Ellison Pledges Personal Guarantee for Son’s Warner Bros Bid
Oracle technology magnate Larry Ellison is offering a $40.4 billion personal guarantee to support Paramount’s hostile bid for Warner Bros Discovery, intensifying a bidding battle with Netflix, a statement confirmed on Monday.
The revised proposal, worth a total of $108 billion from the company led by Ellison’s son David, seeks to address concerns raised by Warner Bros’ board, which had deemed the Paramount bid too risky and urged shareholders to accept a rival buyout offer from Netflix.
Netflix stunned the industry on 5 December by announcing it had secured an agreement to purchase the film and television studio together with the HBO Max streaming business for nearly $83 billion, marking the entertainment sector’s largest consolidation deal of the decade.
Three days later, Paramount, whose chief executive is David Ellison, son of Larry Ellison and an ally of President Donald Trump, launched an all-cash tender offer valuing the entertainment giant at $108.4 billion. Warner Bros last week described the Paramount offer as risky, stating it was backed by “an unknown and opaque revocable trust” and involved “no Ellison family commitment of any kind.”
Warner Bros Discovery also emphasised the reliance of the Paramount offer on foreign investors, noting that $24 billion of the financing comes from Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds, which could necessitate further government approval. Paramount’s amended proposal is intended to address those concerns and additionally raises the breakup fee to match Netflix’s $5.8 billion, payable to Warner Bros if its offer fails to clear regulatory review.
“Paramount has repeatedly demonstrated its commitment to acquiring WBD,” said David Ellison. “Our $30 per share, fully financed all-cash offer… continues to be the superior option to maximize value for WBD shareholders.”
Unlike Netflix’s offer, Paramount’s bid includes the acquisition of cable channels such as CNN, TNT, TBS and Discovery, which would be added to its portfolio of television assets including CBS, MTV and Comedy Central.
Trump Weighs In
The bidding war, which is set to reshape Hollywood and the US media landscape, has attracted attention from the White House. Trump has repeatedly intervened, saying Netflix’s deal “could be a problem” as it would leave Netflix with a vast market share of the film and television industry.
US President Donald Trump participated in a video call with military service members from his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, on 27 November 2025 during the Thanksgiving holiday.
He has also criticised coverage of the White House from Paramount-owned CBS News, stating that neither bidder for Warner Bros had his preference. He has stressed the importance of CNN receiving new ownership as part of the Warner Bros sale, targeting the outlet he has long condemned for what he calls “fake news.”
Both Paramount and Netflix have lobbied the White House directly, with David Ellison also introducing conservative-friendly changes at CBS News. Since assuming control of Paramount earlier this year, the company has appointed journalist Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief of CBS News. Weiss, a prominent critic of what she describes as bias in mainstream media, received praise from conservatives for the appointment.
On Monday, Weiss was accused by a CBS News staff member of cancelling a planned segment on an El Salvador maximum-security prison where the Trump administration had sent hundreds of Venezuelan migrants.
