Posted in: HBO, Max, TV | Tagged: sesame street, warner bros discovery
Warner Bros. Discovery Opts Out of Deal for New "Sesame Street" Eps
Warner Bros. Discovery has opted out of a deal to produce more new episodes of the long-running and award-winning Sesame Street.
Can you tell me how to get… how to get new episodes of Sesame Street? That's the big question this morning – and we have a feeling that there will be a whole lot of studios/streamers wanting to be the one that answers that question. The Hollywood Reporter is reporting exclusively that Warner Bros. Discovery will no longer be in the business of new episodes of the long-running, award-winning, and beloved children's program. HBO has been the home to new episodes since 2016 (with a deal that included delayed airings on PBS), with a new five-year deal in 2019 that brought HBO Max/Max into play. But Warner Bros. Discovery isn't leaving Sesame Street entirely, continuing to license episodes from Sesame Workshop through 2027 – just no new episodes moving forward. But what will be Warner Bros. Discovery's loss will definitely be someone else's gain, with any number of studios/streamers more than willing to make an offer to bring Joan Ganz Cooney, Lloyd Morrisett, Jon Stone, and Jim Henson's creation under their banner.
"It has been a wonderful, creative experience working with everyone at Sesame Street on the iconic children's series and we are thrilled to be able to keep some of the library series on Max in the U.S.," a Max spokesperson shared with THR. "As we've launched Max, though, and based on consumer usage and feedback, we've had to prioritize our focus on stories for adults and families, and so new episodes from Sesame Street, at this time, are not as core to our strategy." A spokesperson for Sesame Workshop shared in a statement, "We are excited to extend our 10-year partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery, keeping Sesame Street's iconic library available on Max through 2027. We will continue to invest in our best-in-class programming and look forward to announcing our new distribution plans in the coming months, ensuring that Sesame Street reaches as many children as possible for generations to come."