Larry and David Ellison’s push to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery is drawing global attention, not just for its scale, but for who might help bankroll it.
According to new reports from Variety and Bloomberg, the Ellisons are turning to sovereign wealth funds in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi to finance their takeover bid. If successful, the deal would merge Paramount and WBD into a single media giant; one that could end up with partial ownership held by foreign governments.
Paramount has already dismissed earlier reports as “categorically inaccurate,” but the renewed claims suggest the Middle East’s petrodollar-backed investment appetite is back in full force. The idea no longer feels far-fetched: sovereign funds have invested in US entertainment before, and the Ellisons, especially Larry, are known to have strong ties to key political power players, including Donald Trump.
What makes this different is the scale and influence of the combined company. A merged Paramount-WBD would control Hollywood’s major studios, blockbuster franchises, global streaming platforms and two major news networks, CBS News and CNN. Foreign-government involvement, even as minority shareholders, could trigger scrutiny in ways previous media investments haven’t.
Critics argue that ownership linked directly to foreign governments, especially those with contentious human-rights histories, raises questions about editorial independence and geopolitical influence. The 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, widely attributed by US intelligence to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, still casts a long shadow, and now the same government could gain a foothold in American newsrooms.
Still, some analysts say the concerns might be overstated. Sovereign funds routinely buy stakes in global companies, often without interfering in content or operations. And with Paramount offering to purchase all of WBD, unlike competitors Comcast and Netflix, who want pieces, the Ellisons remain the leading bidders.
If the deal advances, the US could face an unprecedented test: balancing the need for capital in a struggling media landscape against the potential influence of foreign state-linked investors on American cultural and information power.
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