Which streaming service gets Warner Bros. movies first?
Which streaming service gets Warner Bros. movies first?
Content from the Warner archives is scattered across various streaming services, so we’ll help you track down the studio’s new releases.
Despite recent struggles by its parent company, Warner Bros. Pictures is still one of the premier movie studios in Hollywood. The company has a range of recent hits to its name, such as “Sinners,” “A Minecraft Movie,” and the DC Studios project “Superman” to name a few.
With all the licensing deals around Tinseltown these days, it can be difficult to keep track of where movies from WB Pictures go after they are no longer theatrical exclusives. Fortunately, The Streamable’s experts are keeping track of it all, and we’ll let you know all the details you need to know about WB’s Pay 1 window, and where its films head after that.
Where do Warner Bros. Pictures go to stream after leaving theaters?
Does Warner Bros. Pictures have a Pay 1 deal?
The first streaming window after a movie leaves cinemas is called Pay 1, and it’s easy to say which service fills this need for Warner Bros. Pictures. The studio sends its movies to HBO Max when they leave theaters first, with theatrical windows lasting as few as 50 days or as many as 100+. All Warner Bros. Pictures movies stream exclusively on Max during their Pay 1 windows.
Does Warner Bros. Pictures have a Pay 2 deal?
No, WB does not have a traditional Pay 2 deal with any one streaming service in particular. Some studios have licensing deals that stipulate their movies stream on a given service for a specified length of time before moving to another streamer for a new window, but Warner Bros. is not one of these.
Does Warner Bros. Pictures license its movies?
Older titles that appear on HBO Max have been known to be licensed on other streaming services, such as Netflix, Peacock, or Disney+. But these licensing deals come one at a time; there is no one service that is guaranteed to get older WB titles.
Will Warner Bros. Pictures make new windowing deals in the future?
As long as HBO Max exists under the same corporate umbrella as Warner Bros. Pictures, I expect that it will continue to put its movies on that streaming service first. I do think, however, that the studio may seek a steady Pay 2 partner as a source of revenue when it completes its split from the cable channels owned by Warner Bros. Discovery.
If that happens, I think Netflix is a logical candidate, considering the long licensing deal WBD recently made with that streamer for a selection of HBO shows. That’s simply a hypothetical, but I think it makes a good amount of sense if WB Pictures wants to go in that direction.
HBO Max
HBO Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library and exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Within HBO Max, B/R Sports allows users to watch live NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.