Plot Twist: Paramount Launches $108 Billion Hostile Raid on Warner Bros. Discovery

Just 48 hours after Netflix seemingly crowned itself the King of Hollywood, Paramount Skydance has kicked the throne over.

In a stunning "Red Wedding" maneuver, Paramount has launched a hostile takeover bid for Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), appealing directly to shareholders with an all-cash offer that trumps Netflix's bid. The message is clear: the deal isn't done until the shareholders sing.

Here is the breakdown of this massive industry counter-strike:

Paramount is offering $30 per share in cash, valuing the deal at an enterprise value of $108.4 billion.

• The Key Difference: Netflix only wanted the "crown jewels" (Warner Bros. Studios, DC, and HBO), leaving the declining cable assets behind. Paramount wants everything.
• The Whole Package: Their bid includes the assets Netflix rejected: CNN, TNT Sports, and the entire linear cable portfolio. This appeals to WBD shareholders who feared being left holding a "zombie" company of dying cable channels after a Netflix split.

The French press and US analysts alike are highlighting a critical non-financial asset: Politics.

• The Trump Factor: With the current administration signaling that a Netflix-WBD merger creates "dominance problems" in the streaming market, Paramount is positioning itself as the "safe" option.
• The Narrative: Paramount Skydance argues that because they are smaller than Netflix (market cap ~$14B vs Netflix's $400B+), their merger is "pro-competitive" rather than monopolistic.
• The Connections: The bid is backed by the Ellison family (David Ellison), whose father Larry Ellison has historically close ties to the political right, potentially smoothing the regulatory path in Washington.

Hostile takeovers are expensive. Paramount has assembled a formidable coalition to finance this war:

• The Backers: The Ellison Family and RedBird Capital.
• The Bankroll: A consortium led by Bank of America, Citi, and Apollo Global Management has committed $54 billion in debt financing.
• The Market Reaction: Wall Street loves a bidding war. WBD stock jumped 6% at the open, while Paramount rose 3%, signaling that the market takes this counter-offer seriously.

Shareholders now face a binary choice:

1. The Netflix Deal: Sell the best assets to the tech giant, potentially face years of antitrust litigation, and retain a spin-off of declining cable channels.
2. The Paramount Deal: A clean, all-cash exit for the entire company, creating a traditional media super-competitor, but saddling the new entity with massive debt.

Here is the data breakdown of the two competing visions for Hollywood's future.