BREAKING: Warner Bros. Signals Paramount/Skydance Offer Could Be a “Superior Proposal” to Netflix

After months of dismissing bids from Paramount/Skydance’s David Ellison, over eight of them, which has resulted in constant whining, complaining, and even the threat of litigation, Warner Bros Discovery is finally, maybe—who knows?— satisfied with Ellison’s latest offer.

Just breaking, Warner Bros. Discovery has officially acknowledged having received a revised proposal from Paramount which, in its words, could realistically turn into what the company calls a “superior proposal” under the terms of its existing deal with Netflix.

Paramount/Skydance is now proposing $31 per share in all cash, plus a ticking fee of $0.25 per quarter starting after September 30, 2026—essentially a pressure campaign to get the deal done. There’s also a hefty $7 billion regulatory termination fee, payable if regulators sink the transaction.

On top of all that, Paramount/Skydance would cover the $2.8 billion breakup fee WBD owes Netflix to exit the existing agreement.

WBD is being careful with its wording. The company says it will continue talks to see whether a deal can formally qualify as a “superior proposal” under the Netflix agreement. If that happens, Netflix gets four business days to counter—meaning it would have a very narrow window to improve its offer and keep the deal alive.

Part of Warner Bros.’ hesitation toward Paramount’s onslaught of offers is that, while they look richer on paper, they could leave WBD exposed if the deal were to collapse. That said, what Ellison is putting on the table now isn’t trivial—it’s a substantial sum, much of it in cash. At some point, WBD has to weigh how much value it’s leaving on the table and ask whether the risk of saying no to Ellison is worth walking away from all that additional cash.

Bottom line: WBD is clearly signaling that Netflix’s grip on this merger isn’t as secure as it once seemed, and Skydance/Paramount are very much back in play.