Warner Bros. Movies No Longer Streaming on HBO Max after 45 Days in Theaters
Although Warner Bros. previously planned to send all of its movies to HBO Max after 45 days in theaters, it has now been announced that the company will use a case-by-case basis to determine when theatrically released films will be available to stream. HBO Max has been experiencing uncertainty recently with the cancellation or deletion of many original projects, namely theBatgirlmovie, amid its merger with Discovery. With Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav now head of the media conglomerate, he has already implemented cost-cutting measures that have had major impacts on networks like CW and TNT.
Launching in 2020, HBO Max quickly saw success for its large movie library and original content and released all of Warner Bros. 2021 theatrical releases simultaneously. HBO Max also thrived with special events like the Friends reunion and Harry Potter 20th Anniversary reunion, but now appears to already be removing a number of movies and shows amid the Discovery+ merger, set to launch it Summer 2023, for not performing well with audiences and to adhere to the new content guidelines under Zaslav. The content cut could also be preparation to trim down the catalog before merging with Discovery+, but either way, original titles remaining on streaming services forever seems to no longer be a guarantee.
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Decider reports from a source at HBO Max that the company will now use a case-by-case basis approach to determine when theatrically released films will be available to stream. Zaslav calls the decision a "strategic shift" away from releasing theatrically released films directly on HBO Max, leaving audiences to wonder how long they'll have to wait to stream movies.
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