NEW YORK (Diya TV) — Media investor John Malone predicted Wednesday that SpaceX could invest $8 billion to $10 billion in Skydance and strike a global content deal with the company. Neither company has announced a deal or confirmed that it is negotiating one.
“I predict — big prediction — that you’ll see a global output deal for Skydance with SpaceX, and an investment by SpaceX into Skydance,” Malone said during a Paley International Council Summit conversation with Liberty Global CEO Mike Fries. Malone said the investment could help Skydance reduce its debt and ease the burden on CEO David Ellison.
Malone described a possible investment by SpaceX, which Elon Musk leads, rather than a personal investment by Musk. He did not explain what the content deal might cover or how SpaceX would distribute Skydance programming. The proposal remains Malone’s forecast; the companies have not announced terms.
The prediction follows Skydance’s Oct. 6 completion of its takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery. The nearly $111 billion transaction, including debt, brought Warner Bros. and Paramount studios, HBO Max, Paramount+ and major television networks under the Skydance name. The combined company carries about $80 billion in debt, putting pressure on Ellison to integrate the businesses, cut costs and grow streaming revenue.
Malone pointed to the business ties between Musk and Larry Ellison, David Ellison’s father and a major backer of Skydance. Larry Ellison helped finance Musk’s 2022 purchase of Twitter. Malone called the two men “very intertwined,” but offered no evidence that they had arranged a SpaceX investment in Skydance.
Malone also disputed the public explanation for Netflix’s failed bid for Warner Bros. Discovery. He said the Trump administration told Netflix it had no chance of securing U.S. regulatory approval. Netflix, however, said it declined to match Paramount Skydance’s higher offer because the deal no longer made financial sense.
