HBO Max is just barely over two weeks old, but the streaming service already has a handful of movies that are on their way out the proverbial door on July 1. Among the outgoing offerings are 15 DC Comics movies, including the original Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher Batman movies, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman and Justice League. What’s the deal?
As it turns out, HBO Max has a plan to feature a rotating lineup of DC Comics movies that will change each month, as noted in the official statement below that was sent to Observer:
We have a collection of DC films that will rotate on the platform. We have a new batch coming in July and then another batch coming in August. And I have just confirmed that the batch that is on right now will be returning.
So if you were itching to watch some of the early DCEU entries on HBO Max or take a gander at lesser-known DC movies from years past, like Steel and Catwoman, they will be added back to the platform at some point. When that will happen is hard to say, as is what will comprise the batch of DC movies being added in July. Some of the DC movies that will remain on HBO Max past July 1 include Aquaman, Shazam!, Joker and the Ryan Reynolds-led Green Lantern.
There’s also fellow streaming service DC Universe to consider. Its movie offerings have primarily consisted of older live-action movies and animated direct-to-video features, and I’m curious to see if what HBO Max is rotating out on the DC front factors at all into what DC Universe is able to provide its subscribers. For example, if the older Batman movies are leaving HBO Max at the end of the month, does that mean they’ll be going back to DC Universe for a bit?
In any case, clearly HBO Max is taking a different approach with its DC Comics film library than Disney+ has been doing with its Marvel movies. Granted, not every single Marvel Cinematic Universe entry was instantly available when the Mouse House’s streaming service launched last November, but more have been added in the months since, and once they’ve gone up, they haven’t been taken down.
Of course, movies aren’t the only ways that HBO Max represents the DC Comics world. There are also a few television shows available there, such as The CW’s Batwoman and Doom Patrol, which originally launched on DC Universe and will continue to stream there as well.
Furthermore, HBO Max has its own slate of DC Comics-related original TV shows in the works, including Green Lantern, Strange Adventures, Justice League Dark, Aquaman: King of Atlantis (which will be a miniseries) and DC Super Hero High. It was also announced last month that HBO Max will also be the home of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, a.k.a. The Snyder Cut. That project will drop on the service sometime in 2021, and upwards of $30 million is reportedly being spent on the restoration.
Keep checking back with CinemaBlend for all the biggest updates concerning DC Comics movies, and if you’re curious about what this corner of the superhero film genre has coming up, look through our comprehensive guide.
