Paramount’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery is now getting framed as the deal Netflix couldn’t close, and the New York Post says one strange detail stuck in lawmakers’ minds: a basket of tampons spotted in a men’s restroom during a visit to Netflix headquarters.
The NY Post report says a delegation of lawmakers toured Netflix while the company tried to calm GOP concerns that it leans left.
According to the article, one attendee was Missouri Republican Rep. Jason Smith, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, and a source claimed he was “disturbed” by what he saw in the men’s room.
How this fits into Netflix backing out of the WBD fight
The NY Post suggests the incident carried weight in ongoing political opposition to Netflix’s ambitions, even if it wasn’t the only factor.
Publicly, Netflix has pointed to price and discipline as the reason it walked away rather than match Paramount’s richer offer for WBD.
Culture signals, corporate optics, and why Republicans care
The NY Post notes that some companies stock menstrual products in men’s rooms as part of inclusivity policies for trans and nonbinary employees, while many conservatives view that approach as ideological messaging — and as something they also say shows up in Netflix programming choices.
“This is 2026, not 2020,” said one GOP staffer to the site. “What were they thinking?”
Paramount’s wins WBD bid
Worth noting is that Netflix walked away from its WBD deal only hours after Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos visited Washington.
Paramount now sits in the driver’s seat on WBD.
If regulators sign off and WBD shareholders approve, Paramount closes what Netflix couldn’t and takes control of one of the biggest libraries and brands in Hollywood.
