Warner Bros Discovery rejects hostile Paramount bid

The Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) board has reiterated its support for Netflix’s $72bn deal for its film and streaming businesses, saying it represents “superior, more certain value for shareholders.”

"Following a careful evaluation of Paramount's recently launched tender offer, the board concluded that the offer's value is inadequate, with significant risks and costs imposed on our shareholders," said Samuel A. Di Piazza, Jr., Chair of the WBD board.

WBD put itself up for sale in October 2025 after receiving "multiple" expressions of interest from potential buyers, including approaches from Paramount Skydance.

On 5 December 2025, WBD said it had agreed to sell its film and streaming businesses to Netflix. Paramount then countered with a hostile bid for the whole of WBD, including its traditional television networks.

The WBD board has concerns around the foreign financing for the Paramount deal, as well as whether Oracle founder Larry Ellison would fully backstop the deal.

In a letter to shareholders, the WBD board said that Paramount had "consistently misled" them by saying its $30-per-share cash offer was fully guaranteed, or "backstopped," by the Ellison family.

"It does not, and never has," the board wrote of the guarantee of Paramount's offer, noting that the offer posed "numerous, significant risks."

The board said it found Paramount's offer "inferior" to the deal with Netflix.

“WBD's merger agreement with Netflix is a binding agreement with enforceable commitments, with no need for any equity financing and robust debt commitments. The Netflix merger is fully backed by a public company with a market cap in excess of $400bn with an investment-grade balance sheet.

“The debt financing for the Paramount Skydance bid relies on an unsecured revocable trust commitment as well as the creditworthiness of a $15bn market cap company with a credit rating at or only a notch above ‘junk’ status from the two leading rating agencies.”

Netflix Co-CEOs Greg Peters and Ted Sarandos recently stressed their belief that the streamer’s planned $83bn acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery will go ahead, despite a hostile bid from Paramount Skydance. Discover more here.