The silence is loud
Hollywood is currently spiraling over the $111 billion merger that officially cements Skydance Corp. as a media behemoth. David Ellison’s new massive company, which absorbs Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, is set to close its deal on October 6. With rumors flying about massive job cuts and a potential shift in editorial vibes at CNN, everyone was waiting to see if John Oliver would call it out on Sunday’s Last Week Tonight.
Spoilers: he didn't.
Is Oliver on thin ice?
Real talk, the future of the show is lowkey giving us anxiety. Even though the team secured a contract through 2027 right before the deal went down, the industry is already seeing changes. Ellison previously pulled the plug on Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show, and with political tensions high, it’s fair to wonder if Oliver’s days are numbered. Despite having roasted the Ellisons in the past, he completely dodged the subject during the latest episode.
The main event
Instead, Oliver kept his focus on the Secret Service. He broke down the history of presidential protection, highlighting how a culture of "doing more with less" and recurring security breaches have put lives at risk. The bit even featured a cameo from Adam DeVine and Anders Holm of Workaholics, who played totally incompetent agents in a parody recruitment ad.
Why it matters
With Warner Bros. Discovery under new management, the media landscape is hitting a major pivot point. John Oliver choosing to bypass the merger news while the industry is in a chokehold suggests he might be laying low while the dust settles on the corporate restructuring.
