More viewers watched Super Bowl 58 than any other event in American history. There were a total of 123.4 million viewers, roughly 40% of the United States population, who tuned in to see the Kansas City Chiefs defeat the San Francisco 49ers in a thrilling overtime game. That number is probably even higher when you account for people who left their homes to watch it with one another. Easily, the actual number could be close to half the country.
Though we'll never truly know. A lot of people watched, that's for sure. More than any event ever, and yet the company that aired the event, Paramount Global, still saw fit to lay off 800 employees after the game's record-breaking numbers came to light.
CEO Bob Bakish cited a need to cut costs as to why 800 men and women lost their job. Don't worry though, Bakish's salary isn't being slashed at all. Thankfully (sarcasm). Despite making all sorts of money on Sunday's game, the fact that so many people lost their jobs shows you just how bankrupt this company is, both morally and possibly financially. Though, not literally either.
Paramount Global is not doing well and is on the sales block, and cuts are still going to come. It's so bad that shows are going to be affected. Why people are optimistic that a franchise like Star Trek won't be impacted is beyond us, but we promise you that things are going to change dramatically for the sci-fi stalwart.
Trek is going to go through a lot until the sale of the company happens, and maybe even a lot more after, but if the parent company is going to cut that most weight off their payroll after a booming success, imagine what they'd do to Trek if it struggles to find enough of an audience?
Star Trek isn't likely to be around on a Paramount Global streaming service for much longer, because it's very likely there won't be a streaming service for them to air on. The future is bleak for Paramount Global, and we just hope that they don't tank Star Trek with them.