Bold claim: a shadowy alliance of Jared Kushner, three Gulf monarchies, and a bid to reshape Hollywood sits at the center of Paramount Skydance’s $108 billion bid for Warner Bros Discovery.
Paramount Skydance unveiled a full-cash, all-in bid to acquire Warner Bros Discovery, housing Hollywood studios alongside CNN, HBO, and other major media assets. The move, led by David Ellison (son of tech titan Larry Ellison, a notable Trump donor), follows Netflix’s earlier win in a separate bidding race. President Trump has signaled that his administration will review Netflix’s deal, raising questions about how a dominant streaming player could face regulatory scrutiny.
Crucially, Paramount’s press materials omitted a key funding detail: the bid is backed by Kushner’s Affinity Partners and by sovereign wealth funds from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. These foreign financiers—tied to billions of dollars of ongoing Trump-related business ventures—were disclosed only in regulatory filings. The arrangement has intensified scrutiny of foreign influence in U.S. corporate deals.
David Ellison contended in a CNBC interview that Paramount’s smaller footprint and its perceived alignment with the current administration could translate into lighter regulatory scrutiny compared with Netflix. The Trump orbit’s transactional approach — where personal access and political ties often supersede formal procedures — further complicates the merger’s review. Critics argue that Kushner’s involvement and the Middle Eastern funding create potential conflicts of interest that could influence regulatory outcomes.
Kushner’s international financial dealings have come under renewed focus. Since 2021, Affinity Partners has secured billions from Gulf-based sources, enabling Kushner to build a private equity platform. Although Kushner stepped back from a formal role in the second Trump term, he has reemerged as a high-level channel for diplomacy, negotiating ceasefires and peace efforts while maintaining close lines of communication with Trump. This dual role—private mediator and public policy influencer—raises concerns about the boundaries between business and government, especially when foreign funding intersects with U.S. media assets.
The same trio of Gulf funds backing Paramount’s bid—Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE—are also key players in Paramount’s attempted takeover of Warner Bros Discovery. Their investments, coupled with Kushner’s involvement, could shape the trajectory of a deal awaiting clearance from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). While Paramount asserts that governance rights would be waived in the merged entity, potentially mitigating national security concerns, CFIUS retains the authority to scrutinize foreign control over critical media assets.
Democratic lawmakers have voiced concerns about foreign influence and the potential for regulatory pressure to be directed by presidential interests rather than law. Senator Elizabeth Warren highlighted the need for objective, law-based evaluation of the deal, not a metrics-driven chase for political favors.
Meanwhile, Kushner is also linked to another major foreign transaction: a $55 billion bid to acquire Electronic Arts, backed by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund. That deal, slated for CFIUS review, echoes ongoing debates about foreign involvement in U.S. tech and entertainment assets. Some lawmakers have pressed for tighter oversight or subpoenas related to foreign funding in U.S. media and sports investments.
Beyond the regulatory arena, the Paramount bid intersects with Trump’s political calculations. A successful consolidation could yield a CNN under new ownership that might be more sympathetic to Trump’s political aims, potentially influencing public sentiment ahead of elections. Reporters have noted discussions about reshaping CBS and its acquisitions under Paramount’s control, including leadership changes and strategic editorial shifts.
In short, the Paramount-Warner Bros bid intertwines high-stakes finance, foreign investment, and political power in ways that raise pivotal questions about the integrity of regulatory processes, the limits of presidential influence in corporate deals, and the future landscape of American media. As the deal moves through scrutiny, observers will watch closely to see whether governance, national security, and editorial independence can be preserved.
Mohamad Bazzi is director of the Center for Near Eastern Studies and a journalism professor at New York University.
