Elon Musk invests $1 billion in Skydance, report says

Elon Musk has invested $1 billion in Skydance, Deadline reported on October 22, citing Semafor. The reported investment would add equity—funding provided in return for an ownership stake—rather than another loan.

The $100 billion deal combining Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery closed on October 6, according to Deadline. The acquisition relied heavily on borrowing and left the combined company with nearly $90 billion in debt, roughly 90 times Musk’s reported investment.

Deadline said the company, led by chief executive David Ellison, had largely exhausted its borrowing options and needed additional equity. Rising interest rates would increase the cost of servicing its debt and leave less cash available, the outlet reported.

Separate predictions of a larger investment

The reported $1 billion investment is distinct from former Liberty Media chief John Malone’s prediction at an October 21 conference that Musk would provide about $10 billion. Malone also predicted a global output agreement between Skydance and SpaceX, covering Skydance content, and a separate SpaceX investment. Those were Malone’s forecasts, not announcements of completed arrangements.

Paramount declined to comment, and Musk had not publicly confirmed an investment as of Deadline’s October 22 report. The ownership terms of the reported investment remain unspecified.

Skydance had been seeking wealthy individuals as equity partners since before the October 6 closing. Deadline said the company would need more than Musk’s reported $1 billion to make a substantial dent in its debt burden, leaving further equity funding as a financing need.