A coalition of 12 states filed an antitrust lawsuit Monday to block the merger of Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros., defying the Justice Department, which approved the deal last month.

The coalition, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, alleges that the $111 billion transaction violates the Clayton Act by reducing competition in three distinct markets: wide-release film distribution, “top-grossing” film distribution, and basic cable licenses.

“The illegal merger of these two entertainment giants would lead to higher prices, lower quality and less content for film and television, harming movie theaters, basic cable distributors and, ultimately, audiences on every couch and movie theater seat in the U.S.,” Bonta said in a statement Monday.

The lawsuit claims that the combined company will control 27% of the wide-release theatrical distribution market, 30% of the submarket comprising “early blockbuster movies” and 27% of the basic cable package. The states argue that such consolidation will hurt movie theaters and cable and satellite providers that rely on competition among distributors.

Paramount and Warner Bros. are two of the five remaining legacy studios. Together, the five, including Disney, Sony and Universal, control 86% of theatrical distribution and 90% of blockbuster distribution, the states said. Warner Bros. and Paramount are also the second and third largest basic cable distributors, respectively.

“Consolidation here not only leads to higher prices, it also creates fewer opportunities for important stories to come to life and fewer ways for audiences to find stories, ideas and perspectives beyond their own experiences,” Bonta said. “In this country, no one is above the law. With this lawsuit, California and our sister states are fighting for free and fair markets, not rigged markets. America has no kings in government or in our economy.”

Paramount has argued that the deal will benefit consumers, creating a stronger streaming competitor to Netflix, Amazon and Disney. David Ellison, the CEO, has repeatedly promised that the combined company will release at least 30 films a year, maintaining and expanding the two companies’ current output.

“This kind of challenge doesn’t make a lot of sense,” Paramount lawyer Jeffrey Kessler said in an interview with Variety last week. “From California’s point of view, the deal will lead to more production and better jobs and more jobs for talent in California and elsewhere.”

The Justice Department gave its blessing to the merger in June, issuing an unusually long comment arguing that the deal would not harm competition in the film, streaming and linear television markets. Meanwhile, Hollywood unions have also expressed reservations, or outright opposition, to the deal, warning that further industry consolidation threatens thousands of jobs.

The states are expected to seek a court order to block the transaction, which Paramount hopes to close sometime after July 22.

Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield asked a court last week to halt the merger for 60 days, arguing that Paramount had hindered his investigation by not responding to requests for documents. Rayfield sought records of Paramount’s lobbying of the Trump administration, suggesting that the Justice Department’s determination may have been the product of a “corrupt deal.” His office withdrew the request on Friday.

The 12 states in the coalition are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon and Washington. All are represented by Democratic attorneys general.

Bonta has repeatedly stated that the transaction raises “red flags” and warned that his office would not bow to the Justice Department’s position. Under the Trump administration, the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division has withdrawn from several cases, including a case against Ticketmaster-Live Nation during trial. States have begun to be more aggressive about acting alone, such as when they obtained a court injunction preventing the Nexstar-Tegna merger from taking effect this spring.