Paramount will not complete its $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery before 22 July, a week later than the company had previously indicated, after the Oregon attorney general asked a state court to order the handover of documents and delay the deal by 60 days. The revised timeline, disclosed during a preliminary hearing on Wednesday, extends the regulatory uncertainty surrounding a transaction that would combine two of Hollywood’s four major studios. In Brussels, the European Commission has separately extended its own decision deadline to 22 July to assess remedies Paramount has offered, including the proposed exit from a film distribution joint venture with Universal Pictures.

Viewed from Washington, the Oregon action is the leading edge of a broader state-level challenge. California Attorney General Rob Bonta is coordinating a multi-state investigation into whether the merger violates US antitrust law, and two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that a lawsuit to block the deal could be filed as early as next week. State officials have signalled concerns that the combination would raise streaming subscription prices, trigger job losses and narrow the range of films and other content available to consumers. A court challenge would not only delay the transaction but could also force the companies to hold assets separate, postponing the $6 billion in cost cuts Paramount has said it would implement after closing.

In Brazil, antitrust officials have taken a different view. The technical body of the Administrative Council for Economic Defence (Cade) approved the acquisition without restrictions, concluding that remaining competitive pressure from Disney, Sony, Netflix and local distributors is sufficient to prevent market dominance. The decision remains subject to a 15-day period during which Cade’s tribunal can review or appeal the ruling before it becomes definitive. Analysts in São Paulo note that the combined entity would hold significant football broadcasting rights in the country, including the Libertadores and Champions League, but the technical opinion found no probability of market power abuse in streaming or film distribution.

The immediate milestones to watch are the potential multi-state lawsuit in the US next week, the expiry of Cade’s 15-day review window, and the European Commission’s 22 July deadline. Paramount has already agreed to pay Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders a quarterly ticking fee of $650 million if the deal remains unclosed beyond October, adding a direct financial cost to any further procedural delays.