Warner Bros Discovery has agreed to ​be acquired by Paramount Skydance in a $110 billion deal signed on Friday (February 27, 2026) morning, according to an ‌audio clip of a global townhall by the company, which was ​reviewed by Reuters.

“Netflix had the legal right to match the PSKY ⁠offer. As you all know, they ultimately decided not to do that. That then resulted in a signed agreement with PSKY as of this morning. So that’s where everything stands,” Bruce Campbell, ‌Warner Bros’ chief revenue and strategy officer, said in the townhall.

Paramount and Warner Bros did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The agreement ‌caps a bidding war after Netflix declined to match Paramount’s latest $31-per-share offer, ‌which ⁠was deemed superior by Warner Bros to the streaming pioneer’s $27.75-per-share agreement for ⁠its studio and streaming assets.

Paramount shares jumped 24%, while Netflix rose 13% as investors welcomed its decision to back out of the Warner Bros race. ‘EU ANTITRUST APPROVAL LIKELY NOT A HURDLE’ Paramount is ​expected to easily win European Union ‌antitrust approval, with any required divestments likely to be minor, Reuters reported on Friday, citing sources.

However, the merger has drawn scrutiny from California State Attorney General Rob Bonta, who said that the state is investigating the Paramount deal and will ‌be “vigorous” in its review.

The deal — which includes some $29 billion in debt — is among ​Hollywood’s biggest media shake-ups and will create one of the largest film studios in the world, allowing Paramount to tap Warner’s trove ⁠of intellectual property, including franchises such as “Fantastic Beasts” and “The Matrix”.

It will also allow Paramount to bolster its streaming efforts, with a potential combination of HBO Max and Paramount+, enabling ‌it to gain market share and tussle with market leader Netflix.

Paramount was in pursuit of Warner Bros since late last year when it launched a hostile campaign to wrestle the company from the streaming giant by consistently raising its offer.

The company, led by billionaire Larry Ellison’s son David Ellison, enticed Warner’s board back to the bargaining table by raising the possibility of an improved cash offer.

In its revised ‌bid, Paramount raised the termination fee it would pay should the deal fail to gain ​regulatory approval to $7 billion from $5.8 billion.

Paramount also agreed to pay the $2.8 billion termination fee that Warner Bros owes Netflix.

Activist investor Ancora Holdings, which ⁠owns a small stake in Warner Bros, had also stepped up pressure on the HBO ⁠owner to engage more with Paramount.

Lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle have raised concerns that any deal to acquire Warner Bros could ‌result in fewer choices and higher prices for consumers.

Cinema operators are also concerned that combining large Hollywood studios could cost jobs and reduce the number ​of movies released in theaters.

Warner Bros. Discovery said on Tuesday (February 24, 2026) it has received a revised acquisition proposal from Paramount Skydance, signalling that the offer could open the door to the company rethinking its deal with Netflix.

Also Read | Netflix co-CEO faces grilling by US Senate panel over Warner Bros deal

The sweetened offer was the latest instalment of a bidding war set to reshape Hollywood and U.S. media, and has drawn White House attention, with U.S. President Donald Trump insisting he will have a say on the outcome.

In a significant development, Warner Bros. Discovery’s board said on Tuesday that Paramount’s revised bid “could reasonably be expected to lead to” a superior proposal to the existing Netflix deal — a key legal threshold that would allow for more formal negotiations with Paramount.

Warner Bros. said Paramount’s revised offer includes a purchase price of $31.00 per share in cash, a one-dollar-per-share increase from its earlier offer, which was valued at around $108 billion.

Paramount has also offered to cover the $2.8 billion termination fee Warner Bros. would owe Netflix if it walked away from their deal, and pledged a $7 billion fee payable to Warner Bros. should the Paramount transaction fail to close due to regulatory hurdles.

Questions are swirling over whether politics will influence the outcome of the battle, with Paramount run by David Ellison and the transaction financed largely by his father, Oracle tycoon Larry Ellison, a longtime Trump ally.

Trump has said he will be “involved” in any decision on the merger, and the US Department of Justice is currently reviewing Netflix’s proposed acquisition. European authorities and other regulators will also have their say.

A victory by Paramount would see news outlet CNN — often the target of Trump’s threats and criticism — pass to Ellison family control, amid criticism that their takeover of Paramount-owned CBS brought changes more to the White House’s liking.

The Netflix offer does not include Warner Bros. television properties such as CNN and Discovery, which would belong to a newly created publicly traded company if the deal is sealed.

– Review ongoing –

The Warner Bros. board stressed it had not yet concluded that Paramount’s offer was superior to Netflix’s, and that it would continue talks with Paramount to determine if that bar could be met.

If it was, Netflix would have four business days to come back with a counter-offer.

Earlier in the day, Warner Bros. acknowledged the new offer but said its deal with Netflix “remains in effect” and that board members “continue to recommend in favor of the Netflix transaction,” stressing it was not withdrawing its recommendation.

Warner Bros. shareholders were advised to take no action with respect to the Paramount offer while the review is ongoing.

Netflix is offering $83 billion for its more limited merger but is expected to be prepared to raise its offer to more closely match its rival’s new bid.

Trump late Saturday called on Netflix to fire board member Susan Rice or “pay the consequences,” after she said Democrats would push for corporate accountability if they regain power in the November midterm elections.

“He likes to do a lot of things on social media. This is a business deal. It’s not a political deal,” Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos told BBC Radio 4, when asked about Trump’s threat.

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