David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros.: “We are excited about the potential of a combined Paramount Skydance, it will create tremendous value”

´The fierce bidding war has come to an end: following Paramount Skydance’s latest offer to Warner Bros. Discovery to acquire both the company itself and its historic catalog of films, series, and documentaries, Netflix decided not to up its bid, considering that it had reached a point where paying more was no longer attractive. Paramount will ultimately take over Warner Bros., and the latter’s CEO, David Zaslav, has publicly expressed his delight at the outcome. However, the deal still needs to be legally formalized and pass regulatory scrutiny.

Paramount wins the battle against Netflix for the acquisition of Warner Bros., and David Zaslav believes that everything has turned out well.

For several weeks, Hollywood has been facing an almost unprecedented event: Warner Bros. Discovery was seeking to clean up its accounts at all costs, something only possible by remaining open to an acquisition, preferably a friendly one. Two main candidates responded to this unique call: Netflix and Paramount Skydance. Since then, there have been numerous twists and turns, closed-door negotiations, and bids, culminating in Paramount making the most attractive final offer to WB.

Paramount Skydance’s final bid for Warner Bros. Discovery was made on February 24 and stood at $111 billion, up from the $108 billion bid made in early December 2025. David Ellison’s company did not have sufficient liquidity to meet this proposal, but the deal has been backed by the capital of Larry Ellison—David’s father and businessman—as well as by sovereign wealth funds from several Persian Gulf countries. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar decided to join in, considering it a very attractive investment.

In this context, David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, has released an express statement celebrating the closing of the deal, as revealed by Variety. “Netflix is a great company and throughout this process Ted, Greg, Spence and everyone there have been extraordinary partners to us. We wish them well in the future. 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.”

Ultimately, this story is far from over. Although Paramount has won this peculiar marathon against Netflix to acquire Warner, there are still many unknowns in the air. Despite David Zaslav’s enthusiasm, the purchase will not only have to pass the severe and rigorous antitrust scrutiny of regulatory bodies such as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), but it also remains to be seen how the catalogs of both companies will be integrated.

In principle, the HBO Max platform is expected to continue operating independently, and Warner Bros. releases will continue to hit theaters with the usual release window and transition to home formats and streaming. In any case, interesting weeks lie ahead for the film industry, and everything indicates that the audiovisual entertainment landscape will be redefined in a way that has rarely been seen before.

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