Warner Bros. (WB) and DC Studios' sale to Netflix is reportedly in danger after rival bidder Paramount scored a big win. While Netflix's agreement to acquire WB was announced in December, Paramount hasn't been shy in improving its offer in the hopes to throw the deal off course. Due to the complexity of the situation, there has been much debate on whether Netflix or Paramount has the better offer, with one major shareholder recently speaking against the streamer's deal.
As reported by Deadline, Paramount has increased its all-cash offer to acquire Warner Bros. from $30 to $31-per-share, potentially beating Netflix's offer for the studio, although the WB board is yet to decide whether the new bid is superior.
Paramount and Netflix's proposals came with key differences, with the former bidding for the whole company at $30-per-share and promising a higher chance at regulatory approval, partly since CEO David Ellison's father, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, is a longtime ally and friend of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Netflix's all-cash offer is only for the Warner Bros. studio assets (including DC Studios), valued at $27.75-per-share. The streamer, whose offer has been backed by the WB board, with the spin-off company created from the remaining cable networks argued to push the value beyond Paramount's $30-per-share.
Beyond the $31-per-share price for WB, Paramount agreed to pay the $2.8 billion fee due to Netflix for exiting its existing sale agreement, and a committed $7 billion to be paid by the Ellison company if the acquisition fails regulatory approval. The offer also includes a ticking fee of $0.25-per-share to be paid to shareholders per quarter from September 30 to compensate for any delays in completion.
In an interview with Variety ahead of Paramount's increased offer, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos declared he is "willing to talk away and let someone else overpay for things," leaving it unclear how the streamer will respond to the rival bid:
"We’re super-disciplined buyers, as you probably know we have a reputation for such so that I’m willing to walk away and let someone else overpay for things. We have a rich history of that."
Warner Bros. Discovery can now engage further with Paramount after reopening talks with Paramount earlier on February 17. If the board concludes that Paramount's offer is superior, Netflix will have four days to revise its own bid.
A previous report indicated that a Paramount acquisition could mark a major change-up in DC Studios' current structure, with co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran possibly having less autonomy to control what projects are greenlit.
Netflix confirmed from the get-go that Warner Bros. would continue to operate separately after the acquisition with DC Studios and other subsidiaries remaining under "the teams that currently run them." The streamer also shut down one major fear, confirming that DC and other WB movies would still be in theaters.
Nothing is certain regarding DC Studios' future, especially as there's no telling how Gunn and Safran themselves feel about the sale for the time being. Studio acquisitions have often led to management and creative shake-ups, meaning that the DCU could easily remain as-is or be overhauled again in the near future.
Whether it be Netflix or Paramount, Warner Bros. and DC Studios' new owners will undoubtedly be looking closely at how the likes of Supergirl, Lanterns, Clayface, and Man of Tomorrow perform to decide their next moves, especially after Ted Sarandos himself indicated that Superman underperformed in 2025.
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