Netflix cofounder Reed Hastings to step down after failed Warner Bros takeover bid

Following Netflix’s failed attempt to take over Warner Bros Discovery, the company’s cofounder and chairman, Reed Hastings, will be stepping down at the end of his term.

In a letter to shareholders on Thursday, the company said Hastings "has informed us that he will not stand for re-election to our Board when his current term expires at the Annual Meeting in June, in order to focus on his philanthropy and other pursuits."

Hastings said in a statement, "Netflix changed my life in so many ways, and my all‑time favorite memory was January 2016, when we enabled nearly the entire planet to enjoy our service. My real contribution at Netflix wasn’t a single decision; it was a focus on member joy, building a culture that others could inherit and improve, and building a company that could be both beloved by members and wildly successful for generations to come. A special thanks to Greg and Ted, whose commitment to Netflix’s greatness is so strong that I can now focus on new things."

Hastings had served as the company CEO until 2023, sitting in the role for more than 20 years after taking over the role from fellow co-founder Marc Randolph in the late 1990s.

Thursday’s shareholder letter is the first since the company’s bid to take over Warner Bros Discovery fell through, with Paramount’s hostile takeover bid winning. The letter stated, "Warner Bros. would have been a nice accelerant for our strategy, but only at the right price."

In after-hours trading, the company’s shares fell nearly 9 percent, down to $98.32, per the Associated Press. The stock fell further on Friday morning, sitting at under $97 at the time of writing.

In late February, Warner Bros Discovery agreed to be purchased by Paramount. Netflix CEO Greg Peters said at the time, "The transaction we negotiated would have created shareholder value with a clear path to regulatory approval. However, we've always been disciplined, and at the price required to match Paramount Skydance's latest offer, the deal is no longer financially attractive, so we are declining to match the Paramount Skydance bid."

"Warner Bros. is a world-class organization, and we want to thank David Zaslav, Gunnar Wiedenfels, Bruce Campbell, Brad Singer and the WBD Board for running a fair and rigorous process. We believe we would have been strong stewards of Warner Bros.' iconic brands, and that our deal would have strengthened the entertainment industry and preserved and created more production jobs in the US. But this transaction was always a 'nice to have' at the right price, not a 'must have' at any price," the statement added.