HBO Max: What you need to know about the new HBO Max streaming service

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

The streaming wars continue! With Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime having cornered the market for years, the new wave of services ranging from CBS All Access and Peacock have struggled to find their footing with exclusives that make them destination viewing and worth the cost. Disney+ was the most successful as the exclusive home for the House of Mouse and their subsidiaries like Marvel and Pixar. Now, the next big player to hit will be the HBO Max streaming service and we have the answers to all of your questions.

What is the new HBO Max streaming service?

Even if you don't know exactly what HBO MAX is, you probably know what HBO is. One of, if not the most, famous cable networks, HBO is a household name thanks to series ranging from Tales from the Crypt and The Sopranos to The Wire, Game of Thrones, Westworld and more. Several years ago, HBO spawned HBO GO, a mobile platform for cable viewers as well as HBO NOW, a standalone platform for cord-cutters. HBO Max brings all of those together along with an extensive library of Warner Bros feature films and television series coupled with HBO's catalog of shows and original films.

When (and Where) will it be available?

On May 27, HBO Max will be availabe in the United States. Versions of the platform for Latin American and European countries where HBO directly operates are slated for launch in 2021. Networks like HBO Asia and Canadian network Crave will air some of HBO Max's exclusive content on their existing channels, but this excludes co-productions and library content licensed to other distributors. 

How much does it cost?

The short answer is $15 a month. The long answer is a bit more complicated. Subscribers to HBO Now will get Max for free as the cost matches that of the previous service. If you have HBO (and therefore HBO Go) via your existing cable provider, you would have to pay the additional cost for HBO Max in it's entirety. That is unless you get it as a free upgrade which only applies to subscribers of AT&T, Charter/Spectrum, YouTubeTV, Google, Apple, Hulu, Altice USA, Verizon, Cox, or NCTC cable providers. Everyone else has to pony up.

How does it compare to other streaming services?

That depends. Already the most expensive streaming platform (Netflix is as low as $9, Disney+ is $7 and AppleTV+ is $5 and Peacock can be free with ads), it depends on what you want to watch. Certain things like the recently announced Snyder Cut of JUSTICE LEAGUE and various exclusive deals with creators like Seth Rogen and J.J. Abrams make HBO Max very enticing. Plus, it has the biggest slate of shows and movies of any of the new streaming services at launch.

How can I watch it?

HBO Max will be available on Apple and Android enabled devices includes phones and tablets. It will also work on newer models of Apple TVs. It will also be available via a native app for Playstation 4, Xbox ONe, and Samsung smart TVs made after 2016.

What is coming to the service?

There is a lot coming to HBO Max. On top of every season of South Park and a long desired Friends reunion, HBO Max has a lot of original properties ranging from J.J. Abrams' Justice League Dark, THE SHINING prequel series Overlook, Denis Villeneuve's DUNE spin-off The Sisterhood, the Ridley Scott produced series Raised by Wolves, Seth Rogen's AN AMERICAN PICKLE, and Arrow creator Greg Berlanti's live action Green Lantern series. There are also series like DC Super Hero High, the GREASE series Rydell High and the post-apocalyptic Station Eleven. Joe Dante's GREMLINS will be adapted as the series Secrets of the Mogwai while The Boondocks and Adventure Time will get revivials. 

HBO Max also has a ton in development invluding NATIONAL LAMPOON'S VACATION series The Griswolds, a revival of Head of the Class, and long anticipated adaptations of 80s horror books Point Horror and the novel Snow Crash. Original films coming include Melissa McCarthy's SUPERINTELLIGENCE, indie darling CHARM CITY KINGS, and a lot more.

What have we seen so far?

At the time of launch on May 27, co-productions like the BBC series Ghosts, Home , Stath Lets Flats, and Trigonometry will be the big titles along with reality series Craftopia, vogueing series Legendary, the kids talk show The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo will be on the slate. Two series were made available for review. Here is a quick rundown of what we got the chance to take a look at.

Love Life – Debuts May 27th

Starring Anna Kendrick, Love Life is an anthology style series that follows the romantic relationships of Darby Carter, a young woman whose life is narrated almost like a nature documentary. Kendrick's bubbly personality shines in this story that is a millennial take on Sex and the City. It has the feel and tone you would expect from an HBO series and could have easily premiered on the cable channel. For HBO Max, it is a little under the radar, especially for a launch title but does feature some recognizable actors like Scoot McNairy, John Gallagher, and Lesley Manville. Produced by Kendrick and Paul Feig, Love Life certainly doesn't carry the same weight as some of the marquee titles that helped launch AppleTV+ and Disney+, but it certainly shows the range that HBO Max will be capable of. 

Looney Tunes Cartoons – Debuts May 27th

It has been a long time since Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and their wacky crew have been headliners. With SPACE JAM 2 on the horizon, Warner Bros presents a brand new batch of adventures for the Merry Melodies characters. With updated animations, the new Looney Tunes harkens back to the classic slapstick of the original short films. With voices that feel right out of their heyday, these new Looney Tunes are fun and great for a new generation to get introduced to these characters. The violence is definitely less, well, violent than the classic cartoons and the animation is closer to Spongebob or Ren & Stimpy, but the voices and sound effects will fill you with nostalgia as you watch them.

What is coming next?

At launch, HBO Max has so much that there is not enough room to list it all, but take a look at the massive list of what is premiering in June. 

June 1:

4th & Forever: Muck City, Season One

Adventures In Babysitting, 1987 (HBO)

Amelie, 2001 (HBO)

An American Werewolf in London, 1981 (HBO)

The American, 2010 (HBO)

Another Cinderella Story, 2008

Beautiful Girls, 1996 (HBO)

Black Beauty, 1994

Bridget Jones's Baby, 2016

The Bucket List, 2007

Cabaret, 1972

The Champ, 1979

Chicago, 2002

A Cinderella Story, 2004

A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song, 2011

Clash Of The Titans, 2010

Cradle 2 the Grave, 2003

Crash, 2005 (Director's Cut) (HBO)

Doubt, 2008 (HBO)

Dreaming Of Joseph Lees, 1999 (HBO)

Drop Dead Gorgeous, 1999

Dune, 1984 (HBO)

Elf, 2003

Enter The Dragon, 1973

Far and Away, 1992 (HBO)

Final Destination, 2000

Final Destination 2, 2003

Final Destination 3, 2006

The Final Destination, 2009

Firewall, 2006

Flipped, 2010

Forces of Nature, 1999 (HBO)

The Fountain, 2006 (HBO)

Frantic, 1988

From Dusk Til Dawn, 1996

Full Metal Jacket, 1987

Gente De Zona: En Letra De Otro, 2018 (HBO)

The Good Son, 1993 (HBO)

The Goonies, 1985

Hanna, 2011 (HBO)

Havana, 1990 (HBO)

He Got Game, 1998 (HBO)

Heaven Can Wait, 1978

Heidi, 2006

Hello Again, 1987 (HBO)

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, 2012

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, 2013

The Hunger, 1983

In Her Shoes, 2005 (HBO)

In Like Flint, 1967 (HBO)

The Iron Giant, 1999

It Takes Two, 1995

Juice, 1992

The Last Mimzy, 2007

License To Wed, 2007

Life, 1999 (HBO)

Lifeforce, 1985 (HBO)

Lights Out, 2016 (HBO)

Like Water For Chocolate, 1993 (HBO)

Looney Tunes: Back in Action, 2003

The Losers, 2010

Love Jones, 1997

Lucy, 2020 (HBO)

Magic Mike, 2012

McCabe and Mrs. Miller, 1971

Misery, 1990

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, 2008 (HBO)

A Monster Calls, 2016 (HBO)

Mr. Wonderful, 1993 (HBO)

Must Love Dogs, 2005

My Dog Skip, 2000

Mystic River, 2003

The Neverending Story II: The Next Chapter, 1991

The Neverending Story, 1984

New York Minute, 2004

Nights In Rodanthe, 2008

No Reservations, 2007

Ordinary People, 1980

Our Man Flint, 1966 (HBO)

The Parallax View, 1974

Patch Adams, 1998 (HBO)

A Perfect World, 1993

Pedro Capo: En Letra Otro, 2017 (HBO)

Personal Best, 1982

Presumed Innocent, 1990

Ray, 2004 (HBO)

Richie Rich (Movie), 1994

Rosewood, 1997

Rugrats Go Wild, 2003

Running on Empty, 1988

Secondhand Lions, 2003

She's The Man, 2006 (HBO)

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, 2011 (HBO)

Space Cowboys, 2000

Speed Racer, 2008

Splendor in the Grass, 1961

The Stepfather, 1987 (HBO)

Summer Catch, 2001

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 1990

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2, 1991

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3, 1993

Tess, 1980 (HBO)

Tim Burton's Corpse Bride, 2005

The Time Traveler's Wife, 2009

Titanic, 1997

TMNT, 2007

Torch Song Trilogy, 1988

Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, 1997 (HBO)

Tweety's High-Flying Adventures, 2000

U-571, 2000 (HBO)

U.S. Marshals, 1998

Unaccompanied Minors, 2006

Uncle Buck, 1989 (HBO)

Veronica Mars, 2014

Walking and Talking, 1996 (HBO)

We Are Marshall, 2006

Weird Science, 1985 (HBO)

When Harry Met Sally, 1989

Wild Wild West, 1999

Wonder, 2019 (HBO)

X-Men: First Class, 2011 (HBO)

You’ve Got Mail, 1998

June 2:

Inside Carbonaro, Season One (TruTV)

June 4:

HBO First Look: The King of Staten Island (HBO)

We’re Here, Season Finale (HBO)

June 5:

Betty, Season Finale (HBO)

June 6:

Ad Astra, 2019 (HBO)

Yvonne Orji: Momma, I Made It! (HBO)

June 7:

I May Destroy You, Series Premiere (HBO)

June 10:

Infinity Train, Season 2 Premiere

June 12:

El asesino de los caprichos (AKA The Goya Murders), 2020 (HBO)

June 13:

The Good Liar, 2019 (HBO)

June 14:

I Know This Much Is True, Limited Series Finale (HBO)

Insecure, Season 4 Finale (HBO)

June 16:

#GeorgeWashington, 2017

Age of Big Cats, Season One

Ancient Earth, Season One

Apocalypse: WWI, Season One

Big World in A Small Garden, 2016

The Celts: Blood, Iron & Sacrifice, Season One

Cornfield Shipwreck, 2019

The Daunting Fortress of Richard the Lionheart, 2019

David Attenborough's Ant Mountain, 2016

David Attenbourough’s Light on Earth, 2016

DeBugged, 2018

Digits, Season One

Dragons & Damsels, 2019

Ebony: The Last Years of The Atlantic Slave Trade, 2016

Expedition: Black Sea Wrecks, Season One

First Man, 2017

Going Nuts: Tales from Squirrel World, 2019

Hack the Moon: Unsung Heroes of Apollo, 2019

The History of Food, Season One

Hurricane the Anatomy, Season One, 2018

Into the Lost Crystal Caves, 2016

Jason Silva: Transhumanism, 2016

King: A Filmed Record… Montgomery to Memphis (Part 1 & Part 2), Season One

Knuckleball!, 2019

Leonardo: The Mystery of The Lost Portrait, 2018

Looney Tunes (Batch 2) (6/22), Season One

Man’s First Friend, 2018

Penguin Central, 2019

Pompeii: Disaster Street, 2020

Popeye (Batch 2) (6/22), Season One

Pyramids Builders: New Clues, 2019

Realm of the Volga, Season One

Sacred Spaces, Season One

Scandalous: The Untold Story of the National Enquirer, Documentary Premiere (CNN)

Scanning the Pyramids, 2018

Science vs. Terrorism, Season One

The Secret Lives of Big Cats, Season One

Secret Life of Lakes, Season One

Secret Life Underground, Season One

Secrets of the Solar System, Season One

Space Probes!, Season One

Speed, Season One

Spies of War , Season One

Tales of Nature, Season One

Tsunamis: Facing a Global Threat, 2020

Versailles Rediscovered: The Sun King’s Vanished Palace, 2019

Viking Women, Season One

Vitamania, 2018

Whale Wisdom, 2019

The Woodstock Bus, 2019

June 18:

Summer Camp Island, Season 2 Premiere

Karma, Series Premiere

June 19:

Bully. Coward. Victim. The Story of Roy Cohn, Documentary Premiere (HBO)

Entre Nos: The Winners (HBO)

Bajo el mismo techo (AKA Under the Same Roof), 2020 (HBO)

June 20:

Ford V. Ferrari, 2020 (HBO)

June 21:

Perry Mason, Limited Series Premiere (HBO)

June 22:

Hard, Series Finale (HBO)

June 24:

South Park, Seasons 1-23

Transhood, Documentary Premiere (HBO)

June 25:

Adventure Time Distant Lands: BMO, Special PremiereDoom Patrol, Season 2 Premiere

Esme & Roy, Season 2A Premiere

Search Party, Season 3 Premiere

June 26:

Hormigas (AKA The Awakening of the Ants), 2020

June 27:

Doctor Sleep (Director’s Cut), 2020 (HBO)

June 28:

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, Docuseries Premiere (HBO)

June 30:

Welcome to Chechnya, Documentary Premiere (HBO)

So, is it worth adding another subscription to my monthly bills?

While the vast majority of the films and series at launch have been available for a while on other services, there is a lot to digest here. There are not enough brand new series or films out of the gate to make it worth shelling out for unless you are looking forward to HBO series already set to premiere this summer. Still, it may be worth it to see JUSTICE LEAGUE next year alone and there is more than enough in the coming years that HBO Max may be your best bet to subscribe to after Disney+.