War Over Warner Bros., Netflix Deal Takes New Twist
The ongoing battle over who will take control of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) has taken a new turn, as Jared Kushner's private equity firm withdrew its backing for Paramount Skydance's hostile takeover.
Affinity Partners, the Miami-based company founded by the president's son-in-law, was one of several entities supporting Paramount's bid for WBD, which would upset the $83-billion deal struck with Netflix in early December.
“With two strong competitors vying to secure the future of this unique American asset, Affinity has decided no longer to pursue the opportunity,” a spokesperson for the company said in a statement to NBC News.
Newsweek contacted Paramount, WBD, Netflix and Affinity on Wednesday morning for comment.
Why It Matters
Kushner's entry into the war over WBD, given his ties to President Donald Trump, had attracted additional political attention to the struggle that many see as determining the future of entertainment and streaming, as well as journalism within the U.S.
The exit of Kushner's firm, which was helping to finance Paramount's bid alongside the CEO David Ellison's family and a handful of Gulf state wealth funds, marks a blow to Paramount, and comes amid reports that WBD's board is already planning to urge shareholders to reject its offer in favor of the original deal with Netflix.
What To Know
On December 5, Netflix and WBD announced that the former would acquire the latter's TV and film studios in a transaction with a total enterprise value of around $82.7 billion.
Days later, however, Paramount launched an all-cash, $108.4-billion hostile takeover bid for the entirety of WBD, offering shareholders $30 per share, compared with Netflix's $27.75 cash and stock blend. CEO Ellison, son of Oracle founder and chairman Larry Ellison, said his company's offer provided significantly more value to shareholders and greater regulatory certainty.
In addition to Affinity, Paramount’s offer was backed with financing from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the Qatar Investment Authority and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and received the tacit endorsement of Trump who also expressed concern over the Netflix-WBD deal.
WBD said it would "carefully review and consider" the offer, and on December 8 said it would give a recommendation to shareholders regarding whether to accept the bid "within 10 business days."
But news of Kushner's firm's exit arrived shortly after reports from The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg that the WBD board would be urging shareholders to reject the offer. People familiar with the matter told the outlets that the move could come as early as Wednesday, and that the board still views the existing deal with Netflix as preferable on multiple fronts.
What People Are Saying
Affinity Partners, in a statement to NBC News, said: "The dynamics of the investment have changed significantly since we initially became involved in October. We continue to believe there is a strong strategic rationale for Paramount's offer.”
Paramount, on announcing its offer to WBD, said: "Paramount’s strategically and financially compelling offer to WBD shareholders provides a superior alternative to the Netflix transaction, which offers inferior and uncertain value and exposes WBD shareholders to a protracted multi-jurisdictional regulatory clearance process with an uncertain outcome along with a complex and volatile mix of equity and cash."
President Donald Trump, asked about the Netflix deal, told reporters: "They have a very big market share. And when they have Warner Bros. that share goes up a lot. So I don't know. That's going to be for some economists to tell, and also, and I'll be involved in that decision, too. But they have a very big market share."
Timothy Wu, professor and antitrust expert at Columbia Law School, told Newsweek: “Both [deals] will be subject to significant antitrust attention, both from the federal government, and also likely from California and/or New York State.”
“While competition is a concern for both mergers, one thing important to understand is that some of the competition is labor competition-i.e., a concern that a merger will weaken the buying markets for TV shows and films,” he continued.
What Happens Next
Any deal between WBD and either Netflix or Paramount will likely require clearance from the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission.
Netflix is facing a consumer class action lawsuit over the deal, and lawmakers have expressed concern over both offers, citing risks to competition within the media space as well as national security in the case of Paramount's bid, given the involvement of foreign government entities.
Newsweek
This story was originally published December 17, 2025 at 6:23 AM.