HBO Max, Out in May, Will Cost More Than Netflix

New Looney Tunes Cartoons and classics from the vault will also stream at HBO Max.

Series that seem in keeping with the HBO brand are also on the docket, including “Americanah,” a 10-episode limited series based on the book by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and starring Lupita Nyong’o and written by Danai Gurira, who will serve as executive producer; “Circe,” a 10-episode series based on Madeline Miller’s 2018 best-selling novel; and “Station Eleven,” a post-apocalyptic series adapted from the best seller by Emily St. John Mandel, to be directed by Hiro Murai, who is known for his work on the FX show “Atlanta.”

Ann Sarnoff, who was named the head of the Warner Bros. film and television studio in June, highlighted the studio’s upcoming slate — including the debut of “The Joker” — and its classic movie library, including films from Warner Bros., MGM and Criterion Classic, that will stream on HBO Max. Intended to replace the much-loved and now-defunct streaming site from Turner Classic Movies, Film Struck, the monthly offering will comprise classics that “can’t be seen anywhere else.”

There will also be competition and reality shows, including a matchmaking show produced by Ellen DeGeneres. Conan O’Brien, whose “Conan” is broadcast on TBS, will put together five stand-up comedy specials featuring up-and-coming comics for HBO Max, the company announced at the event.

HBO Max hopes to appeal to young viewers with four young-adult films from the uber-producer Greg Berlanti, including “UnPregnant,” which tracks two teenagers on a road trip to New Mexico to terminate a pregnancy before the start of college. A “Gossip Girl” reboot and “Grease: Rydell High,” a musical series, also play to that audience. On Tuesday, Mr. Berlanti revealed two new projects: “Green Lantern” based on the classic DC property and “Strange Adventures,” a one-hour anthology series featuring characters from across the DC canon.

HBO Max also announced that Elizabeth Banks, Issa Rae and Mindy Kaling will each produce a half-hour comedy series for the service. Ms. Banks will produce “DC Super Hero High,” a half-hour series set at a boarding school for gifted children. Ms. Rae’s show follows a female rap group from outside Miami trying to make it in the music industry. Ms. Kaling’s “College Girls” follows three freshman roommates at Evermore College in Vermont.

WarnerMedia made its presentation after ATT’s third-quarter earnings report, in which it announced a steep decline in its DirecTV subscribers and an overall decline in profit. Elliott Management, one of Wall Street’s biggest and most aggressive hedge funds, which owns about 1 percent of ATT shares, has been critical of the company’s move into entertainment. The success of HBO Max will figure into ATT’s ability to stave off those investors.

Randall Stephenson, the chief executive of ATT, closed the event, saying, “This is not Netflix. This is not Disney. This is HBO Max. This company in the next three years will invest $4 billion in building HBO Max.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/29/business/media/hbo-max-price.html?emc=rss&partner=rss