Gulf sovereign wealth funds from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi — joined by Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners — have quietly stepped into the centre of the Paramount vs. Netflix takeover race, backing a $108 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, according to new filings.
Gulf Sovereign Wealth Funds Enter the Hollywood Race
Saudi Arabia's PIF, Qatar's QIA, and Abu Dhabi's L'imad Holding are among four outside financing partners backing Paramount Skydance's all-cash tender offer of $30 per share for Warner Bros. Discovery — bringing the enterprise value to $108.4 billion. Middle Eastern sovereign funds alone account for roughly $24 billion of that commitment.
And they're doing it in a way built to raise eyebrows. These global investors are taking non-voting stakes, with no board seats. Billions in play, zero public power — a structure deliberately designed to avoid national-security review while still shaping the deal from behind the scenes.
Skydance's David Ellison Goes Hostile
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. Netflix had announced an $83 billion deal on December 5, offering $27.75 per share in a cash-and-stock transaction for Warner's studios and HBO Max businesses.
Ellison has already signalled the $30-per-share bid might go higher, which could pull the studios into a new era of mega-consolidation. Warner Bros. Discovery's board, however, unanimously rejected the Paramount offer, calling it insufficient compared to the Netflix deal.
Silicon Valley vs. Sovereign Wealth
Netflix is staying fully U.S.-financed, setting up a surreal dynamic at the heart of Hollywood's biggest-ever consolidation play: Silicon Valley money vs. sovereign wealth power, both competing for the same crown.
For Gulf states building their own entertainment industries — from Saudi Arabia's Red Sea film push to Abu Dhabi's studio ambitions — a stake in the Warner Bros. catalogue and HBO Max would be a generational asset, even without a vote.
If the screenwriters needed a new plot twist — they just got one.
