Exclusive reporting reveals how Paramount mounted one of Hollywood’s most aggressive lobbying efforts in years to outmaneuver rivals and win favor with both Warner Bros. Discovery leadership and the White House.
Before Netflix stunned Hollywood with its historic $82.7 billion offer to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming and studio assets, Paramount Global had quietly waged an extraordinary, months-long campaign to position itself as Warner’s ideal merger partner — and to court President Donald Trump, whose approval has become an increasingly influential factor in high-stakes corporate consolidations.
Interviews with industry executives, congressional staffers, and entertainment strategists show that Paramount engaged in a dual-track charm offensive: persuasive financial arguments to Warner’s board and a political lobbying effort targeting Trump’s inner circle, betting that federal sentiment could shape the regulatory climate ahead of any megamerger.
The result: a corporate pursuit unlike anything Hollywood has seen in the post-streaming era.
PARAMOUNT’S STRATEGY: “BE THE MOST OBVIOUS PARTNER”
According to multiple sources familiar with the process, Paramount’s pitch focused on:
- Shared legacy studio brands and existing collaborative histories
- Consolidated efficiencies in content libraries, news divisions, and sports rights
- A smoother regulatory path compared to Netflix
- A “Made in America” argument tailored for Trump-era messaging
- The political connections of CEO David Ellison, whose father, Larry Ellison, is a known Trump ally
Paramount believed that positioning itself as a national champion of American entertainment — in contrast to Netflix’s global tech footprint — might resonate strongly with Trump’s philosophy of American industry consolidation.
One studio insider described the effort as “the most aggressive behind-the-scenes push Paramount has ever mounted.”
PLAYING THE WASHINGTON GAME
Paramount executives reportedly held multiple quiet meetings with:
- Senior White House economic advisers
- FCC officials
- DOJ antitrust staff
- Influential Republican operatives sympathetic to traditional media consolidation
A congressional aide described Paramount’s pitch as leaning heavily on political optics:
“They wanted Trump to see them as the patriotic alternative to Netflix — the legacy studio preserving American storytelling.”
While the White House never formally endorsed any bidder, Trump’s advisors were widely believed to be skeptical of Netflix due to concerns over market concentration, global influence, and executive decision-making structures.
Paramount hoped this skepticism would tilt negotiations in their favor and create pressure on Warner Bros. Discovery’s board.
INSIDE HOLLYWOOD: WHAT PARAMOUNT GOT RIGHT — AND WRONG
Paramount’s offer was described as impressive but financially constrained compared to Netflix’s massive liquidity and global revenue base.
One entertainment banker noted:
“Paramount had the emotional argument. Netflix had the money.”
Sources say Warner’s board admired Paramount’s creative pitch but could not overlook the financial gap, nor Paramount’s recent volatility and Wall Street skepticism about its debt load.
Ultimately, Netflix’s bold, premium offer — $72B in equity and $82.7B enterprise value — overwhelmed Paramount’s case.
TRUMP’S ROLE: INDIRECT BUT UNAVOIDABLE
Although the White House did not publicly intervene, Trump’s presence hung over the process:
- Hollywood insiders feared regulatory pushback if a merger displeased the administration
- GOP lawmakers signaled heightened scrutiny over foreign influence in streaming markets
- Conservative donors reportedly communicated preferences to Warner board members
This dynamic forced every bidder — including Netflix — to consider the political temperature in Washington as much as traditional financial calculus.
The merger’s fallout will also reverberate through Trump’s ongoing plans to develop the Trump Presidential Library in Miami, widely expected to feature media wings and partnerships across the entertainment sector.
