Netflix says it’s not buying Warner Bros. after all: ‘no longer financially attractive’ |
Netflix says it’s not buying Warner Bros. after all: ‘No longer financially attractive’
In a stunning move, the streaming giant is walking away from the deal it struck in December after Paramount Skydance upped its bid.
The Warner Bros. water tower at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California, December 2025 (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
Netflix is declining to raise its offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio and streaming business, in a stunning move that effectively puts Paramount in a position to take over its storied Hollywood rival.
On Thursday, after Warner’s board announced that Skydance-owned Paramount’s offer was superior to the agreement it had previously struck with Netflix, the streaming giant said the new price it would have to pay to acquire Warner would make the deal “no longer financially attractive.”
“We believe we would have been strong stewards of Warner Bros.′ iconic brands,” Netflix’s co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters said in a joint statement. “But this transaction was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price.”
Sarandos and Peters also thanked Warner leadership. Warner had repeatedly backed the deal it struck with Netflix since December—and even when announcing that Paramount’s latest offer was superior earlier Thursday, the company said its board stood by its previous recommendation in favor of Netflix.
Paramount and Warner did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Netflix’s choice to walk away. Thursday’s news arrived after Paramount upped its rival bid for the entire company to $31 per share, in addition to other revisions.
A Warner Bros. Discovery buyout would reshape Hollywood and the wider media landscape. And unlike Netflix—which only wanted to buy Warner’s studio and streaming business for $27.75 per share—Paramount wants the entire company. That means HBO Max, cult-favorite titles like Harry Potter, and even CNN could soon find themselves under a new roof.
Paramount’s CBS has seen significant editorial shifts, notably with the installation of Free Press founder Bari Weiss at CBS News, under new Skydance ownership. And if Paramount’s acquisition of Warner is successful, critics warn of similar changes at CNN.
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