With Paramount Shut Out, Netflix Eyes Warner Bros. Takeover

So here is a curveball: Netflix is reportedly kicking the tires on Warner Bros. Discovery. Yes, the same Warner Bros. Discovery that owns DC Studios. If that sentence just lit up your group chat with Zack Snyder fans, you are not alone. But take a breath — this is early days, and the picture is messy.

Where this started

Earlier this month, David Ellison — now steering Paramount — made a $20-per-share offer for Warner Bros. Discovery. WBD passed. Still, the company is now said to be open to more offers in that ballpark, which brings us to the new wrinkle.

What Netflix is actually doing

Per Deadline, Netflix has retained financial advisory firm Moelis & Co to explore a potential bid for Warner Bros. Discovery. Key word: explore. There is no formal offer on the table from Netflix right now. This is more 'looking into it' than 'sign here'.

Why that is surprising

Because Netflix executives basically just said they were not interested in buying legacy media. When asked earlier this month if they wanted to go shopping for Warner Bros. Discovery, co-CEO Greg Peters said:

'You have to do that by the hard work of developing those capabilities in the trenches day to day. You don’t get there simply by buying another company that is also still developing those same capabilities.'

Co-CEO Ted Sarandos added:

'We’ve been very clear in the past that we have no interest in owning legacy media networks, so there is no change there.'

And yet here we are with bankers being hired to scope a deal. Corporate vibes: fluid.

The Snyderverse angle (because of course)

Fans of Snyder’s DCEU are already game-planning what a Netflix takeover could mean for Zack Snyder’s corner of DC after 'Zack Snyder’s Justice League.' The dream scenario on social media: Netflix buys WBD, then revives the Snyderverse and keeps building from there. That energy has been around since James Gunn and Peter Safran launched their new DCU — plenty of Snyder faithful have been lobbying Netflix to snag the rights to Snyder’s DC movies.

• On Oct 31, 2025, @leonsbodyguard cheered the idea outright: buy WBD and bring the Snyderverse back.
• @AntiPar2ival wondered if Snyder’s recent Ben Affleck Batman photo posts were a signal.
• @Halflight_AE said they had genuine hopes this could bring the Snyderverse back, calling to bring back the Squad.
• Not everyone is buying it: @empatheticcain said flatly that Netflix would not restore the Snyderverse either.
• @RichardOcelot joked that even in a Netflix-owned world, confusion would reign when the Snyderverse still did not return.
• @reviewsdino2 argued Netflix’s track record with source material is spotty and pointed to Henry Cavill’s exit from The Witcher as a cautionary tale.

Reality check

Even if Netflix did buy Warner Bros. Discovery — a massive if — there is no guarantee any Snyderverse revival happens. When Ellison was floating a Paramount-WBD combo, he indicated the creative teams at both studios would stay in place. Translation: James Gunn and Peter Safran would remain as co-CEOs and co-chairmen of DC Studios. That is the actual status quo right now, and it would not magically vanish because the logo on the building changes.

So what should you take away?

Netflix has hired a bank to evaluate a possible offer for Warner Bros. Discovery. That is meaningful, but it is not the same as a bid. The move flies in the face of what Netflix leadership said just weeks ago, which makes the whole thing feel both intriguing and shaky at the same time.

As for the Snyderverse conversation: understandable, loud, and very online. Just do not confuse fan wishcasting with deal terms. If this goes anywhere — and that is an if — expect a long road and a lot of corporate fine print before any cape touches a set.

(Reporting points via Deadline and coverage originated by Brandon Schreur at SuperHeroHype.)