HBO Max’s odd and decidedly messy release this week just got a little stranger. Despite promising a number of popular titles that the company said would be available immediately in a press release last week, those titles were nowhere to be found as of Wednesday. And now, it appears the company has yanked the memo from its press room.
Per a cached version of the May 20 press release dug up by the Verge that is now missing from the WarnerMedia site, Max was supposed to have quite a few titles that were mysteriously missing from the service this week. Some of those blockbuster titles that Max said were “currently available” included The Bodyguard, The Dark Knight as well as “all” DC live-action movies from the past 10 years, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (the other two in the trilogy are available), The Iron Giant, Kill Bill Volumes 1 & 2, The Matrix Trilogy, Ocean’s Eleven, Shawshank Redemption, and When Harry Met Sally.
When Gizmodo asked WarnerMedia earlier this week about the absence of the Dark Knight Trilogy, in particular, a spokesperson said that the films would be available on the platform “within our first year of launch,” but did not specify a specific date. Asked about the scrubbed press list on Friday, a spokesperson attributed the issue to human error.
“It was called to our attention a few days ago that a document on our press room listed some titles that shouldn’t have been there (nothing more than a human error) and we are editing the list for accuracy. Those titles mentioned are still coming to HBO Max, just not on day one,” a spokesperson told Gizmodo.
The spokesperson said that the list was not published on the Max website and rather in the Max press room, adding that the list was “not something that was consumer facing.” It’s worth noting that whether or not the list was meant for consumers, reporters often rely on press materials to give their readers accurate information about the thing they’re reporting on.
Listen, a handful of missing feature films isn’t necessarily the end of the world so much as it adds to a long list of ways that Max dropped the ball. If you’re already getting the Max update with your Now subscription but hoped to be able to stream these films straight away, well, I guess you’ll just have to wait. If you aren’t an existing subscriber? My advice is to hold out until Max can get its act together.