Major Companies Set to Submit Preliminary Bids for Warner Bros. Discovery

Preliminary bids for Warner Bros. Discovery are due on November 20, 2025, according to a report from Deadline, marking the first major step in what could become one of the biggest media shake-ups in years. Interested buyers must submit first-round, non-binding offers, with a second round of binding bids to follow.

Paramount, now under David Ellison’s Skydance Media, is expected to participate after making multiple overtures before the formal sale process began. Comcast and Netflix, both of which hired investment banks to explore a potential deal, are also reportedly preparing to make offers. Parties considering a bid have already signed non-disclosure agreements and reviewed the company’s financial information.

If Warner Bros. Discovery proceeds with a sale, the company hopes to have a buyer selected by Christmas.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s move to put the company up for sale comes after earlier plans to split its assets into two separate entities: a stand-alone Warner Bros. led by current CEO David Zaslav, and Discovery Global, which would oversee global linear networks under current CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels. Paramount has expressed interest in acquiring the entire company, while Comcast and Netflix are said to be eyeing Warner Bros. studios and streaming operations. Amazon MGM has also shown interest, though its current position is unclear.

The potential sale has prompted strong pushback from the Writers’ Guild of America, which represents writers in film, television, and online media. In a joint statement last month, WGA East and WGA West warned that further media consolidation would harm workers and undermine competition, saying they intend to work with regulators to “block the merger.”

“Merger after merger in the media industry has harmed workers, diminished competition and free speech, and wasted hundreds of billions of dollars better invested in organic growth,” the statement said. “Combining Warner Bros. with Paramount or another major studio or streamer would be a disaster for writers, for consumers, and for competition. The WGAW and WGAE will work with regulators to block the merger.”