What Is WB (Warner Bros.)?
“WB” means Warner Bros., the studio behind Looney Tunes, DC and Harry Potter. Since October 6, 2026 it has belonged to a new company called Skydance. Here is how the $110 billion deal ended, who runs it now, how the results look and why streetwear keeps licensing its characters.
Warner Bros. is not a clothing label, but you have probably worn it: a Looney Tunes tee, a Batman hoodie, a Hogwarts scarf. It is one of the most licensed names in apparel. What changed in 2026 is who owns it, and that matters because the owner decides which brands get access to those characters.
The story
Warner Bros. is widely reported to date from 1923 and is based in Burbank, California; I did not re-verify those basics. The recent story is documented in company filings. Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) was formed in 2022 when WarnerMedia was combined with Discovery. In October 2025 WBD was put up for sale, after having planned to split into two companies. In December 2025 it agreed to sell the studio and streaming business to Netflix. Paramount Skydance then bid for the entire company, and on February 27, 2026 it signed a merger agreement after Netflix stepped aside.
- October 2025WBD is put up for sale.
- December 2025Netflix agrees to buy the studio and streaming business.
- February 27, 2026Paramount signs a merger agreement for all of WBD at $31 a share.
- April 23, 2026WBD shareholders approve the deal.
- June 12, 2026The Justice Department closes its investigation, a step CNBC describes as approval.
- June 17, 2026China’s antitrust authority clears the merger unconditionally.
- September 30, 2026The companies announce an anticipated closing date of October 6.
- October 6, 2026The merger closes; the combined company trades as SKYD.
How the deal ended
The $110 billion merger closed on October 6, 2026, per TechCrunch and Yahoo Finance, after settlements with a coalition of U.S. states and a Hollywood writers’ union cleared the main legal hurdles. Yahoo Finance reports that Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan denied a last-minute effort to halt it. WBD shareholders received $31.00 in cash per share, a 147% premium to the $12.54 unaffected price, per WBD’s filing. Because closing came after September 30, a ticking fee of $0.00277778 per share per day applied; for October 1 to 6 that is about $0.017 a share, by my arithmetic.
The combined company is called Skydance, after David Ellison’s original production company, per Variety. Its Class B shares moved from Nasdaq to the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SKYD. They closed their first day at $9.53, per Yahoo Finance. Note that this is a different company’s share price: WBD holders were paid in cash, not Skydance stock. WBD’s website now redirects to skydance.com, and Wikipedia lists WBD as defunct from October 6.
Who runs it now
David Ellison
Chairman and CEO of Skydance.
Ynon Kreiz
Co-CEO, the former Mattel chief, who joined on October 5 (Variety).
Casey Bloys
HBO head, who becomes chief content officer (Yahoo Finance).
Leaving
Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, co-heads of the film group, per Variety’s sources; David Zaslav also exits.
Zaslav’s payout is reported at a minimum of $550 million by Variety before closing and at roughly $886.8 million by Yahoo Finance on closing day, so I give both and do not choose between them.
Chart: WBD revenue by quarter, in millions of US dollars
Last results before the company ceased to exist. Full bar equals $10,000 million.
Source: WBD earnings releases. Grey bars are 2025; red bars are 2026.
Chart: where Q2 2026 grew and shrank
Change versus Q2 2025, excluding currency effects. Bars show size; labels show direction. Full bar equals 90%.
Red bars are increases and grey bars are decreases. Source: WBD Q2 2026 release; Studios figures from Exchange4media. WBD says losing NBA rights cut advertising growth by about 20 points.
Chart: what WBD shareholders were paid
In US dollars per share. Full bar equals $35.
Source: WBD proxy materials, March 2026. A ticking fee of about $0.017 was added for the closing delay beyond September 30 (my calculation).
What the numbers say
| Item ($ million) | Q2 2026 | Q2 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenues | 8,717 | 9,812 | −11% (−12% ex-FX) |
| Adjusted EBITDA | 1,879 | 1,953 | −4% (−6% ex-FX) |
| Net income available to WBD | 149 | 1,580 | −91% |
| Free cash flow | 572 | 702 | −19% |
| Streaming adjusted EBITDA | 512 | 293 | +63% ex-FX |
The pattern is a streaming business that has reached $3 billion in quarterly revenue and is growing profit, against falling television advertising, a loss of NBA rights and a weak quarter for theatrical releases. WBD also reported net debt of $29.7 billion and net leverage of 3.4 times, and in Q2 it repaid a $15 billion bridge loan with new term loans. These are WBD group figures, not Warner Bros.-only, and WBD no longer reports separately; I did not find combined Skydance results. Skydance carries heavy debt after the deal, per Variety, so the integration will be watched.
Licensing and streetwear
Characters are the product here. In 2026 Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products and DC announced a multi-year collaboration with artist Joseph Klibansky that began with a Superman collection (June 2, 2026), and Warner and SHEIN launched a 3,500-item collection spanning Harry Potter, Batman, Superman, Looney Tunes, Scooby-Doo and Tom & Jerry in Brazil on August 25, 2026 (Omelete). Separately, Warner Bros. said in February 2025 it was moving DC toy licensing from McFarlane to Mattel in the second half of 2026. Kreiz is a former Mattel chief, but I found no reporting linking that to licensing plans, so I draw no inference. I did not collect consumer-product prices.
| Date | Licensing item | Source |
|---|---|---|
| February 2025 | DC toy licence moves from McFarlane to Mattel (second half of 2026) | Get Your Comic On |
| June 2, 2026 | Superman x Joseph Klibansky multi-year collaboration | Superman Super Site (reprinting the release) |
| August 25, 2026 | Warner x SHEIN 3,500-item collection, Brazil | Omelete |
Licensing in practice: Jordan x Space Jam
Prices as listed on the official WB Shop (wbshop.com) on November 8. The line pairs Jordan Brand with a Warner Bros. film property, the kind of licensing deal the section below describes.
Jordan x Space Jam Brooklyn Beanie
Beanie from the Jordan x Space Jam Brooklyn line.
$35
WB Shop · Image: WB Shop
Jordan x Space Jam Brooklyn Men’s Crew-Neck T-shirt
Crew-neck tee from the same line.
$45
WB Shop · Image: WB Shop
Jordan x Space Jam Big Kids' Silver Jumpman Jersey
Kids’ jersey from the same line.
$50
WB Shop · Image: WB Shop
Jordan x Space Jam Brooklyn Women’s Fleece Pants
Fleece pants from the women’s range.
$75
WB Shop · Image: WB Shop
Franchise guides
| Franchise or peer | Why it matters for fashion | Our guide |
|---|---|---|
| Looney Tunes | A staple of vintage tees and caps | Looney Tunes guide |
| Harry Potter | House scarves and licensed apparel | Harry Potter guide |
| Disney (a rival licensor) | The other giant in character apparel | Disney guide |
| Wilson (Amer Sports) | Another listed owner with collab-driven demand | Wilson guide |
Licensed apparel is made by licensees under their own labels, so check the label, buy from established retailers, and be wary of prices far below the norm. I found no official authentication guide.
Questions
What does WB stand for?
Warner Bros., the Hollywood studio. I assumed this meaning for the keyword.
Who owns Warner Bros. now?
Skydance, which completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery on October 6, 2026.
How much was the deal worth?
$31.00 per share in cash, an enterprise value of about $110 billion.
Is Warner Bros. Discovery still a company?
Not as a standalone company: Wikipedia lists it as defunct from October 6, 2026, and its website redirects to skydance.com.
Who runs it?
David Ellison is chairman and CEO, with Ynon Kreiz as co-CEO.
Is WB a streetwear brand?
No. It is a media company whose characters are widely licensed for apparel and collectibles.
What were the latest results?
For Q2 2026, WBD reported $8,717 million of revenue and $1,879 million of adjusted EBITDA.
Janet Arklis
Janet Arklis is a fashion writer at Street Iconic. She covers streetwear brands, designer collaborations, sneaker culture and Japanese fashion, with a focus on how a label’s history, ownership and design choices shape what ends up on the rack. Her guides trace where a brand came from, what it sells and what it costs, and she flags anything she could not verify.
Research support: AI tools working from public sources. Sources are listed at the end of every guide.
Keep reading
Looney Tunes
From classic animation to global icon.
Harry Potter
How a book series became a fashion staple.
Warren Lotas
A streetwear brand that borrows other brands’ imagery.
All brand guides
Browse every Street Iconic brand explainer.
Sources
- WB Shop
- TechCrunch: Paramount closes the Warner Bros. merger
- Yahoo Finance: the merger closes
- Variety: Skydance blasts off
- Variety: the new name, Skydance
- CNBC: deal timeline and key dates
- Paramount Skydance 8-K: clearances (SEC)
- WBD proxy materials, March 2026 (SEC)
- WBD: second-quarter 2026 results
- Exchange4media: WBD Q2 revenue falls
- Omelete: Warner and SHEIN collection
- Get Your Comic On: DC toy licensing to Mattel
- Wikipedia: Warner Bros. Discovery
Street Iconic is independent and not affiliated with Warner Bros., Skydance or Paramount. Figures were checked in October and November 2026. Financial figures are for information only, not investment advice. Product images are from WB Shop. See our Disclaimer and Affiliate Disclosure.
