Paramount is set to completely acquire Warner Bros. Discovery as WBD’s merger with Netflix gets cancelled.
Warner Bros. Discovery announced that Paramount Discovery has won the acquisition bidding over Netflix. Paramount's offer $110bn offer was deemed the "Company Superior Proposal" by WBD and will set the complete acquisition in motion and voids their merger with Netflix. Here is a rundown of the deal and all of the services Paramount will acquire from Warner Bros.
Paramount completely acquires Warner Bros.
An article on the official Warner Bros. Discovery site confirmed that Paramount Skydance has made what WBD considers to be a "Company Superior Proposal."
Netflix initially had a pending merger with Warner Bros., which drew opposition from several parties in the industry, including SAG-AFTRA, the Writers Guild of America, the Directors Guild of America, and Paramount itself. That deal also went under the DOJ for antitrust, as the industry's main concern was that this merger was monopolistic in nature.
WBD disclosed that Paramount offered $31.00 per share in cash, valuing WBD and all of its assets at $110.9 billion. This deal is expected to close as early as Sept. 30, 2026.
Paramount is also responsible for the $2.8 billion fee to terminate WBD's existing Netflix merger agreement.
Netflix was given an opportunity to provide a counteroffer, which it declined, saying the deal is "no longer financially attractive."
Warner Bros. is a world-class organization, and we want to thank David Zaslav, Gunnar Wiedenfels, Bruce Campbell, Brad Singer and the WBD Board for running a fair and rigorous process. We believe we would have been strong stewards of Warner Bros.’ iconic brands, and that our deal would have strengthened the entertainment industry and preserved and created more production jobs in the U.S. But this transaction was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price.
Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters, Netflix co-CEOs
What assets is Paramount acquiring from Warner Bros.?
Paramount will become the parent company of all of Warner Bros. Discovery's entire portfolio, including streaming services, networks, franchises, video game studios, production, and content libraries.
The most notable assets Paramount assume ownership over include:
- CNN
- Cartoon Network
- Adult Swim
- TLC
- Discovery Channel
- Food Network
- HBO Max
- TNT Sports
For video games and pop culture, Paramount will own several notable franchises, including Harry Potter and the entire DC Universe.
The deal will also encompass the following gaming studios, game franchises, and IPs:
- Rocksteady Studios - Batman: Arkham series, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League
- NetherRealm Studios - Mortal Kombat, Injustice
- Avalanche Software, Portkey Games - Hogwarts Legacy, Harry Potter / Wizarding World games
- Traveller's Tales - LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Batman, etc.
- WB Games - Gotham Knights
Notably, both Paramount and Warner Bros. have a crossover fighting game under their belts: Paramount's Nickelodeon Super Brawl and All-Star Brawl series and Warner Bros.' MultiVersus. With the two now under one roof, a crossover between these two crossover games might be in the cards.
