Elvis is nowhere to be found on HBO Max after 45 days in theaters. After taking over, Discovery has changed the strategy and will now make decisions on case-by-case basis.
In April 2022, WarnerMedia and Discovery merged and subscribers should expect big changes in the coming years.
HBO Max and Discovery+ will merge into a new streaming service starting in mid-2023, Warner has axed movies such as The Batgirl, HBO has axed Max originals, and HBO Max is no longer getting new Warner movies after 45 days in theaters.
- "We continue to experiment with when we offer Warner Bros. films on HBO Max, balancing the need to give the films maximum theatrical exposure. Going forward, instead of a 45-day rule, we will be more flexible and confirm the streaming premiere date of our theatrical titles about seven days before they come to HBO Max," Tom Nielsen, head of press for HBO Max EMEA, told FlatpanelsHD.
Elvis will be available as PVOD tomorrow after 45 days in theaters, but it will take longer for it to arrive on HBO Max
Growth forecast slashed
In 2021, HBO Max experimented with same-day releases in theaters and on HBO Max in the US. In other regions and in 2022, movies such as Dune and The Batman arrived on HBO Max after 45 days in theaters.
The 45-day rule was implemented under former CEO Jason Kilar. It helped bring an additional 11 million subscribers to HBO Max in 2021 alone.
As a result of the merger and changes, Warner Bros. Discovery has slashed its growth forecast from 120-150 million subscribers on HBO Max alone by 2025 to 130 million subscribers total by 2025 for all streaming services under Warner Bros. Discovery. For comparison Netflix has 220 million subscribers.
