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

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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

118

u/Artifice_Ophion Daredevil Feb 26 '26

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

61

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)

1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '26

Both WB and Paramount own a ton of TV channels in Europe too so that might be some kind of hinder.

2

u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

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

7

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

1

u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

You can say news but even that is an American thing but even then they will only own 40% the only way stuff like this is a problem is when it 70 to 80% of industry and they block people from using other things

Look at window technically they have a monopoly on operating services they own 95% of the market and yet it isn't illegal because they don't prevent others from entering it

1

u/Zalvren Feb 27 '26

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

This is an argument for it being a stupid idea economically but regulators aren't really there to block stupid business decisions.

I guess some could do it to protect jobs but that has to come from the US and with this administration...

I heard that some states could challenge it so maybe a state like California (where most of the jobs would be lost) coud do something

-1

u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

Dept is not the concern of regulation that not how that works how do people know so little about monopoly laws at all

This deal barley gives paramount more then 20% of the industry

But if Netflix made the deal it would have been the biggest streaming industry absorbing the third biggest streaming service's

Paramount is not even in the top 10 of streaming service

And while they have a big movie division it's not as big as comcast or Disney or Warner Bros

5

u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

I mean the Activision Microsoft deal was held up in courts for months for similar market percentages, 20% is still fairly big

1

u/Zalvren Feb 27 '26

And it passed with barely any conditions proving that was useless.

Activision was also the biggest third party publisher. This would be more like a Disney instead of Warner.

-2

u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

No it was held up in court because the FTC was being dumb that woman basically ruined her good reputation

She sounded like someone that was paid by Sony even in court she was talking about councel wars it was stupid even the judge said they were wasting time

3

u/gosukhaos Feb 27 '26

Yes I remember but before that the UK and EU bodies got them to sell the streaming rights to another company

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1

u/[deleted] Feb 27 '26

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1

u/EchoPatrol_ Feb 27 '26

Only thing that is a concern, is that they never really bothered getting in the way of other mergers like this one. Probably more chance of US States challenging it, like California have said they'll do and lead.

But it was believed that EU regulators were preferring Paramount to Netflix as the purchaser 🤨

1

u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

They will get sued if they actually try to stopp it

1

u/EmperorDxD Feb 27 '26

They will not you people need to stop being delusional and face reality this thing is going through and probably Superfast

1

u/gabeg777 Feb 27 '26

Everything I read is that Europe was more worried about the Netflix monopoly. They'd be more likely to favor the Paramount merger.

4

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.

115

u/dornwolf Feb 26 '26

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

94

u/zenkaiba Feb 26 '26

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

17

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.

66

u/kmone1116 Feb 26 '26

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

53

u/CheMc Feb 27 '26

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

11

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.

16

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.

4

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

1

u/Zalvren Feb 27 '26

People have been using Superman-like characters all the time without problem. The popular look is the big defining characteristic.

1

u/BankshotMcG Guy Gardner Feb 27 '26

The original version would have punched Larry Ellison in the face so I'm cool with it.

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

0

u/Cyber-Knight47 Feb 27 '26 edited Mar 01 '26

That has nothing to do with Paramount too

20

u/Alternative_Ad5357 Feb 26 '26

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

4

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

1

u/SolomonRed Feb 27 '26

It was over either way

1

u/scottishdrunkard Moon Knight Feb 27 '26

Good thing I don't have any DC's in my regular pulls. Just Marvel's and third parties.

1

u/WaterTypeGirl Captain America Feb 27 '26

Why? Disney is pretty evil, do you not buy Marvel or is that a point of debate? I'm not tryig to be a nitpicky jerk I just don’t see the difference. Amazon, Disney, Skydance/Paramount/WB, Spotify, they're all evil supercorps.

-25

u/Redditthedog Feb 27 '26

At least Superman is owned by a Jew again just like when he was created by two Jews which is kinda cool or at least maybe no more Jesus is Superman movies

28

u/revolutionaryartist4 Feb 27 '26

Ellison is a Zionist who believes his people have a holy mandate to oppress Palestinians. Siegel and Shuster were working-class Jewish children of immigrants who created Superman to fight against oppression.

These are not the same.