What does Paramount beating Netflix to buy Warner Bros Discovery mean for talent agents?
Alex is the Managing Director of major UK talent agency InterTalent. He represents his clients alongside overseeing the agency's creative strategy, day-to-day operations & acquisitions.
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Netflix’s Warner Bros Discovery deal is dead. Paramount has stepped in and pulled off one of the biggest deals that Hollywood has ever seen.
Shocked? Yes. Surprised? No
As it dragged on and on, and as politics and positioning started to take over, it seemed like it could actually happen. When I was over in LA a month ago, the feedback I was getting from people on the ground was that it wasn’t over yet… and they were spot on.
Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery together creates one entity that brings HBO, Warner Bros, DC, Paramount Pictures, CBS, CNN, TNT, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Showtime, Paramount+, HBO Max and Discovery all under one roof.
Wow.
For agents, this is not just another bit of news. This is a FULL ON industry reset.
Whenever two giants merge, the balance of power shifts overnight. Buyers disappear, your shows have new bosses, strategies change, and suddenly the rules you’ve been working under for the last five years don’t apply anymore.
I’m already experiencing it. I have clients in projects that are Warner Bros Discovery owned, and now the goalposts, timeframes, and individuals are changing, and the deal hasn’t even officially closed yet.
We’ve all read the headlines and listened to the podcasts. We know the key facts.
But what does this actually mean for agents representing talent?
Here are the five things every agent should be thinking about (both good and bad).
Let’s go. ↓
