Paramount’s Renewed Warner Bros. Bid Means More Suspense for L.A.’s Film Industry
The production giant says it still prefers Netflix’s buyout offer.
By Andrew Coen February 17, 2026 10:51 am
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A Hollywood ending could be in store for the struggling Los Angeles film industry.
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has reopened talks with Paramount/Skydance (PSKY) about assuming control of its studio and streaming business, setting the stage for a second bidding war against Netflix.
Netflix granted WBD a seven-day waiver to reopen talks with Paramount two months after it struck a $72 billion agreement to acquire the 103-year old Hollywood company’s studio and streaming business. The Netflix deal was challenged by a higher all-cash hostile takeover bid of $30 per share by the David Ellison-run Paramount.
WBD said in a release Tuesday that it continues to favor the Netflix offer but will engage in discussions with Paramount through Feb. 23 to seek “clarity” for stockholders.
“Throughout the entire process, our sole focus has been on maximizing value and certainty for WBD shareholders,” David Zaslav, president and CEO of WBD, said in a statement. “We are engaging with PSKY now to determine whether they can deliver an actionable, binding proposal that provides superior value and certainty for WBD shareholders through their best and final offer.”
Samuel A. Di Piazza Jr., chair of the WBD board of directors, noted in a statement that it continues “to believe the Netflix merger is in the best interests of WBD shareholders” due to having a “clear path” for regulatory approval and the deal’s “protections for shareholders against downside risk.”
The duel between Netflix and Paramount for control of Warner Bros. comes nearly a year after March 2025 data from the Otis College Report on the Creative Economy showed that Southern California’s production levels had sunk 50 to 70 percent below their peak in 2024.
Netflix is in the mix to take over WBD as it considers relocating from some of its Hollywood office buildings partly due to crime concerns. The streaming giant has been expanding its national real estate footprint, in part by developing a new Brooklyn soundstage that opened in 2021. Netflix also broke ground on a $1 billion production facility in New Jersey last year.
Andrew Coen can be reached at acoen@commercialobserver.com.
