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Saudi Arabia’s PIF, Qatar’s QIA, Abu Dhabi’s L’imad Holding — and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners — have quietly stepped into the middle of the Paramount vs. Netflix takeover race, backing a $108 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, new filings show.
And they’re doing it in a way built to raise eyebrows:
These global investors are taking non-voting stakes, with no board rights. Translation — billions in play, zero public power, a structure designed to avoid national-security review while still shaping the deal from the shadows.
Paramount, through Skydance CEO David Ellison, went straight to WBD shareholders after Netflix’s offer was accepted — a rare move that instantly changed the storyline. Ellison has already hinted the $30-per-share bid might go higher, which could pull the studios into a new era of mega-consolidation.
Netflix is staying fully U.S.-financed, setting up a surreal dynamic:
Silicon Valley money vs. sovereign wealth power, both competing for the same Hollywood crown.
If the screenwriters needed a new plot twist — they just got one.
