Netflix’s Ted Sarandos, Greg Peters Visit Warner Bros. Studio Lot With WBD’s David Zaslav

On the same day that the board of Warner Bros. Discovery officially rejected Paramount Skydance’s hostile bid for the company, WBD CEO David Zaslav again demonstrated his unsubtle preference for Netflix’s bid by welcoming the streaming giant’s co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters to the famed Warner Bros. Studio lot in Burbank.

In a series of pictures released on Wednesday by WBD, Zaslav, Sarandos and Peters are seen walking around the lot and pictured in front of iconic landmarks like the Warner Bros. Water Tower.

Sarandos and Peters’ visit to the Burbank lot was ostensibly to meet leaders at the studio that Netflix is ​​very keen on purchasing. The streamer had an $82.7 billion bid for WBD’s streaming and studios division (which includes Warner Bros., HBO, HBO Max, DC Studios among other assets) accepted by WBD on Dec. 5.

Aside from the photos, no further details about the visit were released, so it is unclear who exactly Sarandos and Peters met with or what was discussed. However, the Netflix chiefs were likely on a charm offensive, as they have been since the deal was announced, to assuage worries in Hollywood about their plans for Warners’ theatrical business.

On Tuesday night, Sarandos made a surprise appearance at a Paris event organized by the French giant Canal+ Group and he took the very public opportunity to renew and deepen his commitment to theatrical windows if the WBD deal goes through. “Our intentions when we buy Warner Bros. will be to continue to release Warner Bros. studio movies in theaters with the traditional windows,” Sarandos said. “We never got into it before because we never owned a theatrical distribution mechanism.”

Earlier on Wednesday, WBD rejected Paramount’s $30 per share hostile offer by telling shareholders that it remains “inferior” to the Netflix deal, and carries “numerous significant risks and costs on WBD.” With the official rejection, Paramount will need to persuade WBD shareholders to tender their shares at that price, or to submit a higher bid than its $108 billion offer that would shift the outcome of the dealmaking.

“Following a careful evaluation of Paramount’s recently launched tender offer, the Board concluded that the offer’s value is inadequate, with significant risks and costs imposed on our shareholders,” said Samuel A. Di Piazza, Jr., chair of the WBD board of directors, in a statement. “This offer once again fails to address key concerns that we have consistently communicated to Paramount throughout our extensive engagement and review of their six previous proposals. We are confident that our merger with Netflix represents superior, more certain value for our shareholders, and we look forward to delivering on the compelling benefits of our combination.”