reporting second-quarter financial results last week, co-CEO Chris McCarthy said that the staff reductions would impact marketing, finance and other departments. The company also took a second-quarter impairment charge of $5.98 billion on its cable networks, yet another sign of weakness in the traditional TV industry.

(Updates with TV unit history in fifth paragraph.)