New York: Paramount Skydance will cut about 1,000 jobs on Wednesday, a source close to the matter told AFP Monday, less than three months after the merger of the two media giants.

The company did not immediately respond to a request to confirm the layoffs.

Skydance completed its $8 billion acquisition of Paramount in August, and executives warned at the newly merged entity's first press conference that layoffs would be announced during quarterly earnings presentations on November 10.

New CEO David Ellison aims to accelerate the company's technological shift while achieving at least $2 billion in synergies.

The new company includes Skydance studios, known for the "Mission: Impossible" and "Transformers" franchises, and Paramount movies, as well as streaming platform Paramount+ and television channels CBS, MTV and Nickelodeon.

Like his father, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, David Ellison is an ally of US President Donald Trump, who approved the Paramount acquisition after a yearlong wait.

AFP