Hanna-Barbera’s classic cartoons and brand are now owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, through its Warner Bros. Animation/Cartoon Network group, which controls the Hanna-Barbera library, trademarks, and current brand use.

Who owns Hanna-Barbera now?

  • The original Hanna-Barbera Productions studio was absorbed into Warner Bros. Animation after co‑founder William Hanna died in 2001, ending its existence as an independent company.
  • Today the characters and shows (like The Flintstones, Scooby‑Doo, and The Jetsons) are part of Warner Bros. Discovery’s portfolio, managed mainly through Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network.

How did Warner end up with it?

  • In 1966, Taft Broadcasting bought Hanna-Barbera, turning it into a corporate-owned studio instead of a fully independent one.
  • In 1991, Turner Broadcasting System acquired Hanna-Barbera, then later merged into Time Warner; after corporate restructurings, those assets ended up under today’s Warner Bros. Discovery umbrella.

What’s happening with the brand today?

  • In 2021, WarnerMedia (now part of Warner Bros. Discovery) revived the name by renaming Cartoon Network Studios Europe to Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe , using the classic brand on new productions.
  • The Hanna-Barbera label is still used for branding, marketing, and copyright on many classic cartoons, even though the original production company no longer operates on its own.

Mini timeline (HTML table)

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Year Event Owner / Controller
1957 Hanna-Barbera founded by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera.Independent studio
1966 Studio sold to Taft Broadcasting.Taft Broadcasting
1991 Turner Broadcasting acquires Hanna-Barbera.Turner Broadcasting
2001 Studio folded into Warner Bros. Animation after corporate mergers.Warner Bros. (now Warner Bros. Discovery)
2021 Cartoon Network Studios Europe renamed Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe.Warner Bros. Discovery
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.