According to Techmeme, former WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar has launched a public campaign against the potential sale of Warner Bros. Discovery to Netflix. In a detailed post on X, Kilar argued such a merger would create a single media giant controlling close to 50% of the streaming market. He warned it could force higher prices on consumers, drastically reduce viewing choices, and put American jobs at risk. Kilar also took aim at the antitrust review process under a potential second Trump administration, calling it a “cesspool of political favoritism and corruption.” His comments have ignited a significant debate, drawing reactions from figures like Senator Elizabeth Warren and industry analysts. The core allegation is that this deal represents a fundamental threat to market competition that must be scrutinized transparently.
Kilar Has a Point
Look, you have to take Kilar’s perspective seriously here. He was in the cockpit at WarnerMedia. He knows the playbook and the stakes better than almost anyone. And his central argument is hard to refute: combining Netflix‘s massive subscriber base and algorithm with WBD’s unparalleled studio and IP library (think HBO, DC, Harry Potter, Discovery) would create a colossus. We’re talking about one entity that could basically set the terms for the entire industry. Prices? They’d go up. Niche projects that don’t fit a global algorithm? They’d get axed. It’s the definition of market consolidation. Here’s the thing: we spent the last decade watching a hundred streaming services bloom, all in the name of competition. This would be the stark, opposite conclusion.
The Political Wildcard
But Kilar didn’t just talk shop. He went nuclear on the politics, and that’s where this gets really messy. By explicitly calling out a “cesspool” under Trump, he’s not just asking for a review; he’s preemptively declaring the process corrupt. It’s a bold, risky move. Is he trying to rally public and political opinion to box regulators in? Probably. Senator Elizabeth Warren agreed, calling for the deal to be blocked. But this politicization is a double-edged sword. It guarantees a brutal fight, but it also might poison any chance of a sober, fact-based evaluation. If the review becomes another front in the culture war, does anyone actually win? Besides the lawyers, I mean.
Is This Even Real?
Okay, let’s pump the brakes for a second. This is all predicated on a deal that… doesn’t actually exist yet. As analysts like Dan Primack noted, this is Kilar “getting out ahead of a hypothetical.” WBD’s stock is in the tank, and Netflix is the only player with the currency and scale to even think about such an acquisition. So is Kilar fighting a ghost, or is he seeing the obvious endgame everyone in Hollywood is whispering about? I think it’s the latter. He’s framing the battlefield now because once the offer is formally on the table, the lobbying machine and PR spin kick into overdrive. By stating the anti-competitive case in stark, public terms now, he’s trying to set the narrative. It’s a preemptive strike.
A Skeptical View
And yet, I can’t help but be a little skeptical of the pure altruism here. Kilar is the guy who pushed WarnerMedia’s entire theatrical slate onto HBO Max in 2021, a move that enraged Hollywood, devalued content, and arguably put WBD in this weakened position to begin with. Now he’s the champion of the creative community and the American worker? That’s a tough pivot. His warnings about price hikes and fewer choices are valid, but they also ignore that the current “competitive” landscape is financially unsustainable for almost every player except Netflix. The industry is begging for consolidation. The real question isn’t *if* it happens, but *how* and under what rules. Kilar’s blast is a crucial intervention, but it feels like someone trying to correct a course they helped steer toward the iceberg.
