Why Can't They Just Get Along?

Less than two years after Paramount acquired DreamWorks, executive tempers have boiled over. The much-heralded union has degenerated into a series of scathing personal attacks between the principals, Sumner Redstone and David Geffen. Shuttling between the bigwigs, Vanity Fair offers an in-depth look at the Hollywood war—and maybe even helps the titans settle scores.

Relations are so bleak that Geffen and DreamWorks partner Steven Spielberg are expected to resign. One Paramount bigwig stoked the fire by saying Spielberg's departure would be no big deal. When nasty stories began surfacing about Redstone's personal life, his people blamed Geffen. Before VF went to press, however, Geffen called writer Bryan Burrough to report a truce, saying his reporting aired grievances that healed "our personal relationship."