Warner Bros. has announced that on May 23rd, HBO Max will be officially rebranded as simply “Max” after merging with Discovery+. To celebrate that announcement, Max has revealed first looks at multiple series in development and confirmed many long-rumored projects. Here are some of the reveals shown today so far…
The biggest reveal of the day is the confirmation that there will be a “Harry Potter” scripted television series adapting all seven novels. This is the first-ever scripted television set in the Wizarding World. It appears that the series is a retelling of the novels and is separate from the original film series. There are no official cast or crew announcements at the moment.
Fresh from the success that was the debut season of the “Game of Thrones” spinoff “House of The Dragon,” Max has announced that there will be a new spinoff series, “A Knight of The Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knight.” The series has a straight-to-series order and will be executive produced by George R.R. Martin, Ira Parker, Ryan Condal, and Vince Geradis. There are no official cast or crew announcements at the moment.
Another series officially announced is a prequel series to the “IT” films titled “Welcome to Derry.” The series will star Taylour Page, Chris Chalk, Jovan Adepo, and James Remar. The plot is currently unknown, and the series is set to be released sometime in 2024.
Max has also officially revealed the first trailer of “The Penguin,” a spinoff series starring Academy Award Nominee Colin Farrell (reprising his role from “The Batman“). The series, developed by Matt Reeves, also stars Cristin Milioti, Clancy Brown, Michael Kelly, and Michael Zegen. The show is currently in production and will be released sometime in 2024.
The first trailer for the new season of the anthology series “True Detective” has also debuted. “True Detective: Night Country” will follow two detectives, played by Academy Award Winner Jodi Foster and Kali Reis, as they investigate the strange disappearance of eight men in a small town in Alaska. Barry Jenkins and Issa López will produce the season. The new season will release later this year.
We also got the first look at the new HBO Limited series “The Regime” starring Academy Award-winning actress Kate Winslet. Coming fresh off the hit Emmy-winning series “Mare of Easttown,” Winslet will star opposite Martha Plimpton and is directed by Stephen Frears. Formerly titled “The Palace,” the limited series will take place in a year inside the palace of a “modern European regime” as it starts to unravel. The limited series is set to debut sometime in 2024.
Finally, we got our first look at Park Chan-wook and Don McKellar’s “The Sympathizer” starring Hoa Xuande, Fred Nguyen Khan, Toan Le, Vy Le, Alan Trong, Duy Nguyễn with guest roles featuring Robert Downey Jr. and Sandra Oh. The series is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name written by Viet Thanh Nguyen and follows a North Vietnam plant in the South Vietnam army. He is forced to flee to the United States with his general near the end of the Vietnam War. While living within a community of South Vietnamese refugees, he secretly spies on the community and reports back to the Viet Cong, struggling between his original loyalties and his new life. The A24-produced miniseries will debut in 2024 as well.
Following these announcements, Variety reported that the stock for Warner Bros. Discovery dropped. But what do you think, though? Which series announcement has you the most excited? Which trailer was your favorite? Please let us know in the comments section below or over on our Twitter account.
