On the eve of the Oscars, attention is once again focused on one of the most famous places in the world film industry – the Paramount Pictures studio complex in sunny Hollywood. Paramount Studios is one of the oldest film studios in the world. It is also the last major film studio, the headquarters of which is still located in the historic Hollywood district of Los Angeles. That is why the history of Paramount Pictures is of special importance to the world film industry. On the eve of the Oscars, we recall the history of Paramount Studios – from its founding in the early 20th century to the legendary figures who worked on the studio premises and starred in Paramount Pictures films.
Advertising.
In recent years, Paramount Pictures has once again found itself at the center of a major corporate battle. This battle has captured the attention of the entire entertainment industry. In late 2025, several major media companies began competing for control of Warner Bros. Discovery. Netflix initially offered a deal worth about $82.7 billion. For Netflix, this could have been the largest acquisition in the history of a streaming service. However, a strong competitor later emerged — Paramount Skydance. After several rounds of negotiations, Paramount Skydance increased its offer to about $110–111 billion. This offer turned out to be more profitable for Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders. As a result, Netflix decided not to continue the fight and officially withdrew from the negotiations. This opened the way for a deal that could create one of the largest media conglomerates in the world.
The story of Paramount Studios begins, like many important stories in the film industry, with a man who started with almost no resources. Adolph Zukor was born in Hungary in 1873. He lost both his parents at the age of seven. Almost ten years later, Adolph Zukor came to New York. He came to start a new life and find work opportunities. His first job paid two dollars a week. He swept the floor in a fur store. In the evenings, Adolph Zukor studied English and the basics of business. Over time, he began to invest in movie theaters like Nickelodeon. At that time, such movie theaters were rapidly gaining popularity in the United States.
After Adolph Zukor acquired the US distribution rights to the French film Queen Elizabeth, his career in the film industry changed. This film was one of the first feature films to be shown in America. In 1912, Adolph Zukor founded the Famous Players Film Company. To distribute his films, he began to cooperate with the distribution company Paramount Pictures. Around the same time, the Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company was operating in Hollywood. Among its founders was director Cecil Blount De Mille. In 1916, Adolph Zukor organized the merger of the Famous Players Film Company and the Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Company. This structure later evolved into the studio that is known today as Paramount Pictures.
In 1926, construction began on a new studio complex in Hollywood. This complex was called Paramount Studios. The construction cost one million dollars. The studio area covered 26 acres (approximately 10.5 hectares). Four large filming pavilions were built on the territory. The famous Bronson Gate was installed at the entrance to the studio. Above the gate is a bell tower in the style of the Spanish Renaissance. Bronson Gate became one of the most famous architectural details of Paramount Studios. A year later, Paramount Pictures received its first Oscar. The film Wings won in the Best Picture category.
The following decades were a golden age for Paramount Pictures. At that time, actors worked under studio contracts. They could move between different studios. It was then that stars such as Bing Crosby and Mae West appeared on the screens. During this period, Paramount Pictures released films that became classics. Among them was Sunset Boulevard. Fashion played an important role in the studio's films. Claire West was the first costume designer to receive an official credit at Paramount Pictures. The studio's wardrobe department played an important role in the creation of films. Many luxurious costumes appeared in Cecil Blount De Mille's films. One of the most famous examples was the feathered headdress worn by Gloria Swanson in the 1919 film Male and Female. This costume was created by designer Mitchell Leisen. The Paramount Archives preserves the studio's costumes and props. This archive contains tens of thousands of items, some dating back to 1914.
The 1960s and 1970s were a period of rapid development of television. This was an important turning point for Paramount Pictures. In 1967, Paramount acquired the Desilu television studio from Lucille Ball. After that, Paramount began to actively produce television projects. Among the most famous television series are “Happy Days”, “The Brady Bunch” and “Laverne & Shirley”. During this same period, Paramount Pictures continued to work on major films. It was through Paramount that Alfred Hitchcock's “Psycho”, “Breakfast at Tiffany's” and the “Godfather” trilogy were released.
During this period, the studio also began to gradually abandon the practice of shooting films only on the territory of the studio complex. As budgets grew and film production developed, filming on real locations became much more common. A striking example was the film “The Godfather”. A significant part of this film was shot in New York and Sicily. At the same time, the Paramount studio complex continued to expand. Today, Paramount Studios occupies approximately 65 acres (approximately 26.3 hectares). There are 30 filming pavilions on the studio territory. The buildings of the complex are made in various architectural styles. Among them are Mediterranean Revival and Streamline Moderne. The studio also has a backlot area of about 2 hectares (five acres) – a filming site used as a decoration for depicting New York. In addition, a large water reservoir is located on the territory of Paramount Studios. It holds over 900,000 gallons (about 3.4 million liters). It is used for filming scenes on the water.
Today, a quarter of a century later, Paramount Pictures continues to be one of the most important players in the global film industry. From the era of Marlene Dietrich and Mae West to modern events, including the fashion tribute Vogue World, the legendary Paramount Studios complex continues to be a place where new cinematic stories are created.
Based on material from vogue.com