John Oliver is not afraid of his “soon-to-be business daddy” David Ellison, as he proved with a swipe at the billionaire on his HBO talk show.
After a four-week summer break, the Emmy-winning comedian returned Sunday to Last Week Tonight amid Paramount’s ongoing $110 billion acquisition of HBO’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.
Oliver, 49, wasted no time in broaching hot topics upon his return, from the billion-dollar acquisition to the U.S.’s health insurance crisis. While speaking about United HealthCare’s reputation for denying health claims, he gave the example of cancer patient Kate Weissman, whose parents had to pay for her treatment due to UHC’s refusal to help cover the costs.
“Now in the end her parents paid $95,000 out of pocket to cover the treatment, which in happy news did actually work, but having access to wealthy parents just cannot be the system to get badly needed healthcare,” Oliver said before coyly changing topics.
“Even if it is apparently the system that lets you be in charge of HBO.”
Oliver then showed a picture of David Ellison, the Donald Trump-backed CEO of Paramount Skydance — who is currently in the process of acquiring HBO’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, in a $110 billion acquisition — and his billionaire father, Larry Ellison, who personally pledged $40 billion to help Paramount’s deal. If Paramount’s deal closes, then David’s company would own HBO, which runs Oliver’s show.
“Yeah. My soon-to-be business daddy has a literal business daddy,” Oliver continued. “And to be very clear: I deeply respect that and I would never make fun of you for it, unlike that pesky Stephen Colbert.”
Paramount decided to pull the plug on Colbert’s The Late Show last year after 33 years.
The Independent has contacted Ellison for comment.
Oliver’s contract was recently renewed through 2027 ahead of the Ellisons’ imminent acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.
The late night host has previously made jokes about David being his “business daddy” amid news of the merger.
“We might be getting a new business daddy!” Oliver said during an episode in March. “Yeah, not great news. In fact, if I may quote anyone who's ever accidentally sat on their Roku remote, I'm in Paramount now…how the f*** do I get out of here?’”
When early discussions of the potential deal had started in 2025, Oliver publicly criticized the idea. He said on the show at the time: “Please stay the f*** away from us. You are not my real business daddy, and you never will be.”
