Surprise rival bid for HBO Max revives hope for Snyderverse return | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

Netflix considers bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, advised by Moelis & Co.
Netflix may absorb HBO but will likely spin off Discovery cable brands, Paramount may buy WBD wholesale.
Fans speculate that a Netflix deal could enable Zack Snyder’s return to the DCU.

Streaming behemoth, and Zach Snyder business partner, Netflix (NFLX) has joined the should-we-buy-Warner-Bros. (WBD) party.

Their bid would put be up against the odds-on leader in Paramount (PSKY), a hard-charging NBC (CMCSA) post-Sheridan deal, and new interest from other media giants Apple (AAPL) and Disney (DIS).

Netflix retained investment bank Moelis & Co. on Friday (10/31) to serve as an advisor and obtain relevant financial information for a potential offer, Reuters reported. Netflix has since been granted access to Warner Bros.’ data room.

Moelis & Co. is the same firm that advised David Ellison and Skydance Media throughout their landscape-changing merger with Paramount Global this August.

This new potential bid from Netflix has two fascinating aspects to its shape.

First and foremost, Netflix is famously “builders not buyers,” which could have huge implications for Warner Bros. Discovery, as they own streamer HBO Max and a variety of legacy media networks under Discovery.

“We’ve been very clear in the past that we have no interest in owning legacy media networks, so there’s no change there,” Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos said on Netflix’s Third Quarter 2025 Earnings Interview.

So, WBD’s Discovery properties could be on the chopping block if a Netflix bid were to come out on top (details below).

However, comic book fans will be parsing the deal for another reason. Former head of the DC Comics Universe (DCU), Zach Snyder has a friendly relationship with Netflix and has continued to make films with them, most recently “Army of the Dead” and “Rebel Moon” both of which underperformed on the streamer.

Could a merger open the door for his return and future involvement in the DCU under a Netflix-owned HBO Max?

Zach Snyder American filmmaker, producer, director of photography

Getty/TheStreet

Warner Bros.’ Discovery legacy media brands on the hot seat

While Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos made it clear they do not intend to go into the legacy media business, a Netflix/Warner Bros. deal is still possible.

That deal might, however, include WBD’s Discovery properties (CNN, TNT, the Food Network, Animal Planet & more) being spun off into a separate entity.

Sarandos, for his part, isn’t wholly against M&A as a build-from-scratch alternative:

Sarandos and President Gregory K. Peters reiterated Netflix’s earned ability to be “choosy” and that any acquisition needs to meet their from-the-ground-up mentality.

To me, that reads of “we’re not saying anything right now as there is no deal in place” legalese. However, HBO and Netflix share far too many similarities as destinations for prestige and high-brow streaming, making it unlikely for Netflix not to explore the option. Their studios would complement each other well, and any merger would instantly make them the premier destination for prestige TV.

Funny enough, even before they started receiving offers from Paramount (and now Comcast/NBC, Netflix, etc.), WBD was splitting its streaming and studio business (HBO Max) from their Discovery properties anyway, in a CEO David Zaslav-spearheaded reversal of recent consolidation under a unified “Max” label.

Confusing, I know. There has been a lot of back-and-forth for the iconic brand due to pressure to compete with the recent massive Paramount/Skydance deal, as well as all the other streaming sharks.

HBO Max and Discovery+ separation timeline

Warner Bros. Discovery reverses its streaming platform branding in July 2025, reverting to the “HBO Max” name after the “Max” branding failed to resonate with viewers and created confusion, marking the end of a two-year rebrand experiment. (Source: Deadline)
Industry experts and viewers criticized the removal of the iconic HBO branding, calling it a misstep given HBO’s strong reputation for high-quality television, prompting WBD’s eventual decision to restore the HBO Max name. (Source: TheFashionLaw)
Setting aside the name, WBD announced they would also split into two companies in June 2025. One would focus on cable networks and Discovery legacy assets, and the other would house HBO, HBO Max, and Warner Bros. film and DC studio brands. (Source: The New York Times)
Throughout the merger process, executives shifted strategies multiple times, initially bundling HBO Max and Discovery+, then later deciding to keep Discovery+ as a standalone service. (Source: Deadline)
Two years of subscriber data showed that “HBO” and “Discovery audiences rarely overlapped in viewing habits. (Source: The New York Times)

Beyond the internal whiplash, the shape of the outside deal is clear per recent reporting: If a Paramount bid is accepted, they might keep Discovery and HBO together, but if Netflix emerges victorious, they could absorb HBO as a streamer and separate Discovery and its cable brands.

Then there’s the Snyder question.

Could Netflix buying HBO save the Snyderverse?

Regardless of your opinion of the now dead-in-the-water “Snyderverse” (the nickname fans gave the Zach Snyder-led DC Comics universe), it must sting for Snyder that box-office underperformance (and possibly meddling by higher-ups) led to his planned “Justice League” trilogy remaining unfinished.

Now, with HBO’s future up in the air, Warner Bros. handing over of the reins to James Gunn, whose “Superman” was the highest-grossing movie of 2025 so far, looks less like a closed door for Snyder.

More Streaming:

“DCEU fans have been taking to social media in their droves, expressing their hope that Netflix’s potential acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery will somehow lead to the SnyderVerse being restored on streaming,” writes Josh Wilding for Comicbookmovie.com.

Snyder has a number of die-hard fans who prefer his grittier take on their favorite DC heroes and villains. However, scrapping the Gunn-verse plans after such a successful rollout of “Superman” and cult HBO Max hit “Creature Commandos” makes little sense.

James Gunn Top 5 films (global box office)

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023): $845 million
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017): $863 million
Guardians of the Galaxy (2014): $773 million
Superman (2025): $616.6 million (and counting)
The Suicide Squad (2021): $168 million

“Why would Netflix basically scrap DC Studios and its DCU plans to give Snyder hundreds of millions of dollars to make his “Justice League” sequels for its monthly subscribers?” Wilding asks. “If anything, it would be business as usual, with HBO Max’s content likely added to Netflix, and Netflix overseeing Warner Bros. Pictures’ slate on theatrical releases.”

However, I don’t think that means Snyder, given his good relationship with Netflix, wouldn’t be given any latitude to return to the DC Universe.

If Netflix acquired HBO, and thus the rights to the DCU, there’s no reason he couldn’t work on a spin-off, or even an animated final movie to conclude his trilogy. While the commercial value compared to that of the “Superman” reboot might be dubious, a Netflix/HBO goliath could find room for that type of passion project.

After all, it’s not like comic book fans have ever been irrationally angry that some obscure thing was never finished, right?