How tampons in the men’s bathroom helped stop Netflix’s purchase of Warner

The bathroom incident left a Republican congressman distraught and raised fears that Netflix promotes “woke” culture.

Netflix has formally withdrawn its offer of 73 billion dollars to acquire key assets of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), ending a six-month takeover battle.

CEO Ted Sarandos said the deal was “a good deal, at the right price, not a necessity at any cost,” after competitor Paramount Skydance was raised its offer to 80.5 billion dollars.

Although the higher bid played a decisive role, price was not the only factor that complicated the transaction. Netflix faced growing opposition from Republican lawmakers, state attorneys general and White House figures, who questioned whether the acquisition would give the streaming giant a excessive market power and a monopolistic dominance of entertainment.

Added to these doubts was an unusual incident during a visit by a Congressional delegation to Netflix’s headquarters in Los Angeles. During the visit, Republican congressman Jason Smithchairman of the House Budget and Finance Committee, found a basket of tampons in the men’s bathroom, a practice adopted by some technology companies and aimed at transgender employees.

The situation has reinforced concerns among conservative critics who argue that Netflix promotes progressive and “woke” social themes into its schedule, leaving lawmakers even more on the back foot.

“Let’s say the president fhe was quite disturbed. We are in 2026, not 2020. What were they thinking?”, says a Republican source interviewed by

Netflix executives, including Sarandos and co-founder Reed Hastings, are also frequent donors to the Democratic Partyand former Obama administration official Susan Rice sits on the company’s board. His recent public criticism of companies doing business with former President Donald Trump will have further complicated negotiations.

With shareholder unrest growing and Netflix’s market value falling by around $200 billion during the takeover attempt, Sarandos ended up abandoning the purchase.