Paramount Names Mattel's Ynon Kreiz Co-CEO as Condé Nast's Roger Lynch Takes Over Mattel

David Ellison named Ynon Kreiz, the outgoing chairman and CEO of MAT, as co-CEO of the combined PSKY and Warner Bros. Discovery, effective when the $110 billion merger closes. Kreiz will also join the board. Under the split described in Paramount's release, Ellison, who remains chairman and CEO, will focus on long-term strategy, creative direction, talent relationships, partnerships, technology and capital allocation, while Kreiz will run day-to-day management and the integration of the two companies. A federal judge cleared the merger the same day, and Paramount expects it to close on October 6.

At Mattel, Kreiz steps down as chairman and CEO on October 2 after eight years in the role, a tenure that included the Barbie film. Mattel named Condé Nast CEO Roger Lynch, a Mattel board member since 2018 and the former CEO of Pandora and founding CEO of Sling TV, as chairman effective October 2 and CEO on or before November 2. Retail Dive reports that Jonathan Anschell will serve as interim principal executive officer in between, and that Lynch's package includes a $2.3 million base salary, a $10.6 million cash signing bonus and a $6 million restricted stock award.

Mattel shares fell 3% in premarket trading on September 30 on the news. The handover lands just ahead of the holiday season, Mattel's most important selling period.

What to watch: how quickly Lynch sets out his strategy at Mattel, particularly around entertainment and licensing, and the first integration decisions at the combined Paramount after the October 6 close.