David Ellison

David Ferris Ellison (born January 9, 1983) is an American film producer, media proprietor, and former actor serving as chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Paramount Skydance since August 2025. He founded the film and television production company Skydance Media in 2006 and later merged it with the media company Paramount Global, forming Paramount Skydance in 2025. He is the son of Oracle Corporation co-founder Larry Ellison. Ellison founded Skydance and served as its CEO from 2006 until 2025, and produced the films Terminator Genisys, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (both 2015), Life (2017), and Top Gun: Maverick (2022), with the latter nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. In 2025, under Ellison's leadership, Skydance acquired the media company Paramount Global. An ally of President Donald Trump, Ellison hand-picked political commentator Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News and acquired her digital media outlet The Free Press after the second Trump administration approved the merger of Skydance and Paramount Global in 2025. Shortly after the completion of the merger, Ellison launched a successful hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery. Ellison will remain chairman and CEO of the combined company.