Metro Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell on Friday said his office has had no direct contact with Paramount Skydance Corporation, which is reportedly leaving California amid a breakdown in negotiations between Paramount and California Attorney General Rob Bonta.
TMZ reported Tuesday that Paramount officially told California officials it planned to leave, with earlier reporting that it would exit the state if a deal to complete its merger was not in place by October 1. The outlet later reported that negotiations between Paramount and Bonta had resumed.
Though Georgia and Texas are reportedly being considered by Paramount, German-owned Politico subsequently reported the company is looking for about 400,000 square feet in Nashville, while television personality and former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt has claimed that his contacts in the motion picture industry are already buying property in Tennessee and relocating their families to Leiper’s Fork and Franklin.
While reports suggest Nashville may soon be home to one of the world’s largest media companies, its mayor told reporters earlier this month that his office is not in communication with Paramount.
“We have not had direct contact with Paramount officials,” said O’Connell during an early September media roundtable, according to The Pamphleteer. “We have definitely, as we’ve just brought Sarah Childress in as Director of our Office of Entertainment, been sure that we are listening also to our own local entertainment industry on both the creative and business side.”
On Friday, about two weeks after O’Connell confirmed zero direct contact with Paramount, Fox 17 reported that O’Connell made similar comments to reporters during his weekly media availability.
“Our ECD office has talked directly to the state about that,” O’Connell told the press, according to the outlet. “I’d say we’re in a tracking state right now. We know obviously the state is very interested in that. We have not had direct contact with Paramount officials.”
If Paramount moves to the Nashville area without contacting the O’Connell administration, it would appear to be following the footsteps of Elon Musk’s Boring Company, which worked with Governor Bill Lee to plan the Music City Loop without involvement from the mayor’s office.
Emails later showed that O’Connell supported the idea during early discussions but requested “distance” after Musk endorsed President Donald Trump in 2024.
In remarks reported by WVLT 8 on Thursday, Lee seemed to suggest Paramount would decide by January.
“I don’t know what Paramount’s decision will be, but what’s most encouraging to me about that is major global companies, when they make a decision to leave, they look at Tennessee,” the governor reportedly told the outlet.
“We’ll continue to work right up until the middle of January,” said Lee. “There’s a lot of work yet to be done.”
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Tom Pappert is a 2025 recipient of the Dao Prize and the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star. He also reports for the Star News Network. Follow Tom on X. Email tips to [email protected].
Democratic mayors for a long time in Nashville. We’re taxed to death and spend money on activists and other ridiculous things. Parking is outrageous now downtown, we’ve lost several good restaurants, our Christmas parade and now they are trying to take our fairgrounds racetrack. We also lost the having the Republican convention. No matter what they tell us, Nashville is less safe now.
Locate in Memphis and try and save the city. Nashville is now run by an imbecile no better than Karen Bass. And Franklin is FULL already…
People which are activists such as most the Metro council and our illustrious stupid mayor should be banned from ever running for any political office. State Constitution needs be changed to allow only people with marriage. Their own business experience to run for public office at all levels. That’s part of the problem is that there are too many activists on councils, commissions, elected office, etc. Who know nothing about how to run anything.
There should be no tax money given to them whatsoever to relocate, Tennessee should have learned this lesson this past year after losing $3 billion on tax incentives. This practice needs to end at all levels of government
I hope Freddie has no direct contact with Paramount he would scare them off. He has a great deal on his plate anyway Metro tax dollars for illegals – PRIORITY #1. Save crayfish from data centers. Losing control of the airport. Raising property taxes. Really important things that help Nashville grow. It would be interesting to know how many companies he has run off. I am sure though that his WEGO bus system would be attractive for Paramount, what a leader! It is embarrassing for him to represent Nashville, what a disgusting individual. Don’t forget his masterful leadership with the NES debacle during the ice storm, quite the leader !!!
Paramount would be nuts to locate in Nashville proper, might as well stay in California. Freddie will turn Nashville into LA.