Paramount vs Netflix: The Hollywood Power Struggle No One Saw Coming

Hollywood is currently witnessing one of its most consequential corporate confrontations in decades, as Netflix and Paramount Skydance compete aggressively for control of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD). 

What began as a strategic acquisition has now escalated into a high-stakes contest involving multibillion-dollar bids, political influence, investor pressure, and mounting questions about the future shape of the global entertainment industry.

Netflix initially appeared to have secured a decisive victory after submitting a $72 billion offer for Warner Bros.’ film studios, television division, HBO, and its associated streaming service. This followed months of private negotiations in which Netflix surpassed rival bids from Paramount and Comcast. 

Insiders indicated the company offered roughly $28 per share, largely in cash, a compelling proposition for a studio that had quietly placed itself on the market after repeated entreaties from Paramount.

The agreement advanced far enough that Netflix publicly announced the acquisition to its subscribers on 6 December, assuring customers that nothing would change in the immediate term while regulatory and shareholder approvals were still pending. 

The company framed the acquisition as a defining moment for global entertainment, arguing that the combined catalogue, from Casablanca and Harry Potter to Stranger Things and Squid Game, would substantially strengthen its position as the world’s leading streaming service.

At that point, the deal was widely considered to be on track for completion.

However, the landscape shifted dramatically when Paramount Skydance returned with an unsolicited and highly assertive counteroffer valued at $108.4 billion. The bid, launched on Monday, targets the acquisition of the entire Warner Bros. Discovery enterprise, including traditional cable networks such as CNN, which are excluded from Netflix’s narrower agreement.

Paramount’s proposal is an all-cash, $30-per-share offer and is backed by a consortium that includes:

• Affinity Partners, led by Jared Kushner.

• Several Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds.

• The Ellison family, including Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison.

Paramount argues that its proposal delivers significantly greater financial value, approximately $18 billion more in upfront cash than Netflix’s, and provides a smoother regulatory path because it incorporates all of WBD’s assets into one consolidated entity rather than dividing the business across multiple buyers.

In a statement, Paramount CEO David Ellison described the bid as offering “higher headline value, increased certainty, and a pro-competition future for the entertainment industry.”

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Despite the bold nature of Paramount’s intervention, Warner Bros.’ board maintained its position. In a carefully worded statement, the board confirmed that it would review Paramount’s offer but emphasised that it had not altered its existing recommendation in favour of the Netflix agreement. The board also instructed shareholders to “take no action at this time” regarding the Paramount proposal.

Warner Bros. now has ten business days to provide a formal response, leaving the industry in a state of uncertainty.

A notable component of Paramount’s confidence lies in its longstanding ties to former President Donald Trump. Larry Ellison is both a financial supporter and informal adviser, leading Paramount to believe that its acquisition would face fewer regulatory obstacles. Reports also indicate that Ellison contacted Trump directly after the Netflix announcement, warning that the deal could harm industry competition.

Trump’s response has been inconsistent. He has alternately praised Netflix’s success and hinted at antitrust concerns, suggesting that the merger could prompt regulatory review. His subsequent criticism of CBS News, part of the Paramount group, for airing an interview he disapproved of further complicated the political backdrop just hours before Paramount revealed its hostile bid.

This political entanglement has heightened uncertainty around which company is more likely to receive regulatory approval in the United States.

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A successful acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would radically transform Paramount, historically a smaller player compared to Netflix, Disney, and Amazon, into one of the most powerful entertainment conglomerates in the world. 

By absorbing Warner Bros.’ studios, HBO, DC Comics, and its extensive film and animation archives, Paramount would gain the scale it has long lacked.

This would position the combined entity as a direct competitor to Netflix and other major streaming companies at a time when consolidation is becoming increasingly necessary for survival.

For its part, Netflix appears undisturbed by the counterbid. Co-CEO Ted Sarandos told investors on Monday that Paramount’s move was “expected” and expressed confidence that the original agreement with WBD would proceed as planned. “We’re confident we will complete the transaction,” he said in a brief statement.

The situation remains fluid. With Warner Bros. reviewing Paramount’s offer but maintaining its endorsement of Netflix, several major questions now hang over the industry:

• Will shareholders push for the higher cash offer from Paramount?

• Will regulators intervene, particularly amid political tensions?

• Could further counterbids emerge as pressure intensifies?

Regardless of the outcome, the competing proposals represent one of the most significant potential restructurings in modern entertainment history. 

A merger between Netflix and Warner Bros. would create the most powerful streaming entity ever assembled, while a Paramount–Warner combination would reshape the Hollywood studio system in ways not seen since Disney’s acquisition of Fox.

For now, the global entertainment industry is waiting for Warner Bros.’ final decision, a ruling that will influence the trajectory of film, television, and streaming for decades to come.