Paramount Skydance has launched a bold $108.4 billion all-cash hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), intensifying what has quickly turned into a high-stakes contest against Netflix for control of one of Hollywood’s most powerful entertainment portfolios.
The merged Paramount Skydance entity is offering $30 per share to acquire the entire Warner Bros. Discovery business including Warner Bros. Studios, HBO, Max, CNN, TNT, and its other linear and global channels representing a 139% premium to the company’s share price before acquisition rumours surfaced.
The move comes just days after Netflix agreed to acquire WBD’s studio and streaming assets in a transaction valuing the deal at around $82.7 billion, offering shareholders a mix of cash and Netflix stock while spinning off the company’s networks into a standalone entity called Discovery Global.
In a strongly worded letter to WBD’s board, Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison argued that his proposal is “decisively superior,” claiming it delivers nearly $18 billion more in immediate cash and avoids the risks and structural complexity of Netflix’s split-asset approach. Frustrated by stalled negotiations, Paramount Skydance is now taking the offer directly to shareholders through a 30-day tender process.
The bid is supported by a heavyweight global investor lineup including sovereign wealth funds from Abu Dhabi, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia alongside RedBird Capital Partners and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners, with more than $50 billion in committed bank financing. To ease national security concerns, the state-backed investors have reportedly agreed to forgo governance rights.
Paramount Skydance has said the combined company would emerge as a formidable rival to Disney and Netflix, with expanded franchise investment, a strengthened theatrical slate targeting 30+ releases a year, and sizable cost synergies across content operations.
Warner Bros. Discovery confirmed receipt of the unsolicited proposal and stated its board will evaluate the offer within its fiduciary responsibilities. However, the company has not withdrawn support for the Netflix agreement. If it switches sides, WBD would owe Netflix a breakup fee of roughly $2.8 billion.
Regulatory scrutiny is expected for both deals, especially around consolidation of studio power, streaming control, and media competition signalling that the future of one of entertainment’s biggest powerhouses now hangs on investor sentiment, legal timelines, and negotiation strategy.