Netflix has agreed to buy the film and streaming businesses of Warner Bros Discovery for $72bn (£54bn) in a major Hollywood deal.
The streaming giant emerged as the successful bidder for Warner Bros ahead of rivals Comcast and Paramount Skydance after a drawn-out battle.
Warner Bros owns franchises including Harry Potter and Game of Thrones, and the streaming service HBO Max.
The takeover is set to create a new giant in the entertainment industry, but the deal will still have to be approved by competition authorities.
Netflix co-chief executive Ted Sarandos said the streamer was “highly confident” it would receive the regulatory approval it needs and it was running “full speed” towards this.
He said that by combining the library of Warner Bros shows and movies with the streaming platform’s series such as Stranger Things, “we can give audiences more of what they love and help define the next century of storytelling”.
“Warner Bros have defined the last century of entertainment, and together we can define the next one,” he said.
Asked whether HBO should remain a separate streaming service, co-chief executive Greg Peters said Netflix believed the HBO brand was important for consumers, but added: “We think it’s quite early to get into the specifics of how we’re going to tailor this offering for consumers.”
Netflix estimates it will find $2bn to $3bn in savings, mostly through eliminating overlaps in the support and technology areas of the businesses.
Films made by Warner Bros will continue to be launched in cinemas, it said, and Warner Bros television studio will continue to be able to produce for third parties. Netflix will keep producing content exclusively for its own platform.
Labelling it a “big day” for the companies, Mr Sarandos acknowledged the acquisition may have surprised some shareholders but it was a “rare opportunity” to set Netflix up for success “for decades to come”.
David Zaslav, president and chief executive of Warner Bros, added the agreement would combine “two of the greatest storytelling companies in the world”.
“By coming together with Netflix, we will ensure people everywhere will continue to enjoy the world’s most resonant stories for generations to come,” he said.
The cash and stock deal is worth $27.75 per Warner Bros share, with a total enterprise value – which includes the company’s debts and the value of its shares – of about $82.7bn. The equity value, or cash price, is $72bn.
The boards of directors from each company unanimously approved the deal. (BBC)
YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul will fight recent world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in a professional bout on Dec 19.
The heavyweight bout, which will consist of eight three-minute rounds, will take place at Kaseya Center in Miami and will be streamed live on Netflix.
It will be the toughest fight yet for the 28-year-old Paul, who has a 12-1 record (7 KOs) and last fought in June when he beat former middleweight champion Julio César Chávez Jr. by unanimous decision.
“This isn’t an AI simulation. This is Judgment Day,” Paul told Netflix. “A professional heavyweight fight against an elite world champion in his prime.
“When I beat Anthony Joshua, every doubt disappears, and no one can deny me the opportunity to fight for a world title. To all my haters, this is what you wanted.”
Joshua is a two-time world champion and Olympic gold medallist, but the 36-year-old hasn’t fought since losing to Daniel Dubois in an IBF title fight in September 2024.
“Jake or anyone can get this work,” Joshua said. “No mercy. I took some time out and I’m coming back with a mega show. It’s a big opportunity for me.
“Whether you like it or not, I’m here to do massive numbers, have big fights and break every record whilst keeping cool, calm and collected … I’m about to break the internet over Jake Paul’s face.” (JapanToday)
The singing trio behind HUNTR/X, the fictional music group at the center of the summer’s massively popular animated film “KPop Demon Hunters,” is scheduled to perform live for the first time Oct 7 on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.”
The NBC show announced that Ejae, Audrey Nuna, and Rei Ami will perform their smash hit “Golden” from the Sony Pictures/Netflix film that gave Netflix is first No. 1 box-office title in the streaming company’s 18-year history. The film’s soundtrack topped the charts.
The three will also join Fallon on the couch for interviews. Their appearance will stream the next day on Peacock. Jennifer Lopez is also a guest.
The film centers on Huntr/X, the superstar K-pop trio who double as demon hunters. The members, Rumi (Arden Cho), Mira (May Hong) and Zooey (Ji-young Yoo), must protect their fans and face their biggest enemy yet: a rival boy band made up of demons in disguise.
Fans have flooded the internet with art, covers, cosplay and choreography in response to the movie, which continues to be a mainstay on Netflix’s weekly Top 10 list since its launch 14 weeks ago. (JapanToday)
It’s another chart week, another chart double for KPop Demon Hunters (Republic/Universal) in Australia.
The soundtrack to the hit animated Netflix film is flying at the top of the ARIA leaderboard for a ninth non-consecutive week. Among soundtracks, ARIA reports, that effort equals the nine week run by the 1997 soundtrack for Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo & Juliet.
Since the ARIA Charts were first published in 1983, only four soundtracks have logged more weeks at the top, according to the charts compiler: the Australian cast recording of Jesus Christ Superstar (10 weeks in 1992); plus Titanic (1998), Moulin Rouge (2001) and A Star Is Born (2018), which each led for 11 weeks.
Meanwhile, the top track from KPop Demon Hunters, “Golden,” reigns over the ARIA Singles Chart for a ninth consecutive week. That’s closing in on the all-time mark for a hit from an animated film, currently set at 12 weeks by Pharrell Williams’ 2014 single “Happy” from Despicable Me 2.
Back with the ARIA Albums Chart, Ocean Alley’s Love Balloon (via Community Music) lifts off for a No. 3 debut, the highest start for any new release on the current frame, published Friday, Sept. 26.
Recorded in three stints over about three months, Love Balloon is Ocean Alley’s fifth studio album, and first recorded with legendary American rock producer Nick DiDia (Bruce Springsteen, Rage Against The Machine).
With that bright start, Love Balloon is the Sydney indie-rock outfit’s third consecutive collection to hit No. 3, following 2020’s Lonely Diamond and 2022’s Low Altitude Living. Their breakthrough second album from 2018, Chiaroscuro, which housed the triple j Hottest 100 leader “Confidence,” reached No. 11 on the national survey.
Ocean Alley scores silverware as Love Balloon is crowned on the ARIA Top 20 Australian Albums chart, a feat they celebrated Saturday at London’s Alexandra Palace, with a headline show for more than 8,000 fans.
Also debuting in the top tier is Cardi B‘s sophomore studio album, Am I The Drama? (Atlantic/Warner), new at No. 8. Drama is the followup to the Bronx rapper’s 2018, Invasion Of Privacy, which peaked at No. 5.
Trent Reznor’s Nine Inch Nails bags a top 10 with the soundtrack to TRON: Ares (Interscope/Universal). It’s new at No. 10 for the American industrial rock act’s sixth top tier effort in Australia, a tally that includes a best of No. 2 for 1999’s The Fragile. Daft Punk’s soundtrack to TRON: Legacy reached No. 17 in 2011.
Lola Young just misses out on a top 10 berth with I’m Only F—ing Myself (Island/Universal), her third album. It’s new at No. 12, for the British singer’s first ARIA Albums Chart appearance.
Further down the list, published late Friday, September 26th, Brisbane band Platonic Sex crack the top 40 with their debut album Face To The Flywire (Orchard). It’s new at No. 31. (Billboard)
In a TV year that saw four celebrated series accumulate a stunning 97 nominations, the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards guaranteed reasons to cheer.
But it was the triumvirate of “Adolescence,” “The Studio” and “The Pitt” that dominated the show, hosted by Nate Bargatze and airing live from Los Angeles on Sunday, Sept. 14.
The British Netflix drama “Adolescence” scored a leading six awards on Sunday, including for Owen Cooper, the youngest-ever supporting actor in a limited series winner at age 15.
Seth Rogen landed his first-ever Emmy for outstanding lead actor in a comedy series for his role as bumbling studio head Matt Remick in Apple TV+’s “The Studio,” which earned four awards, while the HBO drama “The Pitt,” starring outstanding lead actor in a drama series winner Noah Wyle, scooped up three.
Apple TV+’s “Severance” led this year’s nominations with 27 nods, followed by HBO’s “The Penguin” (24) and “The Studio” and HBO’s “The White Lotus” (23 each).
Eligible programs aired or streamed between June 1, 2024, and May 31, 2025.
Check out the winners from some of the night’s top categories below.
Outstanding drama series
“Andor” (Disney+)
“The Diplomat” (Netflix)
“The Last of Us” (HBO)
“Paradise” (Hulu)
WINNER: “The Pitt” (HBO Max)
“Severance” (Apple TV+)
“Slow Horses” (Apple TV+)
“The White Lotus” (HBO)
Outstanding lead actor, drama series
Sterling K. Brown, “Paradise” (Hulu)
Gary Oldman, “Slow Horses” (Apple TV+)
Pedro Pascal, “The Last of Us” (HBO)
Adam Scott, “Severance” (Apple TV+)
WINNER: Noah Wyle, “The Pitt” (HBO Max)
Outstanding comedy series
“Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
“The Bear” (FX/Hulu)
“Hacks” (HBO Max)
“Nobody Wants This” (Netflix)
“Only Murders in the Building” (Hulu)
“Shrinking” (Apple TV+)
WINNER: “The Studio” (Apple TV+)
“What We Do in the Shadows” (FX)
Outstanding limited series
WINNER: “Adolescence” (Netflix)
“Black Mirror” (Netflix)
“Dying for Sex” (FX/Hulu)
“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” (Netflix)
“The Penguin” (HBO Max)
Outstanding talk series
“The Daily Show” (Comedy Central)
WINNER: “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS)
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!” (ABC)
Outstanding lead actor, limited series/TV movie
Colin Farrell, “The Penguin” (HBO Max)
WINNER: Stephen Graham, “Adolescence” (Netflix)
Jake Gyllenhaal “Presumed Innocent” (Apple TV+)
Brian Tyree Henry, “Dope Thief” (Apple TV+)
Cooper Koch, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” (Netflix)
Outstanding lead actress, limited series/TV movie
Cate Blanchett, “Disclaimer” (Apple TV+)
Meghann Fahy, “Sirens” (Netflix)
Rashida Jones, “Black Mirror” (Netflix)
WINNER: Cristin Milioti, “The Penguin” (HBO Max)
Michelle Williams, “Dying for Sex” (FX)
Outstanding variety scripted series
WINNER: “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (HBO)
“Saturday Night Live” (NBC)
Outstanding supporting actor, comedy series
Ike Barinholtz, “The Studio,” (Apple TV+)
Colman Domingo, “The Four Seasons” (Netflix)
Harrison Ford, “Shrinking” (Apple TV+)
WINNER: Jeff Hiller, “Somebody Somewhere” (HBO)
Ebon Moss-Bachrach, “The Bear” (FX/Hulu)
Michael Urie, “Shrinking” (Apple TV+)
Bowen Yang, “Saturday Night Live” (NBC)
Outstanding reality competition program
“The Amazing Race” (CBS)
“RuPaul’s Drag Race” (MTV)
“Survivor” (CBS)
“Top Chef” (Bravo)
WINNER: “The Traitors” (Peacock)
Outstanding supporting actress, comedy series
Liza Colon-Zayas, “The Bear” (FX/Hulu)
WINNER: Hannah Einbinder, “Hacks” (HBO Max)
Kathryn Hahn, “The Studio” (Apple TV+)
Janelle James, “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
Catherine O’Hara, “The Studio” (Apple TV+)
Sheryl Lee Ralph, “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
Jessica Williams, “Shrinking” (Apple TV+)
Outstanding lead actress, drama series
Kathy Bates, “Matlock” (CBS)
Sharon Horgan, “Bad Sisters” (Apple TV+)
WINNER: Britt Lower, “Severance” (Apple TV+)
Bella Ramsey, “The Last of Us” (HBO)
Keri Russell, “The Diplomat” (Netflix)
Outstanding supporting actor, drama series
Zach Cherry, “Severance” (Apple TV+)
Walton Goggins, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
Jason Isaacs, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
Sam Rockwell, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
WINNER: Tramell Tillman, “Severance” (Apple TV+)
John Turturro, “Severance” (Apple TV+)
Outstanding supporting actress, drama series
Patricia Arquette, “Severance,” (Apple TV+)
Carrie Coon, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
WINNER: Katherine LaNasa, “The Pitt” (HBO Max)
Julianne Nicholson, “Paradise” (Hulu)
Parker Posey, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
Natasha Rothwell, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
Aimee Lou Wood, “The White Lotus” (HBO)
Outstanding lead actress, comedy series
Uzo Aduba, “The Residence” (Netflix)*
Kristen Bell, “Nobody Wants This” (Netflix)
Quinta Brunson, “Abbott Elementary” (ABC)
Ayo Edebiri, “The Bear” (FX/Hulu)
WINNER: Jean Smart, “Hacks” (HBO Max)
Outstanding lead actor, comedy series
Adam Brody, “Nobody Wants This” (Netflix)
WINNER: Seth Rogen, “The Studio” (Apple TV+)
Jason Segel, “Shrinking” (Apple TV+)
Martin Short, “Only Murders in the Building” (Hulu)
Jeremy Allen White, “The Bear” (FX/Hulu)
Outstanding TV movie
“Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” (Peacock)
“The Gorge” (Apple TV+)
“Mountainhead” (HBO)
“Nonnas” (Netflix)
WINNER: “Rebel Ridge” (Netflix)
Outstanding host, reality or competition program
RuPaul Charles, “RuPaul’s Drag Race” (MTV)
Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Kevin O’Leary, Barbara Corcoran, Robert Herjavec, Daymond John and Daniel Lubetzky, “Shark Tank” (ABC)
KPop Demon Hunters has climbed “up, up, up” Netflix’s charts to become its most viewed movie ever, the streaming platform says.
Since its release in June, the animated musical has been watched more than 236 million times, overtaking the action comedy Red Notice to take the top spot.
It is the latest in a series of chart-topping achievements by the film, which has become a surprise global hit.
Songs from the movie have also been some of the most streamed online on Spotify, while the track Golden hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 earlier this month.
Produced by Sony Pictures Animation, Kpop Demon Hunters follows the adventures of fictional K-pop girl band Huntr/x as its three members use their music and fighting skills to protect humans from demons.
It was launched in June with a relatively low-key premiere at Netflix’s Tudum theatre in Los Angeles.
But over the summer the film gained momentum through word of mouth, boosted by viral videos and memes on social media.
Many have praised it for its eye-catching animation and its depiction of both traditional and modern Korean culture.
But the biggest attraction for many has been the movie’s catchy K-pop songs. Some of the soundtrack’s producers and songwriters are K-pop industry veterans who have worked with groups such as BTS and Twice.
Maggie Kang, the Korean-Canadian co-director of the film, previously said that they had wanted the film’s music to be “really incredible and really speak to the K-pop fans and be legitimately fit into the K-pop space”.
Capitalising on the songs’ popularity, Netflix released a sing-along version of Kpop Demon Hunters in cinemas in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand last weekend.
This netted Netflix its first number one film at the US box office. It has since released the sing-along version worldwide on its platform.
Many songs on the soundtrack have entered the top 10 of Spotify’s global chart, with Golden currently still at number one.
That track, along with Your Idol by Saja Boys, the arch enemies of Huntr/x in the film, have at different times topped the US Spotify chart.
This has made Huntr/x and Saja Boys the highest charting female and male K-pop groups in US Spotify history – surpassing real-life K-pop juggernauts BTS and Blackpink.
The Kpop Demon Hunters soundtrack has also become the first to have four simultaneous Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100.
Talks about a film sequel are reportedly in the early stages. (BBC)
Based on the Egba legend about a rebellion led by Lisabi, a traditional Yoruba hero with a hunger for freedom, the story begins with the invasion of multiple towns under the Egba Kingdom where residents are forced to pay a tribute or tax to the King (Adekola). Whoever refuses will be punished or killed by the king’s guards led by Sangodeji (Chatta). Tragedy unfolds and it is up to Lisabi (Adedimeji) to free his townsmen from the evil mercenaries.
If you ever think of Robin Hood stealing from the poor and giving to the rich, LISABI follows that direction. It is filled with action, drama, and fantasy. The film is a historical tale of violence, corruption, friendship and tragedy. The good part is the story which is well grounded: the camera angles are good as well as the subtitles. The acting from the cast members is terrific. For someone renowned for dramatic and funny roles, Adedimeji is impressive as Lisabi. Chatta, in the role of Sangodeji, is reminiscent of Agbako, the master criminal perfected by the late Charles Olumo. Adekola may have been LISABI’s villainous king, but Chatta takes the crown (similar to most James Bond villains).
The violent fight scenes could have been better coordinated or choreographed, and the special effects were less than perfect: an overuse of CGI rather than practical effects added an unnecessary incredulity to the action. The cinematography is noteworthy however and brings to mind movies from Hollywood’s Golden Age of Technicolor or Metrocolor.
It is rare to see a movie that is passionate about storytelling without offering a lesson. LISABI reminds one of Nigerian films and television shows from the 70s and 90s that are filled with morals and lessons for society today and for future generations.
A sequel to LISABI has also been released. Yet to watch the first instalment? Go stream it.
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