Paramount’s second round bid for Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) is understood to be backed in part by the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi.
The all-cash bid, which is understood to have been submitted along with offers from Comcast and Netflix, is also backed by Paramount CEO David Ellison’s father and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, as well as RedBird Capital, and Apollo Global Management.
David Ellison is targeting the entire WBD – its studios and streaming segment, the storied library, and the linear television businesses.
The second round bids were due on Monday (December 1). It is unclear if they are “best and final” offers. WBD CEO David Zaslav reportedly rejected a previous Paramount bid valuing WBD at $23.50 per share.
Zaslav has indicated he wants to wrap up the process by the end of the year, although US and international regulatory requirements make that timeline impossible. It is possible that Zaslav may focus on one favoured bidder and continue to work solely with them to get the deal, which it is estimated could close in the $60bn range, over the line.
Netflix has reportedly submitted a mostly cash bid for WBD’s studios and streaming business and as previously reported, that could involve undertakings to theatrically release existing Warner Bros films in the pipeline.
How that plays out remains to be seen. The matter of future Warner Bros films that have either not moved into production or simply do not exist yet might be a different story. Netflix’s business model is predicated on bringing films to its global subscriber base of more than 300m people first on the platform.
While the streamer will stage awards-qualifying theatrical runs and makes exceptions – as in the case of Greta Gerwig’s November 2026 Narnia adaptation that will open exclusively in Imax before it debuts on the service – co-CEO Ted Sarandos has by and large made clear that direct-to-streaming is the company’s model.
And while executives have emphasised that Netflix is a builder, not a buyer, Sarandos and co-CEO Greg Peters may be willing to adapt the model if that means getting their hands on Warner Bros’ coveted library. However observers have speculated that an ongoing theatrical commitment could mean short theatrical windows on all but a handful of annual tentpoles.
“The library is the most attractive part of WBD,” said one source with experience in Hollywood deal-making who asked to remain anonymous. “If you have the DC library, you can mine that for decades to come. It would position you to compete with Disney’s Marvel and Star Wars stables.”
The addition of the HBO Max platform and HBO itself is also an enticing prospect. “That automatically positions you in the prestige television game,” the source added.
Comcast is also bidding for WBD’s studios and streaming business, however Donald Trump does not get along with CEO Brian Rogers, in stark contrast to his relationship with David Ellison and Larry Ellison. Paramount is regarded as the most likely to prevail according to industry sources.
“The friendship with the president shouldn’t matter,” the source said, ”and the agencies [like Federal Communications Commission] are meant to be independent. But the reality is these personalities comes into play […] Trump has put hurdles in the way if he doesn’t like someone.”
Paramount, Netflix, Comcast, and WBD did not reply for comment.
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