Variety has published yet another report asserting that Paramount Skydance’s latest all-cash bid for Warner Bros. Discovery is backed by Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds, including Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the Qatar Investment Authority, and Abu Dhabi’s ADIA. The timing is striking—not only because the Warner Bros. bidding war is heating up, but because Paramount already blasted this exact story last month.
Last Month: Paramount Called This Reporting “Categorically Inaccurate”
When the same claims popped up in November, Paramount didn’t mince words.
A verified spokesperson said: “The information Variety published is categorically inaccurate. This is a confidential process, which we respect and, as such, will not be commenting until the process is over.”
Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison sits for an interview with CNBC – YouTube, CNBC Television
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In other words—Paramount insisted Variety got it wrong, shut the lid, and walked away. Clear, simple, forceful.
Which raises the obvious question…
What Changed Between Then and Now?
Variety’s newest reporting claims insiders have now confirmed three Middle Eastern funds participating in some capacity:
- Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF)
- Qatar Investment Authority (QIA)
- Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA)
WBD CEO David Zaslav Speaks at a New York Times event – YouTube, New York Times Events
According to the article, their involvement supposedly falls just below the threshold requiring CFIUS review. That’s a very convenient detail, considering foreign funding in a major U.S. media company normally triggers intense government scrutiny.
So what’s going on?
There are only three realistic explanations:
Paramount’s Financing Truly Evolved Since November.
It’s possible additional financing partners joined for the December bid, strengthening the all-cash offer for the entire WBD company, not just the streaming/studio assets.
Variety’s Initial Report Was Correct, and Paramount Wanted Silence
Corporate M&A games often involve strategic denials, especially during exclusive negotiations. A firm “categorically inaccurate” statement stops conversations cold.
Variety is Overstating the Connection
This is also possible—especially since the outlet doesn’t cite the level of financial involvement, ownership stake, or governance control. “Backed by” can mean anything from a token investment to a major stake.
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Q: “Agatha is the gayest project Marvel has ever done. Agree?”
A: “I would agree with that. Witches are queer inherently. Just because we are outcast and set aside.”
Disney is so lost. pic.twitter.com/Sk4N8jKtLO
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) September 17, 2024
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And let’s be honest: Variety loves a dramatic headline almost as much as Hollywood loves a bailout.
Netflix and Comcast Still Want Only the WB Studios + HBO Max
The report also notes that Netflix submitted a mostly cash bid and Comcast submitted an updated offer of its own.
The Logo for Netflix – Netflix
Both only want the Warner Bros. studios + HBO Max, though — not the linear TV networks
Meanwhile, Paramount wants all of WBD, which explains why it may be courting bigger, more global investors.
This Puts the WBD Board in a Strange Position
Warner Bros. Discovery is expected to choose its next phase soon. This can include exclusive negotiations with a single bidder, asking for additional proposals, or rejecting all offers to pursue its existing plan to split into two companies by 2026.
WBD CEO David Zaslav Speaks at a New York Times event – YouTube, New York Times Events
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With Variety now claiming Gulf-region funding, the optics around the Paramount bid become far more complex.
Whether this strengthens or weakens Paramount’s chances depends entirely on how substantial the Middle Eastern participation actually is.
The Bottom Line
Variety is repeating a claim Paramount has previously and explicitly rejected: that the Ellison bid for Warner Bros. Discovery is backed by the Saudi PIF and other Arab entities. Yet now the same outlet says those same funds are part of the newest bid.
David Ellison talks to Bloomberg – YouTube, Bloomberg Podcasts
What’s undeniable is that the Warner Bros. sale has become the most dramatic media saga in years. And with every new detail (or contradiction), the story becomes even more Hollywood.
Stay tuned — the WBD board is expected to decide its next step by year’s end. And if this keeps escalating, the Paramount-Saudi narrative might end up being the least surprising twist of all.
Do you think Paramount Skydance’s bid for WBD is backed by the Saudi Arabian PIF and other Middle Eastern entities? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
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So now even the Saudis have been bought and paid for and bent the knee to their Israeli masters, all to make sure Saudi Arabia has a prosperous future once the oil runs out. This is why the Saudis have been buying up every part of Western culture that they can get, like building theme parks and holding comedy festivals and getting WWE to hold events there, and why they want to get in bed with the Ellisons.
I want nothing to do with mohammed and want him no where near my Christian structured country.
All of our enemies seem to be occupying the same tent. Even though they’re even more mortally mortal enemies. “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.”
I agree. They’re both two sides of the same coin, and neither is better than the other, especially since they both want to bring an end to Western civilization and replace it with their own world order.
[…] READ: Variety Again Claims Paramount WBD Bid Backed by Saudi, Middle Eastern Funding After Previous Denial […]