Show Creators Blast HBO Max for Pulling 36 Titles, Including Originals

HBO Max will remove 36 titles from its streaming service as early as this week in an attempt to cut costs.

Warner Bros. Discovery, which plans to merge HBO Max and Discovery+ in 2023, believes removing the lesser-watched programs will save money on residuals.

"As we work toward bringing our content catalogs together under one platform, we will be making changes to the content offering available on both HBO Max and Discovery+," said HBO Max's statement. "That will include the removal of some content from both platforms."

An exact date when the titles will be removed has not been announced.

Earlier this month, HBO Max removed several Max originals from its service, including Moonshot and An American Pickle. Now, the streamer will remove 20 more Max originals, two HBO originals, seven Cartoon Network shows, and seven acquired titles. It is not yet known whether they will be made available on DVD or rental services.

The following titles will be removed from the platform:

HBO Max Originals

• 12 Dates of Christmas
• About Last Night
• Aquaman: King of Atlantis
• Close Enough
• Ellen’s Next Great Designer
• Esme & Roy
• The Fungies!
• Generation Hustle
• Generation
• Infinity Train
• Little Ellen
• My Mom, Your Dad
• Odo
• Ravi Patel’s Pursuit of Happiness
• Summer Camp Island
• The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo
• The Runaway Bunny
• Theodosia
• Tig n’ Seek
• Yabba Dabba Dinosaurs

HBO Originals

• My Dinner with Herve
• Share

Cartoon Network

• Dodo
• Elliott From Earth
• Mao Mao, Heroes of Pure Heart
• Mighty Magiswords
• OK K.O.! – Let’s Be Heroes
• Uncle Grandpa
• Victor and Valentino

Acquired Titles

• Detention Adventure
• Messy Goes to Okido
• Mia’s Magic Playground
• The Ollie & Moon Show
• Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures
• Make It Big, Make It Small
• Squish

Following the announcement, creators have spoken out against the decision. Julia Pott, an animator and the creator of Summer Camp Island, tweeted, "We worked for five years to make 100 episodes of animation. We worked late into the night, we let ourselves go, we were a family of hard working artists who wanted to make something beautiful, and HBO Max just pulled them all like we were nothing. Animation is not nothing!"

We worked for 5 years to make 100 episodes of animation. We worked late into the night, we let ourselves go, we were a family of hard working artists who wanted to make something beautiful, and HBO MAX just pulled them all like we were nothing. Animation is not nothing!

— Julia Pott (@juliapott) August 18, 2022

The decision to remove the series from the streamer also implies that the upcoming sixth season of the show will not air, prompting Potts to write, "We worked through the pandemic to make 20 linear episodes that are our most beautiful work yet. I cannot wait for you to see them. YOU WILL SEE THEM! I will not rest!"

and we worked through the pandemic to make 20 linear episodes that are our most beautiful work yet. I cannot wait for you to see them. YOU WILL SEE THEM! I will not rest!

— Julia Pott (@juliapott) August 18, 2022

Ryan Pequin, who also worked on the animated series, shared his concern about the sixth season as well, writing, "We put… a lot of work into that."

we put........ a lot of work into that

— Ryan Pequin (@ryanpequin) August 18, 2022

Deena ElGenaidi's writing has been featured in Nylon, MTV News, Insider, The AV Club, and more. You can follow her on Twitter @deenaelg.