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The Latch

Are All Your Favourite HBO Max Shows Getting Cancelled? Here’s What We Know

August 8, 2022
hacks season two hbo max merger
HBO Max

Late last week, Warner Bros. Discovery announced that HBO Max and Discovery+ will be merging into one as-yet-untitled streaming platform.

The merger is set to take place in mid-2023, but the announcement has caused quite a stir online as people speculated about what this merger means for the fate of their beloved HBO Max shows.

JB Perrette, CEO and president of global streaming and games for Warner Bros. Discovery, announced the news while speaking on the company’s Q2 earnings call, per Variety.

“At the end of the day, putting all the content together was the only way we saw to make this a viable business,” Perrette said.

While this merger will hit the US next year, Australians shouldn’t expect to find themselves signing up for the HBO Max / Discovery+ hybrid platform until mid-2024.

Of course, by the time it launches down under, the content that the platform carries may be very different from the HBO Max and Discovery+ content we know and love currently.

In the years since HBO Max has launched in May 2020, it’s made a name for itself with shows like And Just Like That, Hacks and The Flight Attendant. With high quality shows that have racked up plenty of Emmy nominations, it seemed HBO Max was a hit, and set to be a major competitor for Netflix.

Related: Revealed: The Fate of Your Favourite HBO Shows Like ‘Succession’ and ‘And Just Like That’

Related: Netflix Is Releasing Cheaper Subscriptions, But They’ll Come With Ads

However, in early April, Warner Bros. merged with Discovery, Inc. and suddenly — to the surprise of viewers everywhere — it seems that the beloved shows of HBO Max may be cancelled long before their time.

In the August 4 presentation by Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav, though, Zaslav stated that the merger would bridge a gender gap found between the two brands.

In a widely-mocked slide from the presentation, Zaslav stated that HBO Max was found to have a “male skew”, be focused on scripted content and appointment viewing, and be the “home of fandoms”. Discovery+, on the other hand, was found to have a female skew, with the focus being on comfort viewing and unscripted content.

Given that HBO Max is perhaps best known for its originals like … And Just Like That, Hacks, Gossip Girl, Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin and The Flight Attendant, people flocked to Twitter to criticise the presentation.

What HBO Max Shows Will Be Cancelled?

Currently, Warner Bros. Discovery have yet to announce the fate of its HBO Max Originals, but it should be noted that HBO shows — like Succession, Westworld, Barry, The White Lotus and Euphoria — should be safe, as the merger will (likely) only affect Max Originals.

During the Warner Bros. Discovery earnings call, Zaslav addressed the rumours that they would be cancelling the HBO Max Originals in order to focus more on unscripted content.

“There was some buzz today about HBO Max [that] we’re going to start doing less series and our strategy is to embrace and support and then drive the incredible success that HBO Max is having… We’re going to spend significantly more on the HBO Max product,” Zaslav said. “We’re going to spend more money on content. We’re a content company.”

However, Forbes has reported that Warner Bros. Discovery will be slashing the HBO Max production staff by up to 70%. They also said that WBD’s new strategy going forward would not be prioritising HBO Max scripted content, whether that be for films or TV.

This leaves the fate of HBO Max Originals up in the air for the time being. While it’s likely that some of the shows will be absorbed into HBO, it’s safe to assume that not all of the following shows will survive The Purge: Merger Edition:

  • And Just Like That
  • Arkham Batman Spin-Off 
  • Doom Patrol
  • Fboy Island
  • The Flight Attendant
  • Gossip Girl
  • Hacks
  • Harley Quinn
  • Minx
  • Our Flag Means Death
  • Peacemaker
  • The Penguin Batman Spin-Off 
  • Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin
  • Rap Sh!t
  • The Sex Lives of College Girls
  • Titans
  • Tokyo Vice
  • Warrior

Unfortunately, we don’t know any more than this at the moment, but we’ll update this post as soon as we know more.

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