I leader democratici della contea di Hudson, nel New Jersey, stanno chiedendo al procuratore generale Jennifer Davenport di ritirare lo Stato dal suo coinvolgimento in una causa volta a fermare la fusione tra Paramount-Skydance e Warner Bros. Discovery.

In un editoriale pubblicato dal New Jersey Globe, la sindaca di Bayonne Sharon Ashe-Nadowski, il dirigente della contea di Hudson Craig Guy, i senatori statali Raj Mukherji, Brian Stack e Angela McKnight, e i membri dell’Assemblea statale Jerry Walker, William Sampson, Ravi Bhalla, Katie Brennan, Larry Wainstein e Gabriel Rodriguez hanno esortato Davenport a far uscire il New Jersey dal caso, citando i potenziali benefici economici per lo Stato.

I funzionari hanno scritto che, pur avendo fiducia nel giudizio indipendente di Davenport, "The extraordinary stakes for New Jersey in this matter, however, give rise to this rare but consequential disagreement."

"New Jersey has spent years building a film and television industry capable of competing with New York, California, Georgia and production centers around the world including the U.K., attracting transformational investments from Netflix and Lionsgate," hanno scritto i funzionari. "Paramount has become a critical participant in that effort and has committed to establishing a substantial, long-term production presence in Bayonne."

Il gruppo ha affermato che il piano per sviluppare 1888 Studios a Bayonne rappresenta la più significativa opportunità economica che la contea di Hudson abbia avuto da anni.

"This is the creation of an entirely new economic ecosystem and a self-sustaining creative economy in our state: careers for electricians, laborers, carpenters, stagehands, technicians, artists, and countless others; new customers for our small businesses; and, critically, accessible pathways into a growing industry for young people and working families who too often have been excluded from the prosperity being created around them. Its economic reverberations will extend well beyond the studio gates," hanno detto i funzionari della contea di Hudson.

Secondo i funzionari, il progetto comporterebbe circa 1,2 miliardi di dollari di spese in conto capitale nel campus Paramount, oltre a teatri di posa permanenti e strutture di post-produzione nella contea e posti di lavoro permanenti.

I funzionari eletti della contea di Hudson hanno anche sollevato preoccupazioni sul costo del contenzioso, sostenendo che i dollari dei contribuenti non dovrebbero essere impegnati in una causa che hanno descritto come incerta mentre il New Jersey ha lavorato per espandere il proprio settore cinematografico e attrarre investimenti esterni.

"We are increasingly concerned that New Jersey taxpayer dollars are being committed to litigation whose merits appear uncertain while its potential costs to the State and to our economy continue to escalate," hanno scritto. "After an exhaustive eight-month investigation involving review of more than 2 million documents, the U.S. Department of Justice concluded that the transaction was unlikely to harm competition in streaming, linear television, or theatrical film."

Hanno esortato il procuratore generale a ritirare il New Jersey dalla coalizione.

"Now that New Jersey is a party to this litigation, whether or not we might have chosen a different course at the outset, the question is how best to protect the interests of the State going forward. We respectfully urge our Attorney General to withdraw our state from this action or work toward a prompt and reasonable resolution of this matter and to be a voice of reason in the room," hanno scritto.

"The State should have an exceptionally compelling reason before spending taxpayer dollars on multi-state litigation of uncertain merit that may undermine those very investments," hanno aggiunto i leader della contea.

Il governatore del New Jersey Mikie Sherrill ha dichiarato a Fox News Digital in un comunicato: "We are excited to welcome Paramount to Hudson County because film is in New Jersey's DNA — we're Hollywood East and the only state where film shoots are up this year. New Jersey is open for film business, so we are going to keep building, keep filming, and keep making it easier for companies like Paramount to create good-paying jobs and lay down roots in the Garden State."

L’ufficio di Davenport ha detto a Fox News Digital di non avere commenti sull’op-ed dei funzionari della contea di Hudson.

In un comunicato stampa di luglio, l’ufficio di Davenport ha affermato di essersi unito alla coalizione per contestare la fusione, che includeva California, Colorado e New York, dichiarando: "The proposed merger would combine two of Hollywood’s five major film distributors and two of the five major basic cable companies, extinguishing competition between Paramount and Warner Bros. and inflicting substantial harm on movie theaters, basic cable distributors, and, ultimately, consumers nationwide."

"New Jersey is the birthplace of the American film industry, and the state is now a burgeoning hub for film and television production. Given our state’s leadership in the film and television industry, we must protect our residents when corporate media monopolies threaten to upend the industry by raising prices and reducing content choices," ha detto Davenport in quell’occasione.

"The proposed merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery will hurt our state’s residents, plain and simple," ha continuato. "We will always stand up against corporate monopolists that seek to exploit hardworking New Jerseyans by driving up prices and turning a massive profit at their expense."

Seth Schachner, managing director di Strat Americas ed ex presidente del Florida's Film & Entertainment Advisory Council, ha detto a Fox News Digital che i legislatori hanno un argomento legittimo.

"These lawmakers have a legitimate argument, as no one really benefits from extensive legal delays over a merger that could still go forward, albeit with asset sales," ha detto. "The states' legal case is a bit limited though, as it ignores the broader competitive reality that all locales — including New Jersey — are operating in with respect to film and TV production, as streamers like Netflix are essential parts of the case."

Ha anche affermato che i legislatori "not unbiased here", poiché sostengono l’impegno di Paramount per 1888 Studios a Bayonne.

Secondo quanto riportato, i rappresentanti di Paramount-Skydance e dell’ufficio del procuratore generale della California Rob Bonta avrebbero dovuto incontrarsi la scorsa settimana per discutere una possibile soluzione alla causa volta a bloccare l’acquisizione di Warner Bros. Discovery da parte di Paramount, dal valore di 110 miliardi di dollari.