Netflix’s co-CEO, Ted Sarandos, reportedly met with former President Donald Trump in November to discuss a potential acquisition of Warner Bros., raising questions about whether the streaming giant’s $82.7 billion deal will receive approval from federal regulators.

Although Paramount Pictures was long considered the likely buyer, leveraging CEO David Ellison’s connections to the Trump administration, recent reporting from Bloomberg and The Hollywood Reporter indicates that Netflix actively pursued the studio as well.

According to the reports, Trump advised Sarandos that Warner Bros. should sell to the highest bidder. Sarandos reportedly left the meeting believing that the president would not oppose the acquisition outright.

After the initial reports surfaced on Sunday, Trump confirmed that the meeting had occurred. On his perspective of the deal, Trump said, “Netflix is a great company. They’ve done a phenomenal job. Ted is a fantastic man. I have a lot of respect for him. But it’s a lot of market share, so we’ll have to see what happens.”

Bloomberg also noted that Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav was initially hesitant to sell the studio. He was reportedly surprised when Paramount began exploring an acquisition, having expected Ellison to wait until Warner Bros. completed a planned split of its movie and streaming businesses from its cable networks.

Ultimately, Warner Bros. decided to consider multiple offers, opening the door for a competitive bidding process that Netflix ultimately won. However, Paramount could still challenge the acquisition with a potential hostile bid.

Source: Techcrunch