Harry Potter Series, IT Prequel Welcome to Derry Among Max Shows Becoming HBO Originals

At least three of Max’s in-the-works tentpole TV projects are getting a bit of a rebrand behind the scenes.

The previously announced Harry Potter series, IT prequel Welcome to Derry and newly ordered Green Lantern series Lanterns — all initially developed as Max exclusives — will instead be branded as HBO originals moving forward, according to a report from our sister site Variety.

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With that trio of shows now under the HBO umbrella, it guarantees they will all air on the linear premium cable network, in addition to streaming on Max.

All three projects are based on Warner Bros. IP, which, according to HBO boss Casey Bloys, used to be a signal that a TV show should stream on Max instead of airing on HBO proper.

“The idea of using Warner Bros. IP as a delineation for Max felt right,” he told Variety. “At least that gives you a clear lane. But as we started producing those shows, we were using the same methods, the same kind of thinking, as how we would approach HBO shows… The idea of the delineation kind of started to feel unnecessary. Like, why are we doing this? Let’s just call them what they are: HBO shows.”

However, The Batman spinoff The Penguin (premiering in September) and Dune prequel series Dune: Prophecy (arriving sometime this fall) will both still be labeled as Max originals, as the rebranding efforts won’t take effect until 2025. (Welcome to Derry is slated for a 2025 release; the as-yet-untitled Harry Potter project is on track for 2026.)

Max first ordered its Harry Potter adaptation to series in April 2023, announcing it as a “faithful” take on J.K. Rowling’s popular novels. Welcome to Derry, meanwhile, is a prequel set in book author Stephen King’s IT universe and will expand the vision of the theatrical films IT (2017) and IT Chapter Two (2019). As announced in May, Bill Skarsgård will reprise his role as Pennywise the Dancing Clown in Welcome to Derry.

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