Erin Lanahan 
We’re seeing Succession play out in real life among the streaming giants. On December 5th, Netflix announced it was in talks to acquire Warner Bros., including its film and television studios, HBO Max, and HBO, in a nearly $83 billion deal. Shortly after the announcement, Paramount said it’s making a hostile bid to take over Warner Bros. Discovery. While we wait and see who will prevail, we’re wondering how a huge deal like this could impact the future Netflix studio in Monmouth County. Here’s what we know about the possible acquisitions and the impact they could have on New Jersey.
The Bidding War
On December 5th, Netflix announced that it had entered an agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) where Netflix would acquire Warner Bros., including studios HBO Max and HBO. The cash and stock transaction is valued at $27.75 per Warner Bros. Discovery share, with a total enterprise value of nearly $83 billion, per a press release from Netflix. The transaction is expected to be completed in late 2026.
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“Beloved franchises, shows and movies such as The Big Bang Theory, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Wizard of Oz and the DC Universe will join Netflix’s extensive portfolio, including Wednesday, Money Heist, Bridgerton, Adolescence and Extraction, creating an extraordinary entertainment offering for audiences worldwide,” Netflix said in the statement.
Just a few days later, on December 8th, Paramount launched a hostile takeover bid to acquire Warner Bros., meaning Paramount plans to appeal to WBD shareholders in an effort to overcome the wishes of management. Shareholders would be offered $30 per share, totalling $108 billion.
“WBD shareholders deserve an opportunity to consider our superior all-cash offer for their shares in the entire company. Our public offer, which is on the same terms we provided to the Warner Bros. Discovery Board of Directors in private, provides superior value and a more certain and quicker path to completion,” David Ellison, Chairman and CEO of Paramount, said in a statement. “We are taking our offer directly to shareholders to give them the opportunity to act in their own best interests and maximize the value of their shares.”
The offer from Paramount would encompass the HBO Max streaming service and the Warner Bros. film production company. It also would include cable channels such as CNN, which the offer from Netflix excluded.
Whether Netflix or Paramount comes out on top, the prevailing bid will face scrutiny from the Trump Administration. Government officials will have to consider if the newly created company violates anti-monopoly laws. Big mergers like these are reviewed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to make sure the merger doesn’t hurt consumers or competition. They will investigate if the merger would give the companies too much control, if the prices would go up for consumers, or if competitors would be pushed out unfairly. The three possible outcomes would be approval, approval with conditions, or a blocked merger if the government believes it violates antitrust law.
If Warner Bros. walks away from Netflix’s offer, it will have to pay a $2.28 billion breakup fee. If the Netflix deal collapses for other reasons, such as regulatory reasons, Netflix would have to pay Warner Bros. $5.8 billion.
What Does This Mean For New Jersey?
In May of 2025, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos joined other local leaders to break ground on construction for a new Netflix facility in Monmouth County. The site will become a 500,000 square foot production space for Netflix, and include 12 sound stages, production and office buildings, a cafeteria, retail shops, trailer parks for crews, a theater, a hotel, and visitor attractions.
Netflix’s plans to acquire WBD also referenced that they officially closed on the studio space at Fort Monmouth.
“With this acquisition, we are excited to move forward with Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth—a state-of-the-art production facility that will bring new jobs and economic opportunities to New Jersey,” Anne Kelly, Netflix’s Vice President of Studio Management + Services, said in a statement to NJ.com.
The Local Girl learned the final sale price was $55 million, per the Asbury Park Press. Broken down, it was a $47 million purchase price, a $5 million utility contribution, and a $3 million relocation fee.
If the merger goes through with Netflix, it could unlock a ton of content potential for the brand because they’ll own more intellectual property. It could look like a Netflix original spin-off of The Sopranos or a prequel to Game of Thrones. The New Jersey studio will be a key part of expanded production capacity, focusing on large-scale projects.
Locals have seen New Jersey quickly become the new Hollywood in recent times. Hoboken, Jersey City, Montclair, Asbury Park, and other Jersey locations have become the backdrop for movies and shows like Happy Gilmore 2, Deliver Me from Nowhere, and The Four Seasons.
It’s no coincidence that so many movies and shows are flocking to the Garden State. In 2018, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy enacted the Film + Digital Media Tax Credit, a bill that “provides a transferable credit against the corporation business tax and the gross income tax for qualified expenses incurred for the production of certain film and digital media content in New Jersey.” The goal is to incentivize production companies to film and create digital media content right here in Jersey, bringing jobs and economic development. The project, funded through 2039, provides a tax credit of up to 35 percent of qualified film production expenses. It also includes a Diversity Tax Credit of up to four percent for productions that employ the services of women or people of color.
Until the deal goes through, the direct impact of the $83 billion merger is up in the air.
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