600 employees resigned! Latest work from office rule of Paramount Skydance’s new CEO brings criticism, reason is..

600 employees at Paramount Skydance resign as they start working from the office again

In a major corporate shock, nearly 600 employees at Paramount Skydance resigned after being asked to rejoin the office five days a week. Hundreds of employees chose to accept CEO David Ellison’s buyout offer, according to Fortune magazine’s report showing company filings filed Monday. This move will reportedly be a very expensive deal for the entertainment giant, worth US$185 million.

How did all this start?

This began after the US$8 billion merger of Paramount and Skydance Media in August 2025. Immediately after this merger, newly appointed CEO David Ellison introduced a new policy of strictly working from the office. Employees were given two options: either join the office full-time or take severance pay and leave.

Ellison explained the reasoning behind the move in a letter to the company, saying personal collaboration is key to building a strong and creative workplace.

“I believe face-to-face collaboration is absolutely vital to building and strengthening our culture and driving the success of our business. Our people are key to winning, and being together helps us innovate, solve problems, share ideas, create, challenge each other, and build the relationships that make this company great,” Ellison wrote in his letter.

Emphasizing the importance of working from the office, Ellison stated that a lot can be learned in the company of others and that virtual meetings cannot replace this.

“As I said at our town hall, some of the most formative moments of my life have happened in rooms where I’ve been fly-on-the-wall, listening and learning. I’ve never seen that happen on Zoom. Being together in person isn’t just about showing up, it’s about actively engaging in the work, supporting each other and the team’s efforts, and contributing to our collective momentum,” Ellison continued.