Paramount Skydance, fresh off its $8.4 billion merger, has reportedly set its sights on acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)
Paramount Skydance is the newly minted powerhouse formed by Skydance Media’s acquisition of Paramount Global. Led by CEO David Ellison and backed by his father, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, the company is now preparing a majority cash bid for WBD, which includes assets such as HBO, CNN, DC Studios, and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Despite WBD’s announced plans to split into two separate entities—Warner Bros. (studios and streaming) and Discovery Global (cable and networks)—Paramount’s bid reportedly targets the entire company, not just its studio arm.
Warner Bros. Discovery currently boasts a market cap of nearly $40 billion, more than double that of Paramount Skydance. By combining HBO Max and Paramount+, the merged entity could better compete with streaming titans like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video.
Warner Bros. Discovery has been undergoing its own transformation. CEO David Zaslav is orchestrating a split of the company’s cable and studio businesses by 2026, aiming to streamline operations and unlock shareholder value.
No formal offer has been submitted yet, and the deal could still fall apart. But the market has already reacted: WBD shares surged over 30% following the news, while Paramount’s stock jumped 15%.
