Too Much TV Exclusive: Inside Netflix's Bid For Warner Brothers

Several Netflix executives talk to me about the streamer's efforts to acquire Warner Brothers studios.

Here’s everything you need to know about the world of television for Thursday, November 20th, 2025:

PRODUCTION NOTES
My apologies for the lateness of today’s newsletter. There is a lot going on and that resulted in working on updates in my reporting until the very last minute. Thanks for your understanding.

A LOOK INSIDE NETFLIX’S BID FOR WARNER BROTHERS STUDIO
Today is the day that the Warner Bros. Discovery board is expected to receive the formal bids from Paramount Skydance, Comcast, and Netflix to acquire all or parts of the company.

Last month, I wrote a piece entitled 7 Questions To Keep In Mind About A Netflix Bid For Warner Bros. Discovery. It received a lot of attention inside the industry, particularly from people working at the streamer. Some executives I have regularly spoken with off the record, but in some cases, I heard from people for the first time, who wanted to help fill in some of the blanks about what a Netflix offer would look like and the strategy behind the decision to bid at all.

I am well aware that whenever sources reach out to talk - even on background - they have their own agenda. So while I ended up with a unique perspective on Netflix’s thinking about the bid, I’m also cognizant of the fact that it’s the point of view the company wants me to take away from the conversation. So keep that in mind as you read the rest of this.

There have been news reports that Netflix executives have informed WBD board members they intend to continue releasing Warner Bros. films theatrically, and that has been my assumption all along, as I wrote last month:

2) What happens with the Warner Bros. theatrical business?
The assumption from most industry analysts is that it is a zero-sum game. That Netflix either continues the theatrical business as a separate entity from Netflix’s core streaming-only business, or it rolls everything at Warner Bros. into a straight-to-streaming model.

I think these options are informed by a misunderstanding of Netflix’s strategy towards the theatrical business. Despite what many people in the industry believe, Netflix doesn’t have a steadfast opposition to giving movies a theatrical release. But it believes that when it comes to its original movies, there is more value in having a streaming-only release, rather than getting access to the films after a theatrical release.

But owning Warner Bros. would provide Netflix with several things it needs right now. Continuing to give most major Warner Bros. films a theatrical release gives Netflix a solid footing in the theatrical business, which includes a thriving distribution and production arm. That provides Netflix both with the opportunity to give its streaming-only titles a more robust limited theatrical run as well as more leverage with theaters.

I do suspect that while Netflix would likely continue to release Warner Bros. films theatrically, it will take advantage of WB IP to also produce Netflix-only titles. More often than not, familiar reboots that wouldn’t justify a theatrical release but would have a great deal of familiarity (and hence, value) with its streaming audience.

Keeping the WB theatrical business intact also provides a spot for current WBD CEO David Zaslav, who unfortunately needs to be provided a substantial role in the new business. It likely wouldn’t be a long-time role, but he’s not likely to be around anyway for long, no matter who wins control of the company.

Another thing that Netflix executives have apparently mentioned to the WBD board is their belief that while Paramount Skydance would prefer to acquire the entire company, it would still be interested in what was left after Netflix acquires the studio side of the business. They point to the fact that a Paramount Skydance acquisition would likely lead to the end of Warner Brothers as an independent studio, and have suggested the famed Warner Brothers studio lot might be seen as “unnecessary.” While it’s likely somewhat hyperbole, suggesting that the land the Warner Bros. lot is on is extremely valuable and the combination of a new owner who isn’t interested in preserving the lot and the current slump in the production industrywide paints a troubling picture. And while the board members are primarily concerned with maximizing the offers, a number of them are also believed to be reluctant to preside over the dismantling of the studio.

Netflix executives apparently believe that if they offer a premium for the studio side of the business, they not only maximize their chances of winning the bid but make it financially more attractive for WBD to sell off the rest of the business. And even after the studio sale, WBD would remain a business with a number of attractive assets:

Domestically, there are the WBD linear channels, along with their live sports rights. TNT, TBS, TruTV, TCM, CNN, as well as the various channels that came from the old Discovery Communications side of the business - Food, HGTV, Discovery, Travel, etc. It also runs co-ventures with NCAA.com, NBA.com, PGA.com, Bleacher Report, and owns 25% of MLB.com. Add to that the Discovery+ streamer and various assorted random assets, such as an equity piece of the entertainment streamer Philo TV, and you have a reasonable start to a business arm that is still making money.

But then there are the international TV assets, and that is the part of the business that is often overlooked in these discussions. WBD has a MASSIVE live sports business overseas, including TNT Sports and Eurosport, which is a collection of pay TV channels that air across Europe and Asia.

There are also linear TV channels in just about every possible territory, many of them still doing quite well despite the slump in the linear TV business.

Netflix executives have also highlighted some reporting that suggests Paramount Skydance owner David Ellison sees WBD as offering a lot of opportunities for unnamed AI efforts he argues will “streamline the streaming business.” Bringing up AI concerns resonates with a board that primarily consists of older executives and investors who remain wary of the AI business.

There doesn’t seem to be much concern that a Comcast bid has much of a chance with the WBD board. “They only want the studio assets, and while they can finance it, any offer is likely to include more stock than the board is comfortable accepting,” one Netflix executive with direct knowledge of the negotiating strategy told me. “And Comcast does have a huge issue with President Trump, so any decision about their bid is going to reflect the concerns that their offer might be tied up for years with regulators.”

Netflix executives appear to believe their offer won’t face the same scrutiny, despite extensive reporting to the contrary. “A lot of the news coverage touting their inside status with the Trump Administration comes from reporters friendly with Ellison,” another executive told me yesterday. “You’ll notice some of the same reporters writing about this day after day. That’s not to say that Ellison doesn’t have a great relationship with Trump. We just believe it’s overhyped in the press.”

And when it comes to the press coverage, Netflix has continued to mostly stay silent about its efforts, other than leaking some vague details about their desire for only the studio side of the WBD business. A strategy I have argued can sometimes backfire on the streamer. “That’s the company culture,” one high-placed executive told me. “And there’s a belief that extensive press coverage just complicates the conversation and distracts from the company’s efforts.”

One aspect of the negotiations that is underreported is that top Netflix executives generally have a good rapport with the Trump Administration and, for the most part, have managed to stay out of Hollywood’s culture wars. If anything, Netflix has embraced many of the popular conservative manosphere comedians by offering their stand-up specials as well as TV series. “We don’t have Ellison’s connections, but Trump doesn’t hate us. Which might be good enough in this situation.”

As for anti-trust concerns, I was reminded by one executive that the headlines about that concern are coming primarily from one Southern California congressman, who doesn’t seem to have any reason to voice the concerns other than to solidify support for Ellison’s bid. “It’s ludicrous to worry about our anti-trust issues when you look at what Paramount Skydance would control if their bid were accepted,” I was reminded. “His comments are a joke.”

The future of Warner Bros. studio is going to change, no matter who acquires the company. But every Netflix executive I spoke with talked about their belief that the Warner Bros. legacy would only remain intact under Netflix’s stewardship. “Both Paramount and Comcast want the studio for its parts,” I was told by a high-ranking executive. “We want it not just because it’s good for us, but because we respect the business we are acquiring. Warner Bros. is part of Hollywood, and the opportunity to be part of that history is something we couldn’t pass up.”

One part of the Netflix proposal that I couldn’t get clarity on was the future of HBO Max. I was told by several executives that Netflix wasn’t interested in the streamer. But given how much of the HBO Max catalog includes Warner Bros. titles, any separation of the streamer from the studio will require some nuanced negotiations. So I am not entirely convinced that Netflix isn’t interested in HBO Max, especially if the price is right and it keeps it out of the hands of rivals Comcast and Paramount Skydance.

A GENTLE REMINDER
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ODDS AND SODS
* Drew and Jonathan Scott return with five new episodes of HGTV’s Celebrity IOU beginning on Sunday, December 28th.

* The eight-episode unscripted food series The Unlikely Cook with Awkwafina premieres at unspecified date on Apple TV. Here is the official logline: “Nora’s family ran ‘Lum’s,’ the iconic Cantonese restaurant in Flushing NY, and the very first in a now thriving Chinatown. But despite growing up in the family business, she can’t cook. At all. She could ruin an instant ramen. “I’ve never been trusted around a kitchen, so I thank everyone involved for opening that part of my house up to me… Food has been a huge part of my family’s history, and to be able to explore and reconnect with that legacy has been an incredibly rare and very special opportunity,” said star and executive producer Awkwafina. With help from acclaimed chefs, restaurateurs and her characterful family themselves, she travels the country to explore what it takes to master Asian food in the kitchen, and if she will ultimately reimagine Lum’s legacy for today.”

* HBO Max has renewed The Chair Company and I Love LA for a second season.

* The sports docuseries 5-Star will premiere Tuesday, December 2nd on Paramount+. Here is the official logline: “5-Star is a story of defying the odds. On average, there are four million college freshmen in the U.S. each year. Of those, only 12,000 are recruited to play college football, and only 3,000 for the highest level D1 teams. From that small pool, just 32 each year—less than 0.01 percent—earn the designation of being a Five-Star recruit. From those 32, 5-STAR will follow the freshman seasons of the No. 1 recruit Bryce Underwood (Quarterback, University of Michigan), the No. 5 recruit Devin Sanchez (Cornerback, Ohio State University), the No. 9 recruit Dakorien Moore (Wide Receiver, University of Oregon) and the No. 19 recruit Malachi Goodman (Offensive Tackle, Penn State University). Every victory brings these athletes closer to greatness.”

WHAT’S COMING TODAY AND TOMORROW

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 20TH:
* All Her Fault Season One Finale (Peacock)
* A Man On The Inside Season Two Premiere (Netflix)
* American Gangster: Trap Queens (BET+)
* High Horse: The Black Cowboy (Peacock)
* Jurassic World: Chaos Theory Season Premiere (Netflix)
* The Celebrity Traitors UK Series Premiere (Peacock)
* The Follies (Netflix)
* The Great British Baking Show: Holidays (Netflix)
* The Assassin Series Premiere (AMC+)

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21ST:
* A Loud House Christmas Movie: Naughty Or Nice (Nickelodeon)
* Dining With The Kapoors Season Premiere (Netflix)
* Karaoke Club Series Premiere (Prime Video)
* Kathleen Madigan: The Family Thread (Prime Video)
* One Shot With Ed Sheeran (Netflix)
* Sebastian Maniscalco: It Ain’t Right (Hulu)
* The Family Man Season Three Premiere (Prime Video)
* The Family Plan 2 (Apple TV)
* Train Dreams (Netflix)
* Whispers Of A Secret Life (LMN)

SEE YOU EARLY FRIDAY MORNING!