BREAKING: Netflix to acquire Warner Brothers, HBO in $82 BILLION deal

Netflix is set to acquire Warner Brothers as well as HBO in a $82.7 billion deal. The announcement was made public on Friday with the streaming platform touting the upcoming purchase. 

A press release from Netflix read, "Today, Netflix, Inc. (the Company) and Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) announced they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Netflix will acquire Warner Bros., including its film and television studios, HBO Max and HBO."

"The cash and stock transaction is valued at $27.75 per WBD share (subject to a collar as detailed below), with a total enterprise value of approximately $82.7 billion (equity value of $72.0 billion). The transaction is expected to close after the previously announced separation of WBD's Global Networks division, Discovery Global, into a new publicly-traded company, which is now expected to be completed in Q3 2026," the company added in the announcement. 

The co-CEO of Netflix said that by combining the abilities of Warner Brothers as well as Netflix, there will be an "incredible library of shows and movies—from timeless classics like Casablanca and Citizen Kane to modern favorites like Harry Potter and Friends—with our culture-defining titles like Stranger Things, KPop Demon Hunters and Squid Game, we'll be able to do that even better. Together, we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling."

Although the CEO touted Stranger Things in the release, the show has recently come under fire for what some online have claimed to be a child being sexually assaulted by an alien in the opening of Season 5.  

The acquisition from Netflix comes with an expected spin-off of the Discovery Global TV Networks division from the parent company Warner Bros. Discovery. The spin-off is expected to be finalized in the third quarter of 2026. Netflix has also come under fire for gender issues being woven into some children's shows. Elon Musk earlier this year called for people to cancel their Netflix subscription because some children's shows have shown characters as identifying as transgender.