The battle for control of the film and television company intensifies as politics enter the picture…
Paramount Skydance filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. Discovery in Delaware’s Chancery Court on Monday morning, seeking additional financial disclosures related to Warner Bros.’ agreement with Netflix. The suit comes amid an increasingly hostile takeover battle among major Hollywood players and amid President Donald Trump’s implied opposition to Netflix’s deal.
The lawsuit asks the court to compel Warner Bros. Discovery to disclose more detailed information about how it evaluated competing takeover offers, including a proposed transaction with Netflix and a rival bid from Paramount Skydance.
Competing Takeover Offers
The dispute centers on Warner Bros. Discovery’s board’s decision to favor Netflix’s proposed acquisition over Paramount Skydance’s unsolicited bid. Netflix has offered to acquire Warner Bros.’ streaming and studio assets in a cash-and-stock deal valued at roughly $82.7 billion.
Paramount Skydance, led by CEO David Ellison, argues that its offer is materially better for shareholders. The company has proposed an all-cash bid of $30 per share, representing an enterprise value of about $108.4 billion.
Paramount contends that Warner Bros. has not adequately explained how it valued its assets, including its cable networks, or how it compared the Netflix deal to Paramount’s higher cash offer.
What Paramount Is Seeking
In its court filing, Paramount Skydance is seeking disclosures showing how Warner Bros. Discovery evaluated both transactions. That includes financial assumptions, valuation metrics, and the internal analyses used by the board.
Paramount argues that without this information, shareholders cannot make an informed comparison between the Netflix agreement and Paramount’s bid.
Political Overtones Complicate the Fight
Ellison’s effort to mount a takeover has drawn attention beyond Wall Street, in part because of its political backdrop. Ellison is widely described as an ally of Trump, and the Skydance-Paramount merger that elevated him to CEO received White House regulatory approval.
After Warner Bros. Discovery agreed to the Netflix deal, Ellison traveled to Washington, D.C., where he reportedly told Trump administration officials that he would pursue “sweeping changes” at CNN if he gained control of the company.
As Mediaite’s Isaac Shorr reported:
Ellison’s father, Oracle co-founder and Trump ally Larry Ellison, called President Donald Trump after the announcement that Warner Bros. had accepted the Netflix deal to argue that “the transaction would hurt competition,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
Perhaps more interesting still, the Journal reported that “During a visit to Washington in recent days, David Ellison offered assurances to Trump administration officials that if he bought Warner, he’d make sweeping changes to CNN, a common target of President Trump’s ire, people familiar with the matter said.”
“Trump has told people close to him that he wants new ownership of CNN as well as changes to CNN programming,” added the Journal story.
The outreach added a layer of political intrigue to an already aggressive corporate battle.
Board Backs Netflix Deal — for Now
Despite Paramount’s higher all-cash offer, Warner Bros. Discovery’s board has indicated that it views the Netflix transaction as the safer option. The board has publicly cited regulatory uncertainty, debt levels, and execution risk as reasons for favoring Netflix’s narrower, asset-focused deal.
For now, Warner Bros. is standing by that judgment. But the lawsuit ensures the battle over the company’s future is far from over.
This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
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Good bust up Old Hollywood system big time for sure
Time for New Blood