From the future of Nickelodeon to new opportunities for producers, what will the deal mean for the kids media industry?
The ink is barely dry on the FCC’s stamp of approval for Skydance’s US$8-billion acquisition of Paramount, and there are still a lot more questions than answers about what things will be like after the merger.
With executive statements and past coverage as a jumping-off point, Kidscreen reached out to the industry to determine five big unknowns that will need to come into focus as the dust settles.
What’s going to happen to Nickelodeon?
Unsurprisingly, the top question on most people’s minds is what will become of Nickelodeon post-merger.
Blue’s Clues co-creator Angela Santomero and Titmouse Vice President (VP) of production Marcy Pritchard (who was Santomero’s colleague at Nick) want to know, first and foremost, what the future holds for the brand.
“We all believe Nick is one of the strongest brands in the world,” Santomero says, speaking for them both. “Are there plans to sell the kids properties to streamers and continue to dilute the brand, or is there a commitment to making kids a focus?”
Duloingo’s Linda Simensky, who was a director of animation at Nickelodeon before her long tenure as head of content at PBS KIDS, has one big question: Does Skydance even care about the children’s market?
“What I am most curious about is pretty simple. Is Skydance interested in kids? And cable? Or are they going to get rid of all that and focus on movies—like the WBD approach, where they clearly want to marginalize kids and animation? Until we know their overall take on kids and animation, we can’t just assume they’re all in.”
There’s also the library to consider, adds Amy Friedman, who spent 23 years at Nickelodeon in roles including Senior Vice President (SVP) of original programming and creative director for Noggin & TeenNick. She’s eager to learn more about what’s happening to that catalogue. “What current deals exist? How long do they go? And more importantly: What future deals will exist?” She also asks, “Will they want to ‘own’ the kids leader or [Nick’s] history, or rent out the shows a la carte for dollars?”
Past comments from Skydance and Paramount have hinted that animation and Nickelodeon are important to the company. “Skydance’s exceptional pool of in-house creative animation talent, led by pioneer John Lasseter, will expand Paramount’s animation capabilities as well as consumer products opportunities over the long term,” Paramount said in a release about the deal in July 2024. And on a call with analysts that same month, incoming president Jeff Shell boasted that together, Paramount-Skydance would “immediately be a leader in animation.” But it’s one thing to say this, and another to make Nickelodeon a priority.
What does the future of original animation look like at the company?
Skydance Chief Executive Officer (CEO) David Ellison said in July 2024 that one of the real benefits of the merger would be bringing Skydance Animation and Nickelodeon Animation together to create “an animation powerhouse [and] one of the best and most powerful within the industry.” But what shape this takes is up in the air. Will the teams be consolidated to start working on TV series and films together?
Skydance has a new family film called Pookoo in the works for a 2026 release on Netflix. It’s possible that talent at both studios could start collaborating on this project, as well as on several others that are already in the pipeline.
“Skydance Animation’s partnership with Netflix shows a capability for high-end animated storytelling,” says Adam Woodgate, Vice President (VP) of research solutions at The Insights Family. Mixing that with Nickelodeon’s library of established franchises and studio capacity could lead to new Nick-Netflix co-productions; revivals of IP such as Rugrats, Dora the Explorer and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with modern visual styles; or possibly even the launch of new high-octane franchises featuring the sci-fi/action edge of Skydance’s live-action fare. Woodgate asks, “Is it too daring to suggest Top Gun or Mission Impossible for kids?”
Ellison’s team—which already has ties to Prime Video, Netflix and Apple—might choose to focus on hit franchises that can perform well on Free, Ad-Supported Streaming Television (FAST) channels like Pluto TV, Subscription Video-on-Demand (SVOD) platforms like Paramount+ and third-party streamers, Woodgate says. “The benefit to kids & family audiences could be bigger animation experiences, with traditional Nickelodeon aesthetics shifting toward Pixar-level polish.”
Who will run animation and kids content at the combined company?
There’s been speculation that 68-year-old animation legend John Lasseter could be tapped to do this. He’s currently head of Skydance Animation, and was the boss at Pixar before misconduct allegations came to light.
But Nickelodeon has its own contenders, too—including Brian Robbins, who has served as president of Nickelodeon since 2018 and last year become one of three co-CEOs that have been leading Paramount Global. Some aren’t so sure about Robbins, though. Friedman says she assumes he won’t be in line for the job. Although Robbins has a reputation for being more digital-focused than past Nickelodeon leaders, the company has still been slow to grow into a successful digital brand, Friedman says, adding that whoever takes over would likely make digital growth a high priority. It's also speculated that Robbins will be leaving Paramount once the merger is complete.
There’s also Ramsey Naito, who’s been in place as president of Nickelodeon Animation since 2021. Under her leadership, the studio has churned out more than 70 projects—its biggest slate ever—including PAW Patrol: The Movie and SpongeBob SquarePants spinoff series Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years and The Patrick Star Show, along with a fresh iteration of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
And then there’s the possibility that the new organization could look outside its existing ranks for fresh blood to lead its kids content business.
What will kids commissioning and acquisitions look like?
The Skydance acquisition is expected to inject US$1.5 billion into Paramount Global, the FCC said when it signed off on the deal. But will much of that money will be channeled into kids content?
According to data from Ampere Analysis, Nickelodeon has only ordered four new content titles so far in 2025—two season renewals for animated series Rock Paper Scissors, plus Nickelodeon Animation’s Wylde Pak and live-action Victorious spin-off Hollywood Arts. Nickelodeon also has Avatar: Seven Havens, an animated series set in the Avatar: The Last Airbender universe, in the works, and has renewed it's DORA reboot for a fourth season, Last year, the kids network made six commissions, including the Loud House movie, No Time to Spy. So will commissioning go up, do down, or stay flat?
Friedman is curious about what audience demos the new company might prioritize among preschool, kids and teens. Will there be new content ordered for digital, linear and movies? She also wonders what will happen to audio, which is a small piece of the Nick business at present.
And then here’s also the question of whether the company will create a new streamer or just focus on building up Paramount+. “Digital media and gaming, too—how much will that inform the business?” Friedman asks. “And will they go more into streaming with a new spinoff streaming service?”
Nickelodeon did have two independent streaming services, the preschool-focused Noggin, which shuttered last year, and Nick+, which was launched in selected regions internationally.
What opportunities does this create for the industry?
It’s too early to say what buyers at the new company will be looking for, but there are a few ways it could go. Woodgate offered some thoughts on what the industry should keep an eye out for. For content producers, Woodgate predicts that “now’s the time to pitch global-scale animation or franchise revivals. Skydance is likely to be looking for big, exportable concepts that can work across Paramount+ and FAST, as well as current distribution.”
Licensing and consumer products businesses should look for “big opportunities if Paramount-Skydance reboots legacy brands for Gen Alpha,” he adds. “Think G.I. Joe, TMNT, Transformers, or even Avatar with a blockbuster refresh.”
Companies and brands with an educational bent could be primed to benefit in new ways if the new company does invest more in digital, as Noggin was doing before it was shut down, adds Michael Levine, who previously worked as an SVP and chief of learning and impact at Noggin.
“From an education and social impact perspective, the combined company has an opportunity to help kids develop new maker tools to share their own stories wherever they live, and to use transformative transmedia experiences to bring kids together in communities,” he says.
But Woodgate had a warning for these educational brands: “Be aware of reduced emphasis on DEI, which could affect funding, representation or messaging in kids programming.”
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