(Reuters) – Former media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr., backed by private equity firm Bain Capital, has expressed interest in buying Paramount’s controlling shareholder National Amusements, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. Bronfman is looking to offer between $2 billion and $2.5 billion for Shari Redstone’s company, the report added, citing sources familiar with the situation. National Amusements did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment, while Bain Capital declined to comment. Skydance Media’s CEO David Ellison reduced an initial $2.5 billion bid for National Amusements to provide additional cash for Paramount’s non-voting shareholders, Reuters reported last week, citing sources. The report said Redstone was unhappy with the reduced offer for the family’s controlling stake in the company, potentially opening the door for rival bidders to make their case. Under the terms of the latest offer from Skydance, Paramount would acquire the independent studio in an all-stock deal valued at $4.75 billion, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. Hollywood producer Steven Paul, CEO of Crystal Sky Pictures, has also been lining up to make an offer for National Amusements for around $3 billion, WSJ reported last month. At Paramount’s annual shareholder meeting last week, the company’s co-CEOs put forth a restructuring plan that includes $500 million in annualized cost cuts, potential asset sales and a possible joint venture or other partnerships for its Paramount+ streaming service. (Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath)
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