A few days ago, the news came that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) is reportedly exploring a partnership with Comcast (Universal Pictures) to bid for Warner Bros. Discovery.
Puck News seemingly broke the story, though the rumour had been swirling on social media (eg. DigitaleAnimeEN) for a few days before that and allegedly suggested a major all-cash formal offer was being made.
Comcast CEO Brian Roberts reportedly travelled to Saudi Arabia recently, where he met with PIF officials and toured the upcoming ‘entertainment megacity’ Qiddiya, which is expected to house a Universal-branded theme park.
A Saudi-backed acquisition by Comcast would make the currently active bidding field even more intense, with Paramount Global/Skydance remaining a leading contender while streaming giant Netflix is still hovering.
The prospect of Netflix buying Warner Bros. Discovery has been described as a “worst case scenario” according to one regional theatre executive via The Wrap, with concern being that under Netflix, big theatrical properties like DC and horror franchises like “The Conjuring” could become streaming-first IP.
Saudi Arabia’s PIF certainly has been making significant pushes into global entertainment lately; the fund was part of the consortium that acquired EA in September for $55 billion.
It took a few days, but the news suddenly exploded again on social media today in an unexpected way and within a very specific fandom – the SnyderBros – with the hope that such an acquisition could somehow lead to the return of Zack Snyder’s DCEU despite zero evidence indicating such a possibility.
Preliminary non-binding bids for Warner Bros. Discovery are due by this coming Thursday November 20th.
