After expressing initial skepticism about Netflix’s massive $82.7 billion deal, the grandson of the Warner Bros. founder came forward. Jack Warner eventually joined Ted Sarandos’ team as the battle for the landmark studio intensified. Then the streaming giant backed down. Although Warners now prefers David Ellison’s Paramount show, he believes Netflix would have been a better choice.
“Netflix provides Warner Bros. with the strongest opportunity to thrive as a creator and distributor of world-class entertainment,” said Warner heir director Gregory Orr. Hollywood Reporter. “I laughed at Netflix’s original offer of $27.75 a share, because it was only 25 cents more than what the brothers paid in 1956 for their shares.” The deal on the table now is a $31 offer for Paramount Skydance stock worth $111 billion.
“With respect to Paramount and Ellison, I don’t hear a good argument for why Warner Bros. should buy Discovery except that they would benefit from it,” Orr says. “Paramount offers very little global streaming, cash reserves or income compared to Netflix.”
Another concern is Ellison’s history of layoffs. Orr feared that “Paramount’s high debt would lead to a downsizing and merger into Warner Bros.” Ellison has cut his workforce and is looking at $3 billion in costs between them Top Gun: Maverick Produced by Skydance Media and Paramount, which owns CBS, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, BET, Comedy Central and others.
“The deal with Netflix was a good marriage,” Orr says, adding that Warner’s merger with Paramount Skydance is like having a wedding with your dumb cousin. I fear for the children’s health.
“My interest in seeing the company survive and thrive is personal,” Orr says, noting that his father, William T. Orr, worked at Warner Bros. As a television president, his mother, Joy Page, starred in the Warners classic. Casablanca Grandfather Jack Warner was one of the studio’s founding brothers.
The comments represent a reversal from the grandson of the Warner Bros. founder, who was one of the early voices to express doubts about a potential Netflix deal in early December. “The potential sale of WBD does not suit me,” he said. THR At the time, he preferred to see the studio stand alone.
Now Paramount’s pro talent troupe is being led in Hollywood Avatar and Titanic Director James Cameron, who had a long relationship with Ellison’s crew.
Orr understands the recent history of fear regarding Netflix (and Sarandos specifically)’s rejection of theatrical release. Orr says the fear “was valid, but it’s not anymore.” “Repeated public statements by Netflix show that it will support theatrical release, suggesting flexibility in its business model. This suggests that as long as theatrical release provides meaningful income and publicity for its films, it will support it.”
Perhaps more important is the political savvy of the next studio owner. President Trump has guaranteed that this deal will happen or not happen on political grounds. Republican attorneys general have weighed in against Netflix, continuing the partisan trend coming from the US government. “After watching Ted Sarandos testify before Congress, I was reminded that the industry is always under attack from culture warriors like Senator Ted Cruz,” Orr adds. While the Ellison family appears to have knelt before the current administration at every turn, it has paid off.
Throughout its history, Warner Bros. One impossible obstacle after another. The early decades saw threats and lawsuits from Thomas Edison’s patent army, rejection of their dedication to synchronous sound, a takeover offer from Paramount during the Great Depression, anti-Semitism from the banks, persistent anger from moral crusaders angry at the content of films, intimidation from the US Senate after anti-Nazi films were produced, as well as additional threats from the House of Representatives during the Red Scare. The storied Warner studio also had a hostile takeover of its own when it first left the family.
“Warner Bros. could use a well-financed and skilled champion like Sarandos to stave off the thousands of cuts that will continue from those who want to control free speech,” Orr says. Netflix would have provided a “wide moat and high walls as the industry faces challenges from other platforms such as YouTube and the threat from artificial intelligence.”
Grandson of the founder of Warner Bros. Not sure Ellison has the backbone to defend the industry, though it’s worth noting that Paramount allowed it South Park Creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker have the freedom to insult the president without interference from corporate suits or political detractors.
Warner Bros. faced Many technical hurdles over the past over a hundred years. The studio created some of this disruption when it successfully brought sound films to the market in the late 1920s. Once actors’ voices were shown in theaters, the format added new layers of scrutiny. “My maternal grandfather is silent film actor Don [Page] “Alvarado was put out to pasture in part because of his soft, slightly accented voice,” Orr says. “He later found work as an assistant director.”
The industry is evolving and changing, but “the bottom line is that filmmakers want to make movies, and companies want to monetize them to make a profit,” Orr says. Once this is accepted, “the jury remains the audience – which has been true since the first flashing images appeared on a makeshift screen. If the industry is to survive, Hollywood must adapt to the needs of the audience and not cling to its changing market and means of production.”
While the first sale to Warner Bros. 1956 was a story for the ages, but Orr felt that “Jack and his brothers would not be as sentimental about the sale as I would be. The brothers had built an amazing company, with their respected name as the backbone, and they ran it with a social conscience while also making good money.” Today, Orr’s interest “is in keeping the company afloat — not just for the legendary movies and TV shows already in production, but also for the movies and TV shows yet to come.”
Warner Bros. survived. One acquisition after another, from Kinney to AT&T to Discovery. Now that Paramount has won, Orr realizes that Netflix can simply wait for another studio to become available amid the current culture of merger mania. However, “the unknown future of technology and global competitors is the real threat to both Warner Bros. and Netflix.” [and Paramount]. Audiences already benefit from a variety of options, and that’s not going away.
