Netflix has walked away from a blockbuster bidding war for Warner Bros – setting the scene for Paramount to triumph with an £82bn takeover.
The streaming giant, which is behind hits including Stranger Things and Emily in Paris, said its plan to buy Warner’s studios and streaming assets had been ‘a “nice to have” at the right price, not a “must have” at any price.’
It is the latest plot twist in a battle between two of Hollywood’s biggest studios for the maker of beloved films including Casablanca, Harry Potter and Barbie.
Netflix said it would not match Paramount’s latest bid, which Warner’s board has now declared to be the ‘superior offer’.
Warner had previously rejected eight offers from Paramount to buy the entire company and it had appeared that Netflix was in prime position to succeed with its own offer for around £60m for part of the business.
But Netflix said its deal is ‘no longer financially attractive’ and it would not contend with Paramount’s latest offer of $31 per share – the equivalent to £82billion.
Netflix – which is behind hit series including Emily in Paris – has backed down from the bidding war for Warner Bros
Warner chief executive David Zaslav said in a statement: ‘Once our board votes to adopt the Paramount merger agreement, it will create tremendous value for our shareholders.
‘We are excited about the potential of a combined Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery and can’t wait to get started working together telling the stories that move the world.’
This paves the way for one of the biggest takeovers in Hollywood under the steer of Paramount boss and Donald Trump ally David Ellison.
Backed by his father, Larry Ellison, the Oracle technology billionaire who is among the richest men in the world, David has already created a Hollywood powerhouse by merging Skydance and Paramount in a £22bn deal in 2024.
Paramount’s bid for Warner covers the whole business – meaning the Ellisons could control some of the biggest US news companies, including CBS News and CNN, as well as the HBO cable network.
But it means a win for ‘Old Hollywood’ as opposed to a Netflix victory, which would see the streaming giant build on its unassailable position in the streaming world.
Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot, said: ‘Ultimately, this outcome probably doesn’t shake the media industry out as much as if Netflix had been successful here.
‘Yes, it creates a new mega streamer in whatever Paramount-Warner Bros becomes, but Netflix has eyes on other competitors. YouTube remains the biggest threat to Netflix’s dominance, and with this saga now over, it can focus on keeping its place at the top of the streaming tree.’
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