In which the people running HBO realize that people like HBO.

by Therese Odell, posted in watch this

HOW DARE YOU MONSTERS TAKE SO LONG TO PET BETSY. The way I would have been ALL OVER that puppy … you’ve got to be KIDDING ME.

@handshakebets

How do you NOT pet a yellow lab puppy!? 😳 #puppy #dogsoftiktok #dog #starbucks #puppytiktok #labrador #miami #handshakebets

♬ Viva La Vida Coldplay sped up – ol

Here’s A BUNCH OF TV News

Alright, prepare to be bored while I go on a little industry rant.

So a few years ago, Discovery somehow was able to purchase Warner Bros. which still seems crazy to me. The CEO of Discovery, David Zaslav, who made his career by making 30 different spinoffs of 90 Day Fiancé, came to the position of Warner Bros. Discovery CEO with the attitude that what Americans really like is cheap reality programming, and that HBO is elitist, snooty, and most importantly expensive — more expensive than it is really worth. As such, the HBO brand was stripped from the streaming platform, which became “Max,” and what had been a platform exclusively for quality HBO programming and films was flooded with Love It or List It, Chopped, and other inexpensive Discovery programming. And in fact, Zaslav was so convinced that what viewers REALLY wanted was more reality and less HBO, that they still offer a Discovery-only streaming platform minus all that Succession and White Lotus and The Last of Us and whathaveyou. You can’t get HBO without Discovery, but you can get Discovery without HBO.

And you know what? That’s fine. As a subscriber to Max, I’m mostly there for the HBO, but I’m not going to turn my nose up to some Discovery-produced trash true crime or paranormal series from time to time. It doesn’t cost me anything extra, after all.

But then a funny thing happened: in a recent interview with Puck, HBO head Casey Bloys revealed that what Max subscribers actually want is HBO, not more Ghost Adventures. “We did an assessment of what subscribers were watching. We did a lot of research and focus groups. The things subscribers want from us are HBO programming, scripted dramas, comedies, documentaries, the pay-one \[licensing window] movies, library movies, and basically the Warner Bros. TV library.”

In fact, the top ten list of shows and movies on Max is dominated by HBO series and Warner Bros. movies. It’s almost as though people who pay for streaming like HBO, and people who are happy with a marathon of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives are still committed to the cable model. Whoda thunk?

Anyway, this is a long way to go to tell you that Max is about to purge a bunch of Discovery shows — like 200 or so —  from Max, because it turns out that’s what is costing them money, not the premium content from HBO and Warner Bros. Reddit has a list of the shows and movies that will be pulled this month. May 2 was the first big purge, but a lot of movies are going to be yoinked on the 31st, so you’ve been warned. Oh and also, Zaslav can suck it. I was right and his dumb ass was wrong. Feels good. (H/T Pajiba)

And the antidote to that little rant: Nate Bargatze pointed out that not that many people watched Succession in the grand scheme of things, and he’s not wrong, but it still kinda hurts.

Bella Ramsey, who is nonbinary, struggles with the whole gendered awards categories thing. All of the headlines I’ve seen about this suggest that they argue for keeping things the way they are, but it’s much more nuanced than that. It’s a complicated issue, and unsurprisingly, this thoughtful young actor doesn’t have all the answers.

Netflix’s interactive experiment is about to end: Black Mirror: Bandersnatch and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy Vs. The Reverend will be removed from the streamer on May 12.

Netflix is also overhauling its home page design, adding AI and making its mobile app a little more TikTok-y.

Come to think of it … Saturday Night Live IS a cult …

And who will be leaving the cult this season? If I had to put money on it, I’d bet: Colin Jost, Michael Che, Heidi Gardner, Mikey Day, and Devon Walker. And I’m not sure about Mikey Day. You know who’s not leaving? Lorne Michaels.

The conclave began today, and can I just tell you how much I love that the cardinals have been watching Conclave ahead of it?

Rachel Maddow promises she’s not going anywhere.

 

 
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Renewals

Cancellations

In Development

Casting News

Mark Your Calendars

  • We Were Liars will premiere on Prime Video on June 13.

  • The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon will return on AMC in the fall

  • TMZ Investigates: What Happened to Justin Bieber? will debut on Fox on May 14.

R.I.P.

Carolyn Raskin, Emmy-winning producer

WATCH THIS

The Masked Singer: Two-hour season 13 finale. 7 p.m., Fox

Wild Cards: Ellie makes a shocking discovery in the season finale. 7 p.m., The CW

Late Night:

  • Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Kerry Washington, Josh Hartnett, Adam Duritz, Counting Crows
  • Late Night with Seth Meyers: Anna Wintour, A$AP Rocky, Benito Skinner
  • The Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Christine Baranski, Stellan Skarsgård
  • After Midnight: Paul Feig, Taylor Ortega, Alex Newell, Anna Kendrick
  • Jimmy Kimmel Live: Barry Keoghan, Luenell, I’m With Her
  • The Daily Show: John Green, host Desi LydicBA
  • Watch What Happens Live: Tinx, Lexi Wood

WEDS. 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30
ABC Celebrity Wheel of Fortune
(new)		 Jeopardy! Masters
(new)		 Celebrity Jeopardy!
(repeat)
CBS Survivor
(new)		 The Amazing Race
(new)
CW Wild Cards
(new)		 Sherlock & Daughter
(new)		 Local
FOX The Masked Singer
(new)		 News/Local
NBC Chicago Med
(new)		 Chicago Fire
(new)		 Chicago P.D.
(new)

One thought on “In which the people running HBO realize that people like HBO.”

  1. My wife made fu of me for watching it, but ‘Rescue: HI-Surf’ was a good show. I’m sure it costs a fortune to produce though and I guess the ratings weren’t high enough to justify it. Bummer.

    Reply

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