Jeff Shell has settled a lawsuit from a self-deputized former public relations adviser who accused the ex-Paramount Skydance president of reneging on a deal involving a TV show.
Both sides on Wednesday moved to dismiss their claims. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.
The adviser, R.J. Cipriani, triggered the chain of events that ended with Shell’s exit at Paramount when he alleged that the former executive improperly disclosed details to him about the timing and structure of Paramount’s $7.7 billion media rights deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship almost a month before its August 2025 announcement. An internal investigation, which cleared Shell of any wrongdoing and an SEC inquiry followed.
With the settlement, bigwigs across Hollywood avoid the possibility of being deposed in the case. Cipriani’s lawyers had subpoenaed media mogul Ari Emanuel and UTA cofounder Jim Berkus, among several others.
In the lawsuit, Cipriani claimed that Shell shared confidential information with him to suppress negative stories about him and to circulate favorable coverage for the company. One example: Shell last year solicited his advice on wrangling between Paramount Global and the South Park creators, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, over a new streaming deal, according to the complaint. Cipriani said he was involved in a story in The Hollywood Reporter exploring the fight, taking credit for shifting the public narrative in Paramount’s favor and ultimately saving the company $1.5 billion.
“I’m the one that put the article out for you!!! I didn’t want to tell you till it hit so you have plausible deniability,” Cipriani texted Shell after the story published, per the lawsuit.
Their relationship soured when Shell didn’t follow through on an alleged agreement to pick up Roku’s Spanish-language series Serenata de las Estrellas, in which Latin acts like Ozomatli and Los Lobos perform surprise mini-concerts for fans who’ve gone through tough times, the lawsuit said.
In a cross-complaint, Shell alleged extortion and defamation. “Cipriani did not come to Court to enforce some purported oral agreement,” wrote Steven Olson, a lawyer for Shell, in the lawsuit. “He came to complete a shakedown.”
During a meeting earlier this year arranged by Hollywood power lawyer Patricia Glaser, who represented the men in unrelated matters, Cipriani alleged that Shell refused to compensate him for 18 months of work. After those talks broke down, Glaser offered him $150,000 of her own money to resolve the dispute, according to the complaint. Cipriani claimed that the high-powered lawyer had a conflict of interest brokering those discussions.
Other confidential information Shell is alleged to have shared with Cipriani: talks with UFC on a $7.7 billion media rights deal and Paramount’s intention to up its hostile tender offer for Warner Bros. Discovery to $30 per share in cash, with additional financing commitments.
Representatives for Shell and Cipriani didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
