Paramount has named Mattel chairman and CEO Ynon Kreiz as co-CEO of the company it plans to build through the Paramount Warner Bros. Discovery merger, according to its September 30, 2026 press release. The role takes effect at closing, and Kreiz is set to start October 5, 2026.
If you pay for Paramount+, HBO Max, or both, this is the first concrete sign of who will handle the daily work of putting two streaming businesses under one roof. It does not change your bill today.
TL;DR: Paramount CEO David Ellison is adding Ynon Kreiz as co-CEO to run daily operations and integration of the combined Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery. The release projects 200 million or more streaming subscribers and over $6 billion in run-rate synergies. It says nothing about pricing, bundles, or whether Paramount+ and HBO Max stay separate apps, so subscribers should expect no immediate change.
What the Paramount Warner Bros. Discovery merger announcement says
David Ellison stays chairman and CEO, with long-term strategy, creative vision, talent relationships, technology, and capital allocation on his side of the split. Kreiz takes day-to-day operations and the integration of the combined businesses.
Ellison put it plainly in the release: “In Ynon, I’m adding a partner with strong leadership and the operating firepower this integration demands.” A second chief executive usually signals that the integration is expected to be heavy work, and the release reads that way.
The release also lists four priorities for the combined company: win in content, become the most technologically capable media company, maximize operational efficiencies, and earn trust. Only the first and third touch subscribers directly, since “operational efficiencies” is where overlapping apps, libraries, and teams tend to get consolidated.
| Item | What the release says |
|---|---|
| New role | Co-CEO, effective at closing |
| Kreiz start date | October 5, 2026 |
| Streaming scale | Expected to reach 200 million or more global subscribers |
| Run-rate synergies | More than $6 billion expected |
| 2026 growth projection | Revenue and EBITDA (preSBC) growth of 16% to 19% |
The person chosen for that job is an unusual pick, which is worth a closer look.
Why Mattel’s chief executive got the integration job
Kreiz has been chairman and CEO of Mattel since 2018, which is the line most headlines will lead with. The earlier jobs listed in the release matter more: CEO of Maker Studios, CEO of Endemol Group, and co-founder and CEO of Fox Kids Europe.
That is more than 30 years of running media and entertainment companies, and TIME put him on its 2024 list of the 100 most influential people. Merging two large studios and their streaming services is mostly operational work, so a leader with that kind of background is a sensible fit.
What he will actually be integrating is where subscribers have the most at stake.
The 200 million subscriber figure needs context
The release says the combined streaming platform is expected to reach 200 million or more global subscribers. That is a projection for the merged company, not a count of anyone today.
The brand list in the release includes HBO, HBO Max, Paramount+, Pluto TV, and Showtime, alongside Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures, CBS, CNN, Discovery, and Nickelodeon. It does not say whether Paramount+ and HBO Max will become one app, share a bundle, or keep separate prices.
If you pay for both now, you already know the overlap: two logins, two bills, two watchlists. Anyone already trimming subscriptions has a few free Netflix alternatives to weigh in the meantime.
That gap matters more than the 200 million headline suggests, because the number is about scale and the decisions that reach your card are about packaging.
What to watch before your subscriptions change
Three things would turn this from a leadership story into a subscriber story: a confirmed closing date, any announcement on pricing or bundles, and a decision on how the streaming brands are organized. The release covers none of them, and a leadership announcement made before closing is a statement of intent, not a product roadmap.
For now there is nothing to act on. Keep or cancel Paramount+ and HBO Max based on what you actually watch, and treat the synergy and subscriber figures as the company’s targets rather than promises to customers.
