Everyone Hates The Netflix Deal…Except Maybe Dip Buyers
Everyone’s yelling “block it!” but some investors are smiling
Netflix just said, “Hey, we’re buying Warner Bros. (the people who own HBO, Harry Potter, Batman, Game of Thrones, Friends, The Matrix, etc.) for $83 billion.”
Nobody seems happy for these reasons:
Netflix would be WAY too powerful:
Right now there are a few big streaming services fighting each other. If this deal goes through, Netflix would own almost half of everything people watch. Less competition usually means higher prices and fewer choices for us.Movie theaters could die:
Netflix barely uses cinemas. Sometimes they throw movies in theaters for a week or two (or skip them completely) and rush everything to your TV. Warner Bros. still cared about real theatrical releases. People are terrified this will be the final nail in the coffin for movie theaters.Tons of people in Hollywood could lose their jobs:
When two giant companies merge, they fire a bunch of people because “we don’t need two of everything.” Hollywood’s already hurting; this could put thousands more out of work. Plus, a group of huge A-list actors and famous directors are quietly lobbying Congress to kill the deal. They sent anonymous letters (no one wants to sign their name and get blacklisted by Netflix) saying this would destroy the entire movie business and turn Hollywood into one big Netflix content factory.Your favorite shows and movies might get worse:
HBO is famous for amazing, grown-up shows. A lot of people are worried we’ll miss out on amazing content in the future.Investors who bought at the highs are panicking
Netflix’s stock has already crashed as much as 27% from its recent high, and it fell even harder after this news. Wall Street is freaking out because nobody’s sure how Netflix is actually going to pay $83 billion without taking on a mountain of debt.
So regular people, movie theaters, actors, directors, and even stock market investors are all screaming the same thing right now: “Please stop this deal!”
But Netflix (NFLX) Stock Could be a Sneaky Buy Right Now
Even though it might be bad for everyone else, this deal might actually end up being good for Netflix’s stock.
Why? Netflix’s core business is killing it with record subscribers, and if the deal clears regulators (big “if,” expected mid-2026), it’ll supercharge their content library with HBO hits and Warner blockbusters, making Netflix the unchallenged king of streaming. The panic sell-off might just be overblown fear about debt. A classic “buy the dip” setup for bold investors betting on the long game.
If it gets back to all time highs, that’s like 30–35% upside from where it’s trading now (around $100).
Excellent contrarian take on the Netflix situation. The disconnect between what's good for the industry versus what's good for sharholders is pretty stark here. When regulators and legacy players are loudest about blocking something, that's usually when the asymmetric upside sits for patient capital. The $83B debt concern seems overblown given their cashflow profile anyway.