Warner Bros Shareholders Approve Historic Hollywood Mega-Merger
Finn's Take· TL;DR- Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders approved $111 billion acquisition by Paramount Skydance, advancing Hollywood's largest entertainment merger despite antitrust concerns.
- Combined company creates streaming giant with 200 million subscribers, two major film libraries, and unites HBO Max with Paramount+ platforms.
- Deal faces significant regulatory scrutiny from California and federal officials over media consolidation; shareholders rejected CEO's $500 million compensation package.
Shareholders Green-Light $111 Billion Entertainment Deal
Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders voted overwhelmingly Thursday to approve the company's acquisition by Paramount Skydance , clearing a critical hurdle for what could become the largest entertainment merger in Hollywood history. Including debt, the deal is valued at nearly $111 billion , marking a dramatic conclusion to one of the most contentious takeover battles the industry has ever witnessed.
The $81 billion Warner-Paramount mega merger has received shareholders' stamp of approval, propelling a deal that could vastly reshape Hollywood and the wider media landscape closer to the finish line . Paramount Skydance's offer of $31 a share values WBD at roughly $77 billion and includes the Warner Bros. film studio, the HBO Max streaming platform and a portfolio of cable channels, including CNN, TBS and TNT .
The shareholder approval represents a stunning victory for David Ellison, the 43-year-old son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison , who orchestrated an aggressive campaign to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery after Netflix initially appeared poised to win the bidding war. Shareholders did not approve the executive compensation package presented at the meeting, which would have seen CEO David Zaslav earning at least $500 million .
From Underdog to Victor in Bidding War
When Paramount – a company in disarray and deep financial distress – started courting potential buyers in 2024, Ellison emerged as the white knight. Skydance completed its Paramount purchase in August 2025 . But the newly formed Paramount Skydance faced an existential challenge: Paramount+ is an also-ran streaming platform with a few fan-favorite franchises, NFL broadcast rights and a bunch of question marks. The movie studio didn't land a single film in the top 10 grossing box office releases of 2025 .
To battle against legacy media companies like Disney and Netflix – and social media companies like TikTok and YouTube – Paramount needed scale. So Ellison almost immediately started courting Warner Bros . The pursuit turned into a months-long corporate drama that pitted Ellison against Netflix, the industry's biggest and most important player. President Donald Trump injected himself into the sweepstakes. So did the Saudis. And at one point, the bidding war involved a hostile takeover threat .
On February 26, 2026, WBD's board determined that Paramount's revised $110.9 billion offer, valuing shares at $31 each, constituted a superior proposal to the existing Netflix agreement. Netflix declined to match the offer and withdrew, allowing Paramount to proceed as the winning bidder. A formal merger agreement between Paramount and WBD was announced the next day .
Industry Consolidation Sparks Fierce Opposition
The merger would bring together two of Hollywood's remaining five legacy studios. It would also join two major streaming platforms — Paramount+ and HBO Max — and two big names in America's TV news landscape — CBS and CNN — as well as a heap of other brands and entertainment networks . If approved, the merged company would boast roughly 200 million gross streaming subscribers — surpassing all competitors except Netflix — and combine the two largest film and TV libraries in Hollywood .
However, the deal faces intense scrutiny from multiple fronts. Many critics have sounded the alarm on further consolidation in an industry already controlled by just a few major players, and are calling for the merger to get blocked — if not from the Trump administration, which seems unlikely, perhaps at the state level in the U.S. or through other court fights . California Attorney General Rob Bonta has been particularly vocal about the transaction, and said his state is investigating it. "State attorneys general across the country are stepping up to stop this antitrust disaster. We need to keep up this fight," Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a longtime antitrust hawk, wrote on social media Thursday .
Paramount said the merger will create $6 billion of synergies and cost savings that will almost certainly lead to thousands of layoffs . Industry professionals have voiced "unequivocal opposition" to the deal, warning that consolidation reduces bargaining power for creatives and limits diversity in storytelling .
Political Influence and Regulatory Hurdles Ahead
The deal's path to completion remains uncertain, with the acquisition still facing ongoing regulatory reviews . Questions of political influence have emerged given David Ellison's close relationship with President Donald Trump and his father Larry Ellison's status as a close ally of Trump's . If the Warner takeover goes through, many are expecting similar changes at CNN, a network that has long attracted ire from President Donald Trump .