NEW YORK — Netflix is walking away from its offer to buy Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio and streaming business, in a stunning move that effectively puts Paramount in a position to take over its storied Hollywood rival.

On Thursday, after Warner’s board announced that Skydance-owned Paramount’s latest offer to buy the entire company for $31 per share was superior to the agreement it had previously struck with Netflix, the streaming giant quickly announced that it was declining to raise its proposal. It said the new price it would have to pay to acquire Warner would make the deal “no longer financially attractive.”

“We believe we would have been strong stewards of Warner Bros.’ iconic brands,” Netflix’s co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters said in a joint statement. “But this transaction was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price.”

A Warner Bros. Discovery buyout would reshape Hollywood and the wider media landscape. And unlike Netflix — which was only eyeing Warner’s studio and streaming business — Paramount wants the entire company. That means HBO Max, cult-favorite titles like “Harry Potter” and even CNN could soon find themselves under the same roof as Paramount’s CBS, “Top Gun” and the Paramount+ streaming service.

The prospect of such a combination, which will still need the green light from both Warner shareholders and regulators, poses both antitrust concerns and questions of political influence.

Netflix’s decision to walk away on Thursday marks the latest development in a monthslong, messy corporate battle over Warner’s future. Sarandos and Peters thanked Warner’s leadership despite the final outcome.

Warner had repeatedly backed the deal it struck with Netflix since December right up until Thursday evening, when it gave Netflix four business days to come up with an counteroffer to Paramount’s sweetened bid to buy all of Warner for $31 per share, amounting to a value of about $111 billion including debt, in addition to other revisions. Netflix had previously put a $27.75 per share offer on the table for Warner’s studio and streaming business, totaling nearly $83 billion including debt.

In a statement Thursday night, CEO David Zaslav said Netflix executives had been “extraordinary partners” and that he wished them “well in the future.”

After months of a heated back and forth amid Paramount’s hostile campaign to take over Warner without the board’s blessing, Warner also changed its tune about the remaining prospective buyer.

Warner’s board hasn’t officially adopted Paramount’s merger agreement yet, but once it does, Zaslav said it “will create tremendous value.” He added that the company was “excited about the potential of a combined Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery.”

Paramount did not immediately respond to requests for further comment. But CEO David Ellison earlier applauded Warner’s board affirming “the superior value of our offer.”

A Paramount-Warner combo would combine two of Hollywood’s five legacy studios that remain today, in addition to their theatrical channels. Beyond “Harry Potter,” Warner movies like “Superman,” “Barbie,” and “One Battle After Another” — as well as hit TV series like “The White Lotus” and “Succession” — would join Paramount’s content library.