Warner Bros.\u2019 portfolio includes HBO, the HBO Max streaming platform and the \u201cHarry Potter\u201d movie franchise. Netflix, home of \u201cStranger Things\u201d and \u201cSquid Game,\u201d reaches more than 300 million paid subscribers across over 190 countries.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur mission has always been to entertain the world,\u201d Ted Sarandos, co-CEO of Netflix, said in a news release. \u201cBy combining Warner Bros.\u2019 incredible library of shows and movies \u2014 from timeless classics like \u2018Casablanca\u2019 and \u2018Citizen Kane\u2019 to modern favorites like \u2018Harry Potter\u2019 and \u2018Friends\u2019 \u2014 with our culture-defining titles like \u2018Stranger Things,\u2019 \u2018KPop Demon Hunters\u2019 and \u2018Squid Game,\u2019 we\u2019ll be able to do that even better.<\/p>\n
\u201cTogether, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling,\u201d Sarandos added.<\/p>\n Netflix\u2019s takeover of Warner Bros. would usher in a new era for Hollywood, which has evolved from a business focused on theatrical exhibition to an increasingly digital-first industry. The acquisition cements Netflix\u2019s market dominance and expands the company\u2019s content library as it faces off against tech giants such as YouTube and TikTok.<\/p>\n The deal would give Netflix access to popular and lucrative intellectual property, including DC Comics characters such as Batman and Superman; the \u201cGame of Thrones\u201d TV saga; and a vast trove of titles stretching from Hollywood’s classical era to the age of CGI-powered fantasy epics.<\/p>\n In the lead-up to the announcement, Netflix attempted to reassure the creative community by reportedly promising to release Warner Bros. movies in brick-and-mortar cinemas. But many filmmakers are deeply skeptical of Netflix\u2019s business model, which prioritizes streaming distribution over theatrical releases. Netflix typically releases only a handful of titles in select cinemas for short runs.<\/p>\n In a news release Friday announcing the deal, the two companies said that the acquisition would be a mix of cash and stock that valued Warner Bros. Discovery at $27.75 per share, with an enterprise value of $82.7 billion and an equity value of $72 billion, which takes into account Warner Bros. debt. <\/p>\n As of Thursday trading, Warner Bros. Discovery\u2019s entire market capitalization \u2014 the value of the company based on its stock price \u2014 was $60 billion.<\/p>\n The size of Netflix\u2019s offer for Warner\u2019s streaming and HBO divisions was striking, with the streaming giant paying $72 billion for just those two divisions, more than the entire current company\u2018s $60 billion market value. To help complete the cash part of the deal, Netflix said it would take out a $59 billion bridge loan from three major banks.<\/p>\n Warner Bros. Discovery, weighed down by billions in debt and lackluster streaming growth, formally put itself up for sale in the fall. The company\u2019s suitors included Paramount Skydance and Comcast, which each made bids in a largely secretive process. (Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of NBC News.)<\/p>\n \u201cToday\u2019s announcement combines two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world to bring to even more people the entertainment they love to watch the most,\u201d David Zaslav, president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a news release. <\/p>\n \u201cFor more than a century, Warner Bros. has thrilled audiences, captured the world\u2019s attention, and shaped our culture,\u201d Zaslav added. \u201cBy coming together with Netflix, we will ensure people everywhere will continue to enjoy the world\u2019s most resonant stories for generations to come.\u201d<\/p>\n If the deal goes through, Zaslav would not stay with the combined company, according to a source familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n The tie-up would not include Warner-owned cable channels such as CNN, TNT and TBS.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In a watershed move, Warner Bros. Discovery said Friday it has agreed to sell its movie, television and streaming assets to Netflix in a deal valued at $82.7 billion, setting the stage for one of the most sweeping and consequential mergers in modern Hollywood history. If approved by federal regulators, the transaction promises to create <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":4618,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-4617","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4617","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4617"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4617\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4618"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marketsfortress.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Warner](\"https:\/\/media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com\/image\/upload\/t_fit-760w,f_auto,q_auto:best\/rockcms\/2025-12\/251204-warner-bros-ch-2127-c0d0fb.jpg\")