Edgar Bronfman prepares offer for National Amusements, source says

By Anirban Sen

(Reuters) -Seagram heir and media industry executive Edgar Bronfman Jr. is preparing an offer for National Amusements, the family company that controls Paramount Global, a source familiar with the matter said.

The offer could come together in the coming days, the source added.

An offer from Bronfman would add another twist to a messy merger saga, which now stands at Paramount having accepted a deal last month from media executive David Ellison's Skydance Media.

Shares in Paramount, one of Hollywood's oldest studios, closed up 7.1% on Thursday after Bloomberg News and the Wall Street Journal reported the development earlier.

Bronfman, formerly Warner Music's chairman, has held discussions with people to back his bid, the Wall Street Journal said, including Fortress Investment Group, streaming-device maker Roku and Hollywood producer Steven Paul.

Bronfman had expressed an interest in buying National Amusements in June and was looking to offer between $2 billion and $2.5 billion. He didn't bid.

The details of any fresh deal are still being worked out and Bronfman will frame his offer as less dilutive for Paramount's shareholders, the WSJ and Bloomberg News said on Thursday.

As part of Skydance's offer, Ellison, who founded Skydance, would become chairman and CEO of the new Paramount, after the go-shop period ends on Aug 21. If Paramount receives another offer, which Skydance does not match, Paramount would pay a $400 million break-up fee.

The Paramount-Skydance deal fell in place after months of talks that appeared to have derailed when National Amusements owner Shari Redstone abruptly called off negotiations amid disagreements over issues such as how to indemnify the controlling shareholder over potential shareholder lawsuits.

Last week, Paramount wrote down the value of its cable networks by nearly $6 billion and announced it would cut 15% of its U.S. workforce, as it navigates the decline of the cable television business.

Representatives for Bronfman, National Amusements and Paramount did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

(Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru and Anirban Sen in New York; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Sayantani Ghosh)