Skip to main content

HBO Max wades into the streaming wars on May 27

You’ll be able to binge-watch another streaming service when HBO Max finally joins the streaming world on May 27. 

The streaming service will reportedly have 10,000 hours of content at its launch. Expect to find cult favorites like Friends, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, The Big Bang Theory, South Park, Doctor Who, Adventure Time, The OC, and more.

Veep, Game of Thrones, Chernobyl, and Barry will also be available to stream via HBO Max. 

As far as movies go, all 21 of Studio Ghibli’s animated features will stream exclusively on HBO Max. You can also expect 2001: A Space Odyssey, Casablanca, The Dark Knight, The Matrix Trilogy, and The Wizard of Oz, as well as all DC films from the past decade. 

HBO Max
Image used with permission by copyright holder

HBO Max will cost $15 a month, which makes it more expensive than the other streaming services. However, given the amount of extra content HBO Max has, and the fact that HBO currently costs about $15 through cable providers or HBO Now, the higher price makes sense.

If you already have HBO Now, you’ll get access to HBO Max at no extra cost. AT&T customers who are already subscribed to HBO will also get HBO Max for free. 

Like other streaming services, HBO Max will also have its own original content, including the scripted comedy Love Life starring Anna Kendrick, and an underground ballroom dance competition series called Legendary. Among other original series confirmed for HBO Max are the revival series Grease: Rydell High, the Cristin Milioti-led comedy series Made for Love, and the limited series Station Eleven, starring Mackenzie Davis. 

An exclusive Friends reunion featuring all six original cast members was set to debut on HBO Max in May, but that project has since been pushed back due to the coronavirus outbreak.

HBO Max joins the very crowded streaming space, which includes players like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+ and Disney+, as well as NBC Universal’s Peacock.

Netflix, which is the most popular streaming service, currently has more than 60 million paid subscribers in the U.S., according to its 2019 third-quarter report. Disney+ hit the 50 million paid subscriber mark just five months after joining the streaming world. Disney-owned Hulu has claimed more than 28 million subscribers. 

Editors' Recommendations

Allison Matyus
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Allison Matyus is a general news reporter at Digital Trends. She covers any and all tech news, including issues around social…
What’s new on HBO and Max in April 2024
Robert Downey Jr. in The Sympathizer.

While Warner Bros. Pictures did not walk away from the Oscars with an award for Best Picture, HBO and Max probably couldn't be happier that Robert Downey Jr. won for Best Supporting Actor in Oppenheimer. That's because Downey is one of the stars of the new HBO original miniseries, The Sympathizer, in which he will play several different characters. If that show lives up to the hype, Downey may be nominated for an Emmy later this year as well.

Additionally, Max is set to have the streaming premiere of the Oscar-winning film The Zone of Interest on April 5. This month also has the debut of the new comedy special, Conan O’Brien Must Go. True crime lovers should check out The Jinx – Part Two. And for genre lovers, Max is hosting the streaming premiere of the animated superhero flick, Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths - Part One.

Read more
The 10 most popular shows on Max right now
Drake Bell looks at the camera in Quiet on Set.

Curb Your Enthusiasm Season 12 | Official Trailer | Max

For the first time in several months, there are no iterations of 90 Day Fiancé on our monthly list of the most popular shows on HBO and Max. And yet the Discovery side of Warner Bros. Discovery boasts the No. 1 show of the moment: Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV. That series, along with My 600-lb Life and Mean Girl Murders, make up this month's allotment of non-HBO or Max originals on the list.

Read more
The best sci-fi movies on Max right now
Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves as Bill and Ted in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey.

Max has a very good lineup of sci-fi movies right now, with one big drawback: It's stagnant. The science fiction movies that are on Max in March are the same ones that were there in February, and there haven't been any notable additions since. That's not very sustainable since some of the best sci-fi movies on Max are on loan from other studios. Eventually, those films will leave, and there's no guarantee that something better will come along.

In the meantime, we're throwing this month's spotlight on Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey, the 1984 version of Dune, and the 2014 remake of Godzilla. For the rest of the best sci-fi movies on Max, just keep scrolling down.

Read more