Welcome back to The Daily Courant, your pocket guide to Puck’s best new reporting.

Today, we lead with Kim Masters’s inside reporting on the “existential freakout” among Hollywood executives after Netflix announced it was buying Warner Bros.—and the suspicion surrounding Ted Sarandos’s pledge to keep releasing movies in theaters. Sarandos, of course, has spent over a decade insisting that theatrical releases simply aren’t part of the Netflix model. Is there any reason to believe he’s changed his mind?

Plus, below the fold: Dylan Byers gets to the bottom of the Semafor–Saudi mystery. Peter Hamby handicaps J.D. Vance’s odds of inheriting the MAGA crown. Rachel Strugatz answers burning reader questions about the beauty industry in 2026. And exclusively for Inner Circle members, Marion Maneker and Freeman’s executive chairman Jay Krehbiel discuss the auction house’s path to middle-market world domination.

Meanwhile, on the pods: Matt Belloni is joined by Senator Elizabeth Warren on The Town to discuss all the political machinations surrounding the Warner Discovery sale. And on The Powers That Be, Peter and Matt chew over the Oscars ditching ABC for… YouTube.

HOLLYWOOD

As the streamer’s winning bid to secure WBD faces regulatory scrutiny and a hostile offer from Paramount, Ted Sarandos insists that Netflix is committed to a standard theatrical window for Warner Bros. movies. Is it enough to earn Hollywood’s loyalty?

A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR

“A clever, sweet and charming comedy with an excellent cast.”

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-IndieWire

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FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN ALL ELIGIBLE CATEGORIES

Critics Choice Award Nominee

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Oscar Nuñez

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All episodes of THE PAPER are streaming now, only on Peacock.

MEDIA

As Semafor expands further into the Gulf, it’s becoming clear that Justin Smith and Ben Smith’s media baby is looking a lot more like the former than the latter.

WASHINGTON

Everyone knows that J.D. Vance is desperately positioning himself to become Trump’s heir apparent, and our exclusive data suggests that he has the field almost to himself. But his popularity depends on his closeness to Trump, who could change his mind at any minute, for any reason.

FASHION

A roundup of pressing reader questions about the beauty industry’s biggest players, strategic gambits, talent turnover, M&A fantasies, potential exits, and more.

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“A refreshing take on the genre.”

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3 Critics Choice Award Nominations

Best Limited Series

Best Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television

Michael Chernus

Best Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television

Marin Ireland

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All episodes of DEVIL IN DISGUISE: JOHN WAYNE GACY are streaming now, only on Peacock.

ART

Freeman’s, the ambitious Midwest auction house, is conquering the middle market between multimillion-dollar auctions and weekend estate sales. Herewith, executive chairman Jay Krehbiel opens up about his M&A pathway, the economics of undercutting the big houses, and the tension between operating locally and globally.

HOLLYWOOD

Matt is joined by Senator Elizabeth Warren to discuss what should happen to Warner Bros., why it should not go to Netflix or Paramount Skydance, whether Democrats and Republicans could unite to block the sale, and how Hollywood should fight to survive in the era of Big Tech consolidation.

HOLLYWOOD

Matt Belloni joins Peter to break down why the Oscars are ditching ABC for YouTube, which will begin broadcasting the awards in 2029 after years of eroding TV ratings. Matt breaks down why the move is a no-brainer in the long run, even though it may be a risk for the Academy. They also discuss Matt’s interview with Senator Elizabeth Warren, who’s already sharpening her antitrust scrutiny around a potential Netflix–Warner Bros. merger.

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