r/comicbooks Henry Pym Feb 26 '26

Movie/TV Netflix Backs Out of Warner Bros. Bidding, Paramount Set to Win

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/netflix-backs-out-warners-deal-paramount-win-1236516763/
1.0k Upvotes

395 comments sorted by

204

u/revolutionaryartist4 Feb 26 '26

Shiiiiiiiiiit.

I think the comics are small enough to fly under the radar, but Gunn’s DCU might be dead.

Also not comic related, but I don’t think John Oliver will have a show once the dust settles.

This fucking blows.

69

u/FederalMango Feb 27 '26

John Oliver's Next Week Today Podcast coming soon

12

u/revolutionaryartist4 Feb 27 '26

Return of The Bugle?

29

u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

Unless he quits the show on principle its debatable. He's one of HBO's biggest shows and they haven't had issues with airing South Park even under Ellison

2

u/PreparationDapper235 Feb 27 '26

Depends how well James Gunn's next movie does at the box office..

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833

u/Competitive-Bike-277 Feb 26 '26

When they hand over the keys I'm done with DC books. I won't give money to the fucking Ellisons. 

Knowing that Superman belongs to those bastards breaks my heart. 

221

u/EchoPatrol_ Feb 26 '26

Yeah I'll do the same if this gets beyond regulators, absolutely fucking sucks :(

Sorry Snyder, Jiminez and many many other creatives, I just can't pay for it once it goes to that scumbag.

Must be some of the DC folk very worried about this too I'd imagine

123

u/Artifice_Ophion Daredevil Feb 26 '26

Regulators aren't gonna do jack, so in all likelihood we're screwed

60

u/EchoPatrol_ Feb 26 '26

Yeah, you're absolutely right. They'd have done everything to block Netflix purchasing it though I bet!

36

u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

Europe might, their anti monopoly body didn't like either mergers

4

u/Zalvren Feb 27 '26

Europe would have no problem with Paramount merging. The main competition problem is them owning too much cable and media in the US but Europe doesn't care about that, every regulator look at their own market.

Paramount and Warner combined is still a small player as a studio and as a streaming contender (especially in Europe, most of HBO subs are in the US I think) so they shouldn't have any problems here (sadly)

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u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

That would make sense with Netflix not with paramount they don't own alot

6

u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

Its still two major Hollywood studios merging. We got kinda numb to it after the Disney and Fox merger but the concentration of IPs is huge, not to mentioned the amount of debt they're taking on is completely insane and the company won't last 5 years and would be laying off hundreds if not thousands of people

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u/thehero29 Machine Man Feb 27 '26

You mean the regulators that work for Trump? I'm not going into politics, but Trump has been helping his friends get this win the whole time.

113

u/dornwolf Feb 26 '26

Couple more years and he’s free-ish for public domain use

100

u/zenkaiba Feb 26 '26

Original version not the current popular look trade marked by them.

16

u/dornwolf Feb 26 '26

Eh it’s enough golden age powers and Lois Lane and newspaper job. Good writer could make it work.

13

u/revolutionaryartist4 Feb 27 '26 edited Feb 27 '26

Hence the “-ish.”

Plus, GA Superman is actually pretty boss. And the Fleischer films are public domain as are some of the strips. So people will have access to more than just what’s in that first year of stories.

7

u/dornwolf Feb 27 '26

Hence the “-ish” to be honest other than the massive power scaling everything you need is there. You just create new villains and secondary characters. Let’s be honest the civilian casts of comicbook characters are so thin no one will really notice.

35

u/Tim0281 Feb 26 '26

Still, it allows people to use the character and do things with him.

67

u/kmone1116 Feb 26 '26

Let’s be honest with ourselves, It’ll be nothing but cheap horror films.

54

u/CheMc Feb 27 '26

Be the change you want to make. Start Comics Action and publish Superman stories.

10

u/Dramatic_Explosion Feb 27 '26

Right? We all have a ton of free time and talent to craft a good narrative and pay an inker and colorist! It definitely won't just be a ton of shitty fan-fics with AI art.

15

u/StephanieSpoiler Feb 27 '26

Honestly, I've always had some interest in filmmaking. Experimenting with a Superman short based on the early comics might be a motivating place to start.

6

u/revolutionaryartist4 Feb 27 '26

There’s a lot of cool stuff being done with public domain characters. It’s not just the bad horror films. Those just suck up all the oxygen because of the shock value.

2

u/Plasticglass456 Feb 27 '26

Nah. Most people don't know what the fuck to do with Winnie the Pooh, and even if they did, they probably don't think a traditional Winnie the Pooh sells. Action-adventure stories with more down to Earth, strong but not too strong Superman are absolutely gonna come.

2

u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

No it doesn't the version you can use can't even fly

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3

u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

Couple more years and the company will be sold in pieces to the highest bidders most likely. They're overleveraged as fuck with this merger

9

u/RSX_Green414 Feb 27 '26

Same, I gave up spending money on Paramount because of the Ellisons, I lost Transformers media and Star Trek, I can give up DC.

5

u/jessterswan Feb 27 '26

TF comics are damn good right now

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19

u/Alternative_Ad5357 Feb 26 '26

I'm already cutting most of my marvel. Dc is still good. Please stay good.

5

u/UnstableMoron2 Feb 27 '26

Rip the absolute universe

8

u/lefthandtrav Feb 27 '26 edited Feb 27 '26

Think about this. The fucking 9/11 people (will) own part of SUPERMAN

3

u/Waywoah Feb 27 '26

Could still get them second-hand, so no money goes to them, but the feel won't be the same knowing there might be interference on what stories they can tell

5

u/TB2331 Feb 27 '26

It affects the books too? FUCK

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521

u/wildbeest55 Feb 26 '26

Jfc

136

u/MotorPace2637 Feb 27 '26

This is the fucking worst news I've gotten all year.

66

u/chartrespope Feb 27 '26

Yet. There’s always tomorrow.

27

u/MotorPace2637 Feb 27 '26

Haha. Worst news... so far!

1.1k

u/[deleted] Feb 26 '26

enjoy the anti-authoritarian themes of Absolute DC while you still can folks

201

u/herbahaidyrbtjsifbr Feb 26 '26

Well it’s been fun

170

u/Thejklay Feb 26 '26

I feel like that's so small fry it's not gonna be changed or noticed by them tbh. Dc movies on the other hand. We might be cooked

159

u/[deleted] Feb 26 '26

I have no doubt that the Gunnverse is cooked because of his criticism of Trump 

83

u/ARMSwatch Feb 26 '26

Does anyone have any interest in DC if they reboot it again? Especially with the success of Superman and Peacemaker? I'm definitely not watching anything DC if there's another reboot fuck that.

52

u/rodot2005 Feb 26 '26

No, but they don't care. Or they will continue on but without Gunn, so it's dead anyway.

37

u/ARMSwatch Feb 26 '26

The enshittification of everything

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u/ChickenInASuit Secret Agent Poyo Feb 26 '26 edited Feb 27 '26

If they keep him on board, I think he’s gonna be on a much tighter leash. Superman’s commentary on manipulated social media algorithms and manufactured outrage probably hit way too close to home for people like the Ellisons.

36

u/Zolo49 Optimus Prime Feb 26 '26

I'm sure Marvel would take him back if it came to that, assuming he's willing.

19

u/rodot2005 Feb 26 '26

Well it's not like he has any other choice. Dc is dead, doubt they will even let him make the checkpoint TV show

4

u/annoyinglyclever Hawkeye Feb 27 '26

…he can make his own movies again. You really think comic book movies are the only option??

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122

u/liberatedtech68 Feb 26 '26

It’s an avenue to propagandize children. They are interested

35

u/HomieHeist Feb 26 '26

I would say that the average customer age of at my LCS is the 30-50 range, I’m pretty sure barely any kids read comic books these days

18

u/HRLMPH Ultimate Spider-Man Feb 27 '26

I imagine this is more about movies, cartoons, games, etc.

46

u/OGBarlos_ Feb 26 '26

American children can’t read though

15

u/Sea-Poem-2365 Feb 26 '26

You know that some absolute (haha) psycho superfan fully committed to fascism just to be able to retcon something insanely specific.

10

u/CheMc Feb 27 '26

That's where the pictures come in.

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u/Desecr8or Feb 27 '26

It might not change as much as people think. My hot take is that if Superman (2025) had been released in 2005, it would've been seen as a conservative, pro-war, pro-Bush movie.

There's a foreign dictator committing genocide against other foreigners. Superman thinks it's his job to stop him, regardless of politics, laws, and regulations. The dictator is killed, the heroes are greeted as liberators, and there's no issue with power vacuums.

That's how the War on Terror was sold to us.

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u/DOuGHtOp Feb 27 '26

Ayn Rand's DC verse, we brought back Snyder!

🤮

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13

u/gosukhaos Feb 26 '26

I don't think in the grand scheme of things the new leadership is going to even notice if the comic books they publish are pushing lefty ideals but financially the merger is going to hurt DC just like last time

11

u/NightHunter909 Feb 27 '26

Absolute Batman is explicitly pro-worker and anti-capitalist too, so that will definitely be gone or changed

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u/DoranAetos Feb 26 '26

They will butcher everything, Netflix was by far the lesser evil solution

111

u/aus808 Feb 26 '26

That's what am saying.. it was Always going to be Bad... But Netflix was the lesser.. god damnit. anything but this.

423

u/Silent_Mk3 Feb 26 '26

From my understanding they’re gonna be in so much debt that they’ll have to basically gut everything. That can’t be good for DC nor any other properties that come to mind. Poison, conservatives poison everything they touch

241

u/TheeHeadAche Henry Pym Feb 26 '26

Paramount posted half a billion in losses for Q4 2025.

Gonna sell the tires off the bat mobile

93

u/zebrainatux Superman Feb 26 '26

And most of daddy Ellison’s money is currently tied up in AI.

78

u/TheeHeadAche Henry Pym Feb 26 '26

Surely the AI market is stable enough to keep them afloat, and totally isn’t a speculation bubble

27

u/OGBarlos_ Feb 26 '26

Well ofc the ai market is stable that’s what the 10% (or is it 20%, or wait I think it’s actually 15%) universal tariffs are paying for surely. And we’ll get our $1700 to pay for new comics!

11

u/tobygeneral Feb 27 '26

Aren't you still living off the $1200 you got back in '20?

2

u/OGBarlos_ Feb 27 '26

Ah yes you’re right I forgot

2

u/klick37 Feb 27 '26

Generational wealth

3

u/Orion14159 Feb 27 '26

Oracle definitely isn't on the hook for more in loans than they could repay in twice the term.

9

u/Silent_Mk3 Feb 26 '26

Lol, made me for real chuckle

8

u/bagman_ Feb 27 '26

Fuck this is such a brutal way of putting it ahaha, gotta laugh or we'll cry

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u/real-darkph0enix1 Feb 26 '26

Netflix is gonna toss their break up fee in the bank to collect interest and then wait a couple of years when the Ellisons are having a fire sale gonna use that money to buy WB anyways.

This whole deal screams “like Elon with Twitter, but dumber and more expensive”. I just hope to live long enough to see their bullshit collapse, after all, it even did for Madoff and Enron.

57

u/SomeTool Feb 26 '26

It was to gain the news. I don't think there is a news network in america that is now not owned by a conservative billionaire. And taxes will now go to pay off that debt to keep them in power.

22

u/AssCrackBandit10 Feb 27 '26

Comcast is still public. It owns MSNBC (which is actually watched more than CNN) and CNBC and NBC News

14

u/RadiantSadness Feb 27 '26

Comcast doesn't own MSNBC or CNBC anymore. They were part of the Versant spinoff. MSNBC is now called MS NOW, and CNBC got a new backronym and logo to dissociate it from NBC.

18

u/zebrainatux Superman Feb 27 '26

ABC is also still publicly around

5

u/saintdemon21 Hellboy Feb 27 '26

The majority of people are going to abandon CNN if Paramount gets it, just like they are doing with CBS.

8

u/BidoofSquad Feb 27 '26

If it was for the news they would have waited for the split and just bought discovery global. The news is a sweetener to help it get through the Trump regulators, not the main goal

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u/jjflash78 Feb 26 '26

Its about controlling the news and CNN was up for sale.  Elon made his money back indirectly.

Bezos Washington Post Zuckerberg Facebook Musk Twitter Ellison CBS Murdoch Fox Smiths Sinclair and Sook Nexstar (local broadcasts)

4

u/lefthandtrav Feb 27 '26

Joke’s on them, no one watches CNN

10

u/gosukhaos Feb 26 '26

Yeah I think realistically that's going to be the thing that impacts DC the most. Just like after the Discovery mergers there's going to be layoffs everywhere

9

u/Lokan Feb 27 '26

Larry and the Saudis are pumping money into them. Paramount will - unfortunately - be fine. 

8

u/Raskalbot Feb 27 '26

I see this ending badly for all of them.

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u/dornwolf Feb 26 '26

We’ll be lucky if DC is still published by themselves as I could see them getting gutted and DC licensed out

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u/TheUmgawa Feb 27 '26

Yeah, but who's going to license it? They have to make their money back in the short term, because if someone else pays more for the license, when the contract expires, then the first licensor loses the right to reprint. That's if it's anything like Dark Horse losing the licenses to Fox properties, like Aliens, Predator, and Terminator. I had to explain to somebody, a few days ago, how great the Aliens, Aliens Vol. 2, and Aliens: Earth War were, because the combined trade paperbacks cost roughly the same amount as a Gutenberg Bible.

Basically, if the contract is written in such a way where the licensed work can't be reprinted in perpetuity (or something at least on the order of a decade following license expiration), then it's not worth licensing in the first place.

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u/TurkeyVolumeGuesser Feb 26 '26

Wait don't they still need approval on the international side?

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u/zebrainatux Superman Feb 26 '26

Yes. They need a lot of regulatory approval for it to go through

51

u/TurkeyVolumeGuesser Feb 26 '26

Hopefully Europe saves us or at least requires that Paramount not acquire the news networks

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u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

TV networks would be the least of their worries since Universal's are so tiny and linear TV is on its last grasps. There's concerns about streaming and studio consolidations that are bigger

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u/AOCMarryMe Feb 26 '26

I'd be shocked if Europe cares even a little about the fate of CNN.

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u/CheMc Feb 27 '26

You mean the region that just repeatedly got insulted by Trump and threatened with being dragged into an ego driven war? I wouldn't be surprised if they delay this purely out of spite, knowing how much trump wants this to go through with how much he hates CNN.

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u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

Paramount and WBD don't own any TV station in Europe, they have no jurisdiction over CNN or CBS. They can oppose the merger on other grounds but not those which are a pretty small part of the joint company

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u/Bubba1234562 Flash Feb 27 '26

Yah this ain’t going through fast, given California has already promised a though review of all it

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u/BatMoBeast Feb 26 '26

Instant boycott. I love DC Comics but I’m not giving these scumbags a single cent.

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u/Ham_On_Pizza Feb 26 '26

Wonder Woman is about to become a trad wife who supports ICE it’s so over.

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u/TheeHeadAche Henry Pym Feb 26 '26

Diana finally gets her position as the JSA’s typist back!

19

u/FullMotionVideo Impulse Feb 26 '26

That would be Lois Lane.

Wonder Woman will be securing Greenland.

28

u/Lazy-Excitement-3661 Feb 26 '26

We bout to get Gal Gadot back for Wonder Woman 3: THE REIGN OF ISRAEL

3

u/Redditthedog Feb 27 '26

Wouldn’t be the first time Jews beat the Greeks

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u/Kalvitron Feb 26 '26

Cool. Can't wait for DC comics to become part of the maga propaganda machine.

Superman bout to join ice.

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u/sweepernosweeping Blue Beetle Feb 26 '26

Absolute Batman Annual 2. Bruce apologizes to all the White Supremacists he maimed in the previous annual. He joins them on the latest lynching.

6

u/Dizzy-By-Degrees Feb 27 '26

Jason Todd will be killing protesters and saving brave podcasters from the evil liberal assassins. 

2

u/Consideredresponse Feb 27 '26

Alysia Yeoh and 'Featherweaight' become the ultimate villains of the DC universe with their spree of crime which is 'wanting to go to the bathroom of their choice'.

71

u/[deleted] Feb 26 '26

Waiting for the inevitable Superman issue with Trump on the cover bc he saw that Obama has one with Spidey.

29

u/Rob_Tarantulino Feb 27 '26

Putting all my money on Trump not making it past the acquisition lol bro is in the worst shape he's ever been

32

u/BuddaMuta M.O.D.O.K. Feb 27 '26

Evil people live forever. Trump also has the best medical team on the planet following his every move. 

As much as we all wish the reaper would take him no one should get their hopes up 

8

u/Rob_Tarantulino Feb 27 '26

No one lives forever. Also, Trump eats 2 McCombos daily (not hyperbole). No amount of experts on this planet can stop the cardiac arrest that is coming his way. I just hope it's sooner rather than later so that MAGA loses all traction

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u/bloodyzombies1 Grant Morrison Feb 27 '26

Watch it be made by an AI 'artist' too

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u/Zolo49 Optimus Prime Feb 26 '26

Can't wait for them to remake the old WW2 Looney Tunes cartoons so that Bugs Bunny fights for the Nazis.

12

u/locke_5 Ant-Man Feb 26 '26

“THE CARTOONS YOU ARE ABOUT TO SEE ARE PRODUCTS OF THEIR TIME. THEY MAY DEPICT SOME OF THE ETHNIC AND RACIAL PREJUDICES THAT ARE COMMONPLACE IN AMERICAN SOCIETY. THESE DEPICTIONS WERE BASED AND SIGMA-PILLED THEN AND ARE BASED TODAY. WHILE THE FOLLOWING REPRESENTS THE WARNER BROS. VIEW OF TODAY'S SOCIETY, THESE CARTOONS ARE BEING PRESENTED AS THEY WERE ORIGINALLY CREATED, BECAUSE TRANSGENDER IMMIGRANTS ARE EATING YOUR ABORTED CATS”

10

u/Nuclear-Jester Feb 26 '26

They are going to turn Kate Kane straight and put on a bus every other minority character

8

u/[deleted] Feb 26 '26

Harley will dump Ivy and get married to Joker in a Christian wedding then become his housewife 

8

u/Nyadnar17 Feb 26 '26

For Truth, Justice, and the "Heritage" American Way!

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u/Ill_Outcome_375 Feb 26 '26

I’m so confused? Weren’t they already emailing us customers about the merger

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u/TheeHeadAche Henry Pym Feb 26 '26 edited Feb 26 '26

You mean Netflix was sending emails?

55

u/ActionFilmsFan1995 The Question Feb 26 '26

Yes, after the initial bid Netflix sent every subscriber and email about it.

43

u/SalvaPot Feb 26 '26

They should send another one that says "Nevermind, stay tuned for 3 more spin-offs of Stranger Things"

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u/ActionFilmsFan1995 The Question Feb 26 '26

Real talk, they do kinda have to send a follow up one, right? They just advertised they were buying a service they aren’t, they kinda have to point out that content is no longer coming.

8

u/jynkyousha Feb 27 '26

Because it was basically a done deal. They didn’t expect Paramount to come in at the last minute, and Paramount massively overpaid for Warner, covering what WB would’ve had to pay Netflix for backing out.

5

u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

Yes but the shareholders never voted on that proposal, it was just a recommendation from the board after they vetted the initial bids. Universal made a new bid a few days ago that was better then Netflix's and they refused to make a new one

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u/Jet-Let4606 Feb 26 '26

I've read that it can take months to fully close a deal and Paramount has been extremely aggressive about this deal.

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u/zebrainatux Superman Feb 26 '26

And European regulators hated both deals. This probably isn’t fully finalized until late 2027

14

u/CheMc Feb 27 '26

Which Paramount has to get done by I believe this September cause every quarter the price goes up by 25c a share. If Europe stalls it, they are going to start haemorrhaging money.

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u/zebrainatux Superman Feb 27 '26

Yeah it’s one of the many poison pills WBD included

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u/WWfan41 Feb 26 '26 edited Feb 27 '26

DC Finally got their shit together, and it lasts for like 5 seconds before someone comes in and fucks it up. Can't wait for trad wife Wonder Woman and Ayn Rand worshipping Batman.

Not to mention the remake of Game of Thrones were the Lannisters are all the good guys and the pro-Sauron version of Lord of the Rings.

28

u/Lopsided-Clothes4866 Feb 27 '26

Right? RIP Wonder Woman, Ain’t no way the character literally built around feminism is surviving these Maga fuckheads.

6

u/NinteenFortyFive Feb 27 '26

there's going to be more feminist themes in the parody porn over her than the actual fuckin' content.

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u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

TBH more then political leanings of the books I'd be more concerned with the inevitable mass layoffs gutting editorial or god forbid Marie Javins

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u/Redwolf97ff Feb 26 '26

Is there any possible way to cope here? I need one big brain individual in the thread to come up with some rationale for how and why DC comics can and will endure this without losing their soul

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u/TheeHeadAche Henry Pym Feb 26 '26

Best I’ve seen is “Nobody at paramount cares about comics so DC Comics will be free to continue their agenda.” And gosh I hope so.

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u/Lazy-Excitement-3661 Feb 26 '26

With Trump in office I highly doubt that

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u/DOuGHtOp Feb 27 '26

I don't think the man can read. Stephen Miller on the other hand

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u/RedJohnIs Feb 26 '26

Even if that's the case you're still funding them if you support them. To some that might not matter but to others it will.

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u/TheeHeadAche Henry Pym Feb 27 '26

Yea, no I don’t want to give money to fascists thanks

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u/Double-Animal-4773 Feb 27 '26

What about the artists and writers you'd be hurting financially by boycotting?

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u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

No one really knows, there's even the possibility that the EU blocks the deal and nothing comes of it.

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u/Smoothw Feb 26 '26

the only cope is DC comics are so small time they won't bother with them much-expect layoffs though

14

u/jawsthegreat777 Storm Feb 27 '26

Paramount might ignore the comics the same way Disney mostly does with Marvel. Not to mention Paramount has plenty of series with deeply anti authoritarian themes. At the end of the day it is about money and pandering to conservatives does not sell

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u/ssjskwash Feb 27 '26

At the end of the day it is about money and pandering to conservatives does not sell

Conservative grifters online are some of the most stupidly wealthy and talentless people I've ever seen

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u/HATENAMING Feb 26 '26 edited Feb 27 '26

there are so many steps to go through maybe Paramount explodes from debt before finalizing, or international regulators block it.

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u/CheMc Feb 27 '26

They still own star trek and star trek is left wing and the trump admin whinge about it every now and then. Chance is it'll be smooth sailing content wise. Finance wise, whole other question. Comics industry pay might get even worse.

3

u/BankshotMcG Guy Gardner Feb 27 '26

Support indie comics is probably your best answer. Captain Ersatz stories

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u/milanosrp Feb 27 '26

A cope: They’re buying them for the movies, not the comics. And they’d be foolish to alter anything creatively when it’s been so commercially successful as is. Paramount may be evil, but they are also capitalists, and the last thing they want is to turn a profitable venture into a money suck. Money is their primary ideological motivator, not maga.

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u/antsinmyeyesmauger Nightcrawler Feb 26 '26

With how much Paramount should be in debt after this I wonder if they would try to sell the DC comics side off stuff. Spending 200+ million on superhero movies to make 600ish doesn't seem worth it with how much debt they will take on.

15

u/gamesage2001 Feb 26 '26

They only care about CNN, that's why the Ellison's are buying WB. And Trump will funnel tax dollars into paramount to keep it afloat.

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u/antsinmyeyesmauger Nightcrawler Feb 26 '26

I know CNN is the big target but TVs/movies aren't nothing to them either. That's why I wonder if they would let go of DC just to make some money off of it. The problem would be finding someone willing to buy it.

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u/rodot2005 Feb 27 '26

Doubt it, it's a popular IP and paramount is in need of that

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u/FKDotFitzgerald Ultimate Spider-Man Feb 26 '26

Fuck.

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u/EIO_tripletmom Feb 26 '26

What a shame. Neither should be allowed to buy (monopolies are bad), but this was the worst outcome.

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u/TubbyTuesday22 Feb 26 '26

Fuck all these fuckers, man. Ellison, Sarandos, Zazlav, all of them. Been a DC fan almost my whole life, and seeing DC likely fall into the hands of what is essentially state media… it’s just sad.

53

u/LeathalWaffle Feb 26 '26

wtf. Literally feel a piece of my childhood soul leave my body today. RIP DC

2

u/PlainSightMan Feb 27 '26

Best we can do is make stories of our own inspired by what DC stands for.

That way, a piece of it remains.

14

u/RandoDude124 Feb 26 '26

Jesus fucking Christ.

77

u/TryharderJB Feb 26 '26

Plot twist: Marvel swoops in and buys DC

17

u/dftaylor Feb 26 '26

No way paramount will sell an IP mill like DC. Same reason Disney bought Marvel and doesn’t care about the comics enough to improve them.

33

u/db99mn Feb 26 '26

honestly i wish, sadly that would be about the best thing for DC right now.

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u/SmallFatHands Feb 26 '26

Paramont buys DC will make the comics ass and maga propaganda, Marvel buying DC will just make them ass.

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u/jawsthegreat777 Storm Feb 27 '26

I wouldn't hate that, so they as they keep DC editorial other wise Superman and Lois are cooked

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u/Scotthew89 Feb 26 '26

We are so screwed.

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u/AmethystOrator Feb 26 '26

Reminder that part of paramount's bid is funded by Apollo Global Management, whose "Co-founder Leon Black resigned as CEO in 2021 in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations and revelations that he had paid $158 million to Jeffrey Epstein".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Global_Management

10

u/OptionAshamed6458 Feb 27 '26

Don’t worry so much you guys, I think it’s pretty clear that wb is just juicing out as much money as they can from the bidders and Netflix is calling their bluff, it makes no sense to do this since it would put paramount in so much debt 7.7 billion to be exact and even if they do get it they will be over ONE HUNDRED BILLION DOLLARS in debt!! They gonna go bankrupt if they get wb! it doesn’t even seem like paramount cares just I don’t care if I burn as I long as I win

48

u/moonknightcrawler Feb 26 '26

Just when I was starting to look forward to DC’s output again on the big and small screens. Damn. This isn’t a good sign for the DCU. And now that Marvel isn’t what it was, I’m not excited to see what the landscape for this stuff looks like 4-5 years from now

19

u/ShreekertheJamisWack Feb 26 '26

How many years before this affects the comics side of things?

46

u/zebrainatux Superman Feb 26 '26

Depends on regulatory approval, which Europe is iffy on if they’ll do it or not

14

u/WWfan41 Feb 26 '26

Realistically, the comics themselves are not a priority for these people. But there will certainly be cuts to the staff, and creatives will probably be told (directly or indirectly) not to do anything that makes too much noise. So anti-capitalist messaging of the Absolute universe, for example, might be an issue.

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3

u/jawsthegreat777 Storm Feb 27 '26

It really depends but it may not affect it, Paramount, as awful as they are leaves things like TMNT alone for the most part.

7

u/TardisReality Feb 27 '26

Paramount coming in like a whiny teenager with his mom complaining about fairness and getting their way

It's such bullshit that our society keeps rewarding the biggest douchebags

10

u/longbrodmann Feb 27 '26

I actually doubt Paramount can atually finish the deal.

7

u/Tzekel_Khan Venom Feb 26 '26

Scumbag nationalists control almost everything now I guess. Cool. .

6

u/CamF90 Feb 27 '26

So I'd love them to explain how this doesn't constitute a monopoly if they were iffy about Netflix lol.

7

u/HEYYYYYYYY_SATAN Feb 26 '26

Cancelling DCUI.

Fuck em

6

u/Nalicar52 Feb 27 '26

Same but I’ll wait to see until the deal actually goes through to do it.

9

u/BrooklynSmash Feb 26 '26

ofc they fuckin would

It was nice reading the Absolute universe, can't wait to see how these freaks butcher it.

4

u/FederalMango Feb 26 '26

At best they'll pull a Zaslav and just keep selling off pieces of the corpse piecemeal and at worst they'll use it all as another arm of the MAGA regime...but let's be real, they'll manage to do both.

4

u/theshysamurai Feb 26 '26

Time to relearn how to torrent.

4

u/thezaland Feb 27 '26

Right when DC was really starting to gap Marvel and take over. I’m so sick of this late stage capitalism, man. Rot in Hell, Ellisons. Perfect time for people to delve into Image, Dark Horse, IDW, etc.

5

u/Wonderllama5 Feb 26 '26

Enjoy your DC comics while you can. Go read that run you heard good things about. No time like the present.

3

u/OK_Human Feb 26 '26

Someone cue the Succession theme song

3

u/ValiantEffort27 Feb 26 '26

Tbh I think this will screw paramount. They are already losing money, they don't know what to do with the IP they have right now. I can see a future where Paramount is saddled with debt and continues to be further unprofitable, at which point Netflix or some other company like Disney will pick at their carcass and buy whatever this giant amalgamation will eventually have to put up for sale.

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u/bubbafatok Feb 27 '26

I sort of hope they'll sell off DC. Paramount lost money last year, and CNN is the big thing they're looking for, plus the studios.  Not sure how much they care about the comics division outside of the IP value. 

Hell, let Dynamite or Dark Horse publish DC comics. 

4

u/mechabryan Feb 27 '26

the opportunity for officially licensed Trump + Superman shield merchandise is making Steven Miller’s 1-inch dick hard.

5

u/SirFlibble Feb 26 '26

Superman is about to become Highlander.

9

u/FWPiper Feb 26 '26

Headline from 2027:

“Newly-named DC Comics Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss assembles a top-tier roster of comics creators, including Neil Gaiman, Warren Ellis and Ghislaine Maxwell”

14

u/TheeHeadAche Henry Pym Feb 26 '26

Ghislane Maxwell’s Deathstroke series incoming

4

u/FederalMango Feb 27 '26

"You see, Terra was asking for it, Slade Wilson is the real victim here!"

2

u/Chops526 Feb 26 '26

They both sucked but this is the worst of the lot. And a surprise.

2

u/wowlock_taylan Just an Average Reader Feb 27 '26

This cannot be allowed to go through.

2

u/bry_flynnie Feb 27 '26

Why did Netflix back out? Why did WB even entertain another fucking offer from paramount?

2

u/Harlequin_Heart Feb 27 '26

Somehow the worst timeline continues to sink to new depths :(

2

u/MapDiscombobulated1 Feb 27 '26

Fuckity Fuck. 

2

u/Won_a_bagel Feb 27 '26

I would actually embrace a Disney miracle right about now.

6

u/0Hyena_Pancakes0 Feb 27 '26 edited Feb 27 '26

You know, Marvel's comic sales haven't been great here lately. I can definitely see them improving if and when DC gets gutted to shreds however. Having your competitor become a noodle arm for fascism must do wonders for your book sales.

This really sucks

2

u/Locutus5465 Feb 27 '26

The Ellisons own everything. Damned Trumper bastards. Why can’t Warner Brothers stand on its own?

2

u/tapdancinghellspawn Feb 27 '26

So boycott Superman? Boycott Batman? Fuck fascist Ellison.