Paramount Skydance hasn’t given up on acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery so far. The company has It revised its $108 billion offer To include Larry Ellison’s “irrevocable personal guarantee” worth $40.4 billion. Ellison is the founder of Oracle and a backer of Skydance, which was created by his son David Ellison, CEO of Paramount Skydance.
On December 17, WBD formally recommended to shareholders that they reject Paramount’s offer. WBD has already accepted an $82.7 billion offer from Netflix, and is scheduled to close sometime next year after regulatory approval. “[The board] WBD has unanimously determined that the tender offer launched by Paramount Skydance on December 8, 2025 is not in the best interests of WBD and its shareholders and does not meet the criteria for an “outstanding bid” under the terms of WBD’s merger agreement with Netflix announced on December 5, 2025.”
The Paramount deal included support for sovereign wealth funds in places such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar. But the Ellisons have previously said that if other financiers withdraw, they “will support the full amount of the bid.” This was not enough to guarantee a WBD.
Now, Paramount is back with an irrevocable personal guarantee and an agreement stipulating that the elder Ellison will not “cancel” or “reversely transfer” the assets of the Ellison family trust while the deal is pending. WBD stated that a personal guarantee was the only solution to Paramount’s insufficient offer.
Paramount could have taken this step, but not with a smile on its face: “None of these concerns, nor the request for a personal guarantee, were raised by WBD or its advisors to Paramount in the 12-week period prior to WBD agreeing to the lower deal with Netflix, Inc.”
“Our fully funded cash offer of $30 per share on December 4th was, and continues to be, the best option to maximize value for WBD shareholders. Given our commitment to investment and growth, our acquisition will be superior to all WBD stakeholders, as a catalyst for more content production, increased theatrical production, and more consumer choice,” said David Ellison. “We expect the WBD Board of Directors to take the necessary steps to secure this value-enhancing transaction and preserve and enhance this iconic Hollywood treasure for the future.”
Paramount’s updated offer also includes a spread of the fund’s assets, more flexible transaction terms and an increase from $5 billion to $5.8 billion in “regulatory reverse termination fees” — in line with Netflix’s offer.
The Paramount show will end on January 21, 2026.