Warner Bros. Discovery's board unanimously rejected Paramount's hostile takeover bid because the $30 offer is fundamentally inferior to Netflix's deal when accounting for massive costs and risks. Paramount would saddle WBD with over $50 billion in new debt in what amounts to the largest leveraged buyout in history, creating a junk-rated company with 7x leverage that could easily collapse during the 12-18 month closing period. The real value of Paramount's offer plummets to just $28.21 per share after factoring in the $2.8 billion Netflix termination fee, $1.5 billion debt exchange penalty and $350 million in extra interest costs that WBD shareholders would bear.