It’s not just another corporate memo.
A new era is dawning at Paramount — and it’s hitting employees like a plot twist.
The studio’s latest move isn’t about a show or a merger. It’s about who stays, who leaves, and what kind of company this will be in 2026.
For some staffers, it’s a rallying cry. For others, it’s a wake-up call.
And it’s all happening under the watch of someone who says “being in the room” still matters more than ever.
Paramount CEO David Ellison believes genuine innovation requires physical presence.
Image source: Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Paramount CEO prizes in-person collaboration
When David Ellison took over the newly reconstituted Paramount Skydance, nobody anticipated a smooth transition. The CEO has now made it plain that this is no ordinary leadership shift, but rather a philosophical reset.
Ellison, who climbed via Hollywood and Silicon Valley circles, has always highlighted the importance of proximity.
At a recent company-wide town hall, he outlined his goal in blunt terms: Genuine innovation, he asserted, does not occur on mute. It occurs when individuals share a room, exchange ideas, and establish trust in real time.
“In-person collaboration is absolutely vital,” he informed employees. “Some of the most formative moments of my life happened in rooms where I was a fly on the wall, listening and learning. I’ve never seen that happen on Zoom.”
However, the message came across differently depending on where staff sit in the organization — or whether they’ll be sitting there at all come January.
What Paramount told employees about in-person work
Variety accessed a memo from Paramount Skydance that said all employees will have to work in-person at the office five days a week starting Jan. 5, 2026. This includes anyone who up until now worked from home or in a hybrid setting.
The message was clear: The company will start offering buyouts on Sept. 15 if staff don’t like the new in-person policy.
Insiders say the choice is linked to planned cost cuts, as Skydance officials want to save $2 billion. Management calls the change cultural, but the timing suggests it might also be a soft filter that encourages attrition before a bigger restructuring.
Related: Top investor urges PepsiCo to break up bottling business, spark turnaround
This is a risky gamble. Most media companies still use hybrid agreements, so Paramount’s requirement that employees work five days a week in person puts it at odds with peers.
And with many people’s jobs already in danger, this strategy might turn away top talent amid a time of unparalleled change.
Ellison, on the other hand, views his return to office requirement as more than just a managerial decision — it’s a mission statement.
Why Paramount’s return to office policy matters
Paramount Skydance has made it clear that everyone must be back at work five days a week beginning on Jan. 5, 2026.
It isn’t a coincidence. The firm has announced that its sales for the second quarter were $6.85 billion, which is just 1% more than last year. Its profits per share were $0.46, which was higher than Wall Street had predicted.
Streaming made $2.16 billion, which is 15% more than last year, but Paramount+ lost 1.3 million users, bringing its total to 77.7 million. Traditional TV fell 6% to around $4 billion, since fewer people are subscribing and ad revenues are dismal.
There are both good and bad things happening: Streaming is becoming more popular, yet old media is getting smaller. Ellison’s drive for in-person work seems less like nostalgia and more like strategy because of this tension.
A retun to office mandate is a way to bring teams together, save expenses, and stabilize the firm before it cuts $2 billion from its budget.
It’s a clear message for workers. Paramount is moving quickly, and the question is who is ready to go with it.
Related: Jensen Huang Isn’t Sweating Nvidia’s Slowdown For This $4 Trillion Reason