Short answers, pulled from the story.
Skydance Media was founded by David Ellison, son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, and was formally established on the 4th of April 2006, initially under the name Skydance Productions. Ellison, a pilot, named the company after an aerobatics technique called "skydancing."
Skydance and Paramount Pictures signed a five-year co-financing, production, and distribution agreement in the fall of 2009. The deal was renewed twice, ultimately extending to 2021, and produced major films including the Mission: Impossible series, Star Trek Into Darkness, and Top Gun: Maverick.
Skydance raised $350 million in equity and credit in 2010, $700 million in 2015 (including a $500 million credit line from J.P. Morgan Chase), $400 million in a 2022 KKR-led round, and a $1 billion credit facility in July 2023.
David Ellison pursued a merger to acquire Paramount's controlling shareholder, National Amusements, from Shari Redstone. The resulting $8 billion deal, announced the 7th of July 2024, gave Ellison control of one of Hollywood's oldest studios and transferred Skydance's film library to Paramount Pictures.
Skydance Media ceased to exist as an independent company on the 7th of August 2025, when its merger with Paramount Global closed following FCC approval on the 24th of July 2025. The combined entity became Paramount Skydance, with David Ellison serving as founder, owner, chairman, and CEO.
Skydance operated five divisions: Skydance Television (launched the 1st of May 2013), Skydance Interactive (launched May 2016, focused on VR games), Skydance Animation (founded the 16th of March 2017), Skydance New Media (founded the 18th of November 2019, led by Amy Hennig), and Skydance Sports (launched the 20th of October 2021, led by Jon Weinbach).