Netflix about to own Harry Potter, Game of Thrones and more with Warner Bros takeover, Paramount launches hostile bid: Entertainment war explained

Netflix and Paramount Skydance have launched one of Hollywood’s biggest and most intense battles to buy Warner Bros Discovery. This showdown will decide who takes control of some of the entertainment industry’s most valuable assets, including HBO, CNN, DC Comics, and Warner Bros Studios.

Breaking news: Paramount has launched a $108bn hostile bid to buy Warner Bros Discovery, in an attempt to outmanoeuvre Netflix after the streaming giant won an auction for the media company last week. https://t.co/ew4m1FZ0Pd pic.twitter.com/Fk1FVT3YHR

— Financial Times (@FT) December 8, 2025

The race to acquire Warner Bros Discovery started quietly but soon turned into an openly competitive fight. This takeover will shape the future of major film and TV properties that have huge fan bases worldwide. Both Netflix and Paramount Skydance are determined to win, making this a defining moment in the entertainment business.

Warner Bros Discovery’s journey so far

Warner Bros Discovery’s story has been one of constant change. Over the past 20 years, the company’s parent firms have gone through three big reorganisations, responding to shifts in the media world and the trend of larger companies merging. These changes have set the stage for the current battle.

The latest chapter began in early September when Paramount Skydance first reached out about joining forces with Warner Bros Discovery. Although these talks started in secret, discussions between Paramount’s CEO David Ellison and Warner Bros Discovery’s head David Zaslav stretched for months. The talks slowly heated up as both sides explored possibilities.

Negotiations and rejections

Paramount kept trying to find a way to make the deal work. They sent several proposals and adjusted their offers based on Warner Bros Discovery’s concerns, according to a detailed securities filing. But Warner Bros Discovery rejected many of these offers. The growing differences eventually led to a sharp breakdown in talks by early December.

This fallout pushed Paramount to switch tactics. Instead of negotiating quietly, they launched a hostile takeover bid directly aimed at Warner Bros Discovery’s shareholders. This is a more aggressive and public move, signalling how serious Paramount is about winning the deal.

Why Paramount went hostile

Paramount provided a clear explanation for moving to a hostile bid. Even though there was a positive meeting in late November where top executives explored future roles in a merged company, the relationship between the two sides quickly went cold.

Paramount said Warner Bros Discovery delayed signing a “clean team” agreement, which would have allowed Paramount to view sensitive company information essential for their analysis. Without this, Paramount’s legal team warned that the delays would put them at a disadvantage.

Adding to the tension, Warner Bros Discovery’s Chairman Emeritus John Malone publicly supported Netflix’s role in the takeover and claimed that Paramount’s offer disrupted Warner Bros Discovery’s strategic plans. This public backing showed the board was leaning toward Netflix, which made Paramount feel the process was no longer fair.

On 3rd December, Zaslav called Ellison to say the Warner Bros Discovery board worried about the financial guarantee from the Ellison family. They thought this could make it harder to get regulatory approval. Paramount argued that strong financial backers, including sovereign wealth funds, had already committed, but the board remained unconvinced.

On 4th December, Ellison sent messages asking for a chance to discuss a revised offer, describing it as an “honour” to partner with Warner Bros Discovery. However, these messages went unanswered. By midday, Paramount raised its bid to $30 per share, a massive $108.4 billion valuation and told Warner Bros Discovery that this was not its highest offer. But that evening, Warner Bros Discovery appeared to enter exclusive talks with Netflix about selling its studios and streaming business.

A full-blown bidding war has erupted in Hollywood after Paramount launched an all-cash offer to acquire Warner Bros. for $108.4 billion

This comes after the Hollywood giant handed over its studio and streaming assets to Netflix in an $82.7 billion deal@ShivanChanana has more pic.twitter.com/jvOfNVAhcv

— WION (@WIONews) December 9, 2025

Paramount’s bold strategy

After Netflix’s announcement, Paramount bypassed Warner Bros Discovery’s management and took its offer directly to the shareholders. Paramount’s hostile takeover bid has been open for 20 business days and can be extended. The all-cash offer is financially backed by the Ellison family, Jared Kushner’s investment firm Affinity Partners, and several Middle Eastern state-linked funds.

A detailed side-by-side comparison of Netflix's and Paramount's bids for Warner Bros, per Bloomberg pic.twitter.com/aGlboCC1VP

— Exec Sum (@exec_sum) December 8, 2025

To avoid delays linked to national security review boards, Paramount removed some investors like China’s Tencent from its group and limited the control foreign investors would have. This strategy aims to help the deal avoid strict government scrutiny.

David Ellison said their goal is to fight for the best value for shareholders of both companies. Warner Bros Discovery responded by saying its board has maintained a fair and open process with all bidders, and that the bids themselves tell the story.

The Warner Bros Discovery board now has 10 days to respond to Paramount’s hostile bid, and its decision will shape how this fight unfolds.

Netflix’s early move and political reaction

While Paramount was trying to bring back talks, Netflix had already made its own proposal to buy Warner Bros Discovery. Netflix, as the world’s largest streaming service, is preparing for what could be one of the toughest antitrust reviews ever faced by a media deal.

US President Donald Trump has been watching closely. While he praised Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos for his work and expressed respect, Trump also raised concerns about putting HBO’s popular content under Netflix’s control, hinting it could create too much market power. Trump signalled that he might get involved in the review process.

On the day Paramount revealed its shareholder bid, Trump used his social platform to criticise Paramount for running an interview featuring conservative Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, showing the complex political currents tied to the deal.

For Netflix, the political environment is tricky. Sarandos has had friendly ties with Trump ever since a private dinner at Mar-a-Lago in late 2024, but parts of Trump’s base want the Department of Justice to block the Netflix deal. Conservative figures like Steve Bannon and Matt Gaetz have also criticised the merger, renewing concerns similar to those voiced during the AT&T and Time Warner merger review years earlier.

Despite the challenges, Netflix is confident. Sarandos called Paramount’s hostile bid “completely expected” and said he believes Netflix can successfully close its deal with Warner Bros Discovery. Netflix is even offering a record $5.8 billion breakup fee to Warner Bros Discovery, payable if the deal fails due to regulatory problems.

What the winner will change in Hollywood

If Paramount Skydance wins, it would become the most powerful player at the box office, surpassing Disney in the US and Canada. This deal would bring the entire Warner Bros library, including DC superheroes and HBO’s award-winning shows, the entire Harry Potter movies, games, series and theme parks globally into Paramount’s content vault. This would dramatically boost Paramount+ with access to some of the entertainment world’s biggest brand names in the last 20 years.

On the other hand, if Netflix succeeds, it would combine the largest global streaming platform with one of the most respected entertainment libraries in the world. This would strengthen Netflix’s lead in the streaming wars as traditional cable TV keeps losing viewers and audiences are split across many platforms.

HBO, currently under the Warner Bros banner, owns some of the most critically acclaimed and popular TV shows in the last decade, including Game of Thrones series and its spinoffs, Last Of Us, Westworld, and rights for the Harry Potter TV series, which is currently at the filming stage.

Currently, Netflix holds around 8% of the US TV streaming market, while HBO Max and other services face strong competition from fast-growing digital platforms. Meanwhile, YouTube, owned by Alphabet, remains the leader with nearly 13% viewership in the US. YouTube’s mix of user videos, music, ads, and live shows, with almost 2.9 billion users worldwide, sets a tough standard for Netflix and Paramount to meet.

The debt load that comes with Warner Bros Discovery  

Buying Warner Bros Discovery means taking on a heavy debt burden of about $35 billion, mostly from its 2022 merger between WarnerMedia and Discovery. This big debt has limited the company’s ability to invest in new projects and slowed growth in some areas.

Paramount would take on about $30 billion of this debt, while Netflix would assume around $10 billion. The difference reflects each company’s plans to restructure and finance the business after the purchase. Paramount is relying on financial support from the Ellison family and institutional investors, while Netflix is counting on its solid market value and global subscriber base.

Share price reflects the battle

Since news of Paramount’s interest became public in September, Warner Bros Discovery’s stock has more than doubled, showing how much investors are focused on this battle. The stock even rose more than 4% after details about the sale process were revealed.

With so much at stake, the decision by Warner Bros Discovery’s board in the next 10 days on Paramount’s offer will be critical in shaping the future of Hollywood’s entertainment giants.