NOT BACKING DOWN

Trump Nemesis Has Pointed Warning for Trumpy Hollywood Mogul

John Oliver hit out at new Warner Bros. chief on Sunday.

John Oliver’s show is still going after Donald Trump, no matter who owns its network, he declared.

Oliver, the host of HBO’s Last Week Tonight, had a message for Skydance Paramount CEO David Ellison as he acquires HBO’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery. “I’m thrilled to be part of the Skydance family! Hope you’re happy with what you bought, guys!” the host said, after slamming the Trump administration’s changes to the FDA. “We’re never gonna change!”

He added, “Never—we’re never changing!”

The comments come after Ellison, the son of Trumpy Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison, succeeded in its bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery under their Skydance Paramount umbrella, overcoming legal hurdles and accusations the deal would create a monopoly.

The acquisition means that HBO, along with CNN and all of Discovery’s other properties, will be under the control of the Trump-friendly family. Ellison insists that he will remain neutral in the takeover.

Oliver skipped the merger news on his show last week but told viewers on Sunday that his scathing takedowns will continue.

In August, when the deal was still in the works, Oliver told The Hollywood Reporter, “Who knows?” about what could happen. “I have absolutely no idea, which is almost helpful to the fact that I do not have any ability to control anything that happens with this merger.” Oliver’s plan for how Last Week Tonight will handle the outcome was already decided: “We’ll just do what we’ve done—which is continue like it isn’t happening.”

The best way “forward,” he added, was “Total denial.”

Last month, Oliver roasted Ellison on the air: “My soon-to-be business daddy has a literal business daddy. And to be very clear: I deeply respect that and I would never make fun of you for it, unlike that pesky Stephen Colbert.” Colbert’s show was axed ahead of Skydance’s acquisition of Paramount last year, after the company settled with Trump over his 60 Minutes lawsuit to clear the way for the merger.

Colbert called the $16.5 million payout a “bribe” on air just days before his Late Show was canceled.

The CBS News parent company has undergone a MAGA-friendly makeover since Ellison seized control and installed Free Press founder Bari Weiss as editor in chief.

Oliver isn’t the only one expressing anxiety about Warner Bros. Discovery’s new overlords. CNN staffers have also sounded the alarm, despite Ellison’s insistence on neutrality.

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Eboni Boykin-PattersonEntertainment Reporter

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