Netflix to Acquire Warner Bros. in $82.7 Billion Deal

Netflix just announced a groundbreaking deal to buy Warner Bros., bringing its film and TV studios, along with streaming services HBO Max and HBO, under the Netflix umbrella.

According to the announcement, Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) shareholders will receive $23.25 in cash plus $4.50 worth of Netflix stock for each share of WBD they own when the deal closes. This values WBD at $27.75 per share, for a total company value of around $72 billion in equity and $82.7 billion including debt.

Netflix is acquiring parts of Warner Bros. Discovery, but the rest of the company – including channels like CNN – will be spun off into a separate company called Discovery Global. This means the new Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery combination will be distinct from Discovery Global.

Netflix says the agreement will unite two leading entertainment companies, blending Netflix’s innovative streaming technology and global presence with Warner Bros.’ rich history of creating popular stories. Popular shows and movies like The Big Bang Theory, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Wizard of Oz, and content from the DC Universe will be added to Netflix’s already extensive library, which includes hits like Wednesday, Money Heist, Bridgerton, Adolescence, and Extraction. This will give audiences around the world an incredible range of entertainment options. (And, if the deal goes through, Netflix would also own iconic characters like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and all the heroes and villains from DC Comics.)

Ted Sarandos, co-CEO of Netflix said of the deal:

As a total film and TV buff, I’ve always believed the goal should be simple: to entertain people! And I’m really excited about how we can do that even better now. Think about it – Warner Bros. has an amazing history, with iconic films like Casablanca and Citizen Kane alongside modern hits like Harry Potter and Friends. When you combine that with the shows we’re making – things like Stranger Things, KPop Demon Hunters, and Squid Game – it’s a recipe for something huge. We’re in a unique position to give audiences more of what they already love, and to really shape the future of storytelling for years to come.

Netflix announced they plan to keep Warner Bros.’ existing business running and improve its successful areas, like releasing movies in theaters. However, Netflix primarily focuses on streaming and has historically avoided getting involved with movie theaters – just last year, their co-CEO called them obsolete. This makes it difficult to see how this news will benefit movie theaters or those who enjoy going to them.

Finalizing this deal will require navigating a lot of regulatory approvals, and even if everything goes smoothly, it’s still several years away – it can’t move forward until Warner Bros. and Discovery separate late next year. However, if the acquisition is completed, it would form a massive media company and dramatically change the film and television industry.

Bad 2000s Movies That Got Great Reviews

Garden State (2004)

With an 86% score on Rotten Tomatoes, Garden State was a critical success when it debuted at Sundance in 2004. The film follows a depressed actor who connects with a woman he meets while home in New Jersey for his mother’s funeral. It was a hit in independent theaters, put writer, director, and star Zach Braff on the map as a filmmaker, and became representative of a specific style of indie film at the time – thoughtful, artistic, subtly humorous, and featuring a memorable indie rock soundtrack.

However, the movie is also known for popularizing the “manic pixie dream girl” trope, most notably through Natalie Portman’s character. Looking back, Garden State feels somewhat like a product of its time, filled with elements of 2000s pop culture that make you question why it resonated so strongly with audiences 20 years ago.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)

With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 83%, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory unfortunately signals a downturn for director Tim Burton. It’s not the creatively dark style his fans love, but rather a shift towards uninspired remakes and reboots – similar to his takes on Planet of the Apes, Alice in Wonderland, Dark Shadows, and Dumbo. While Burton seemed like a reasonable choice to reimagine Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, many of the changes – like Willy Wonka’s added tragic backstory – felt like attempts to repackage the story for a new generation. The film’s digital effects haven’t aged well, and already look less impressive than the practical effects used in the original Gene Wilder Willy Wonka movie.

Crash (2004)

With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 73%, the film Crash won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2004, despite strong competition from films like Good Night, and Good Luck and Brokeback Mountain. It seems that Oscar voters tend to favor films about race relations that are well-meaning, even if they aren’t particularly nuanced. Crash boasts an impressive cast – including Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, and Matt Dillon – which likely contributed to its perceived importance. However, the film itself, which explores the interconnected lives of people in Los Angeles dealing with racism, feels convoluted and unsatisfying.

Get Him to the Greek (2010)

With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 72%, Get Him to the Greek started as a spin-off featuring Russell Brand’s character from Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Jonah Hill, who also appeared in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, co-stars, which can be a little confusing. However, that’s a minor issue compared to the film’s bigger problems. One of those is Sean Combs (P. Diddy) playing an incredibly unpleasant record executive who constantly yells at his staff – and it’s just as uncomfortable to watch now as it was when the movie came out.

Cold Mountain (2003)

With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 69%, Cold Mountain had all the ingredients for an awards-winning film: a respected director (Anthony Minghella), a popular novel as its source material, a beautiful historical setting, and a star-studded cast including Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, and Renee Zellweger—all performing with exaggerated Southern accents. It received seven Academy Award nominations that year, but surprisingly didn’t win any. Despite being visually appealing and featuring famous actors, the film felt artificial and calculated, like it was created in a lab to win an Oscar rather than being a genuine work of art.

Babel (2006)

Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a score of 68%. While some people really enjoy Alejandro González Iñárritu’s movies, I find they often prioritize appearing profound over actually being meaningful. Take Babel, for example. It’s a grand film about how connected humanity is and the difficulties of cross-cultural communication – a valid idea! However, the story is so meticulously planned and directed that it loses much of its emotional power. Despite this, the film received seven Academy Award nominations and won an Oscar for Best Original Score.

Shaft (2000)

With a Rotten Tomatoes score of 67%, the recent Shaft movies starring Samuel L. Jackson haven’t quite lived up to their potential. While Jackson is perfectly suited to play the cool, tough detective – he’s known for playing similar characters for decades – the films themselves struggle to find a consistent tone. They can’t decide if they want to be a throwback to the classic blaxploitation films or a more contemporary action movie. For a truly great Shaft experience, it’s best to stick with the original film starring Richard Roundtree.

The Blind Side (2009)

The film The Blind Side, released in 2009, was a huge success and earned Sandra Bullock an Academy Award for her role as Leigh Anne Tuohy, who befriends and adopts Michael Oher, a talented but disadvantaged teenager and football player. However, the film has faced criticism for how it portrayed Oher’s true story, with many arguing it fell into the “white savior” trope and inaccurately depicted Oher as lacking football knowledge before the Tuohys intervened. Michael Oher himself expressed discomfort with scenes that made him appear unintelligent, stating he had been studying the game since childhood and had simply lacked consistent educational support. Recent legal disputes between Oher and the Tuohys – where Oher claimed they never legally adopted him but instead established a conservatorship to profit from his name – further underscore the concerns that the film significantly altered the truth of his life story.

Changeling (2008)

Clint Eastwood’s film, Changeling, tells the disturbing true story of a mother (Angelina Jolie) whose son disappears in the 1920s. Months later, the police return a boy, claiming he’s hers, but she insists it’s not her child. As a result, she’s wrongly labeled unfit and sent to a mental hospital. While Jolie powerfully portrays the mother’s desperate cries to get her son back, the movie, though well-intentioned, doesn’t quite stand the test of time. Nevertheless, Changeling earned Jolie her only Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.

I Am Sam (2001)

The movie I Am Sam, starring Sean Penn, received an Oscar nomination in 2002. Penn played a man with an intellectual disability fighting for custody of his daughter, Dakota Fanning. The nomination came at a time when portrayals of people with disabilities were starting to be viewed critically. A few years later, the film Tropic Thunder satirized the practice of actors seeking awards by playing characters with disabilities. The movie included a subplot where Ben Stiller’s character tries to win acclaim by playing a similar role in a fictional film, with far less successful results than Penn’s experience.

2025-12-05 17:28