Following Monday's astounding announcement from Warner Bros. Discovery that they would be canceling two nearly completed films, it appears that the company has been quietly culling its content from HBO Max.
In a thread discussing the decision to nix DC's Batgirl (which had already finished filming when Warner Bros. announced it would no longer be premiering on HBO Max or in theaters), Reddit users made note of the removals in recent weeks.
"There's a House Party reboot that was supposed to come out on [HBO] Max last month that was pulled a couple weeks before it was to debut," user decline_inline shared. "Also a bunch of already-released Max movies have been pulled from the service in recent weeks (The Witches and An American Pickle among them)."
In addition to the last-minute cancelation of the House Party remake, at least six Warner Bros. movies—all "Max Originals"—have been removed from the platform. Among those pulled are sci-fi rom-com Moonshot, Melissa McCarthy-led dystopian comedy Superintelligence, Locked Down, and Charm City Kings.
Although it's not unusual for streaming services to have a rotating selection of content, these changes are almost always shared with subscribers in advance—like when HBO Max announced they would be massively expanding their catalog of A24 films. But none of the Warner Bros. films pulled from the platform were included in any of HBO Max's recent monthly updates about upcoming additions and departures.
Cancelations, Content Removal Likely Cost-Cutting Measure
The decision for a streamer to remove original films from their platform is practically unheard of. Along with several last-minute cancelations, fans have been left understandably confused.
The changes, however, are likely a cost-cutting measure for Warner Bros. Discovery. The conglomerate is expected to claim the canceled Batgirl, Scoob! Holiday Haunt, and House Party as tax-write offs in an attempt to recoup their investment (between the three films, Warner Bros. reportedly had already spent over $100 million).
As far as the original content being pulled from HBO Max, Variety's Todd Spangler theorizes that it could be a move to get "streaming-content payment for obligations for underperforming titles off its books."
Though there's no word if any other Warner Bros. Discovery content will be pulled from the streamer, several exclusive movies remain on HBO Max. These include emotional road comedy Unpregnant starring Haley Lu Richardson and Barbie Ferreira, 2022 Father of the Bride remake with Gloria Estefan, Let Them All Talk, Kimi, The Fallout, No Sudden Move, and 8-Bit Christmas.
Reps for Warner Bros. Discovery have not responded to inquiries about the recent removals.