Warner Bros Discovery Relaunches HBO Max Streamer as ‘Max’ in Bid for Broader Audience 

Jeremy Strong arrives at the HBO and HBO Max Post Emmys Reception on Sept. 12, 2022, in West Hollywood, Calif. Strong plays Kendall Roy in the HBO television series “Succession.” (AP)
Jeremy Strong arrives at the HBO and HBO Max Post Emmys Reception on Sept. 12, 2022, in West Hollywood, Calif. Strong plays Kendall Roy in the HBO television series “Succession.” (AP)
TT
20

Warner Bros Discovery Relaunches HBO Max Streamer as ‘Max’ in Bid for Broader Audience 

Jeremy Strong arrives at the HBO and HBO Max Post Emmys Reception on Sept. 12, 2022, in West Hollywood, Calif. Strong plays Kendall Roy in the HBO television series “Succession.” (AP)
Jeremy Strong arrives at the HBO and HBO Max Post Emmys Reception on Sept. 12, 2022, in West Hollywood, Calif. Strong plays Kendall Roy in the HBO television series “Succession.” (AP)

When the HBO Max streaming service relaunches on Tuesday as "Max," Warner Bros Discovery Inc will learn whether mixing critically acclaimed dramas with reality fare that some might describe as a "guilty pleasure" will attract more subscribers.

"Max" will bring together HBO’s high-end scripted programming like "Succession" and Warner Bros films with Discovery’s food, home and lifestyle content, including "Fixer Upper: Welcome Home," in a bid to broaden the appeal of the original HBO Max service, as well as reduce the number of people canceling the service each month. It also plans to expand the portfolio of children's content.

Warner Bros Discovery first announced the planned changes on April 12.

The media company forged by the 2022 union of WarnerMedia and Discovery is betting that the addition of Discovery content will help retain viewers who typically sign up for HBO Max to watch a season of their favorite show – and then cancel after the finale.

It is a formula that proved successful for the Discovery+ service in Poland and the Nordic countries.

"In markets where we had scripted entertainment and nonfiction sitting together, we know the proposition works," said JB Perrette, Warner Bros Discovery’s president and chief executive of global streaming, adding that despite the common perception of HBO viewers "as only living in an ivory tower of HBO, the reality is we all have guilty pleasures."

Max also will seek to mine the media company's rich trove of entertainment franchises, with a forthcoming "Harry Potter" series, a "Game of Thrones" prequel and the DC Comics-inspired "The Penguin," starring Colin Farrell. Perrette said the company also is thinking about how to incorporate sports in its streaming offering.

In its first-quarter results announced earlier this month, Warner Bros Discovery said its streaming unit, which includes the HBO Max and Discovery+ services, posted adjusted pretax earnings of $50 million, compared with a loss of $227 million a year earlier. It gained 1.6 million subscribers.

"Our US streaming business is no longer a bleeder," CEO David Zaslav said on a post-earnings call.

That marked a milestone for a division that had been losing money in its bid to gain subscribers and a foothold in the industry's digital future. However, Zaslav said the churn on HBO Max was unacceptably high. Some 6.5% of HBO Max subscribers canceled the service in April, double the churn rate of rival Netflix Inc, according to the analytics firm Antenna.

Discovery+ will remain a standalone platform, though its most popular shows will also be available on Max.

Max has three tiers: an ad-supported version for $10 per month and ad-free version for $16 per month, both with the ability to stream on two devices at once; and a $20-per-month ad-free version that can be streamed on four devices at once.



Jackie Chan, Ralph Macchio Join Martial Arts Forces in 'Karate Kid: Legends' 

Jackie Chan speaks onstage during the 30th Annual Critics Choice Awards, in Santa Monica, California, US, February 7, 2025. (Reuters) 
Jackie Chan speaks onstage during the 30th Annual Critics Choice Awards, in Santa Monica, California, US, February 7, 2025. (Reuters) 
TT
20

Jackie Chan, Ralph Macchio Join Martial Arts Forces in 'Karate Kid: Legends' 

Jackie Chan speaks onstage during the 30th Annual Critics Choice Awards, in Santa Monica, California, US, February 7, 2025. (Reuters) 
Jackie Chan speaks onstage during the 30th Annual Critics Choice Awards, in Santa Monica, California, US, February 7, 2025. (Reuters) 

Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio blend fighting techniques to train a new karate kid in the latest instalment of the martial arts movie franchise.

"Karate Kid: Legends", released this week, stars Ben Wang as Beijing kung fu whizz Li Fong who moves with his mother to New York, where he befriends pizza restaurant owner and retired boxer Victor and his daughter Mia.

When that friendship irks a local karate champion, Li enters a karate tournament and begins training with his old kung fu teacher Mr. Han, played by Chan, and Macchio's Daniel LaRusso, the protagonist of the original 1984 film "The Karate Kid" who learned karate from mentor Mr. Miyagi.

"They presented the concept to me ... connecting the Miyagi to the Han family and how that made sense ... I was like 'That's kind of clever. Okay, so how do we maintain this connective tissue into Li Fong's story that is organic and truthful'," Macchio told Reuters in a joint interview with Chan and Wang.

"That was the challenge at first and figuring that out. Working with Jackie was like, 'Woohoo sign me up - when, where?' And then who's the kid? If we don't love this kid, then you have no movie. So all those, like it happens with 'The Karate Kid' universe, is magic dust that comes down and somehow it continues to resonate. So I'm excited for the next generation version."

The movie is Macchio's fourth "Karate Kid" film playing LaRusso, a character he also portrayed in the "Cobra Kai" television series.

Chan reprises the role of Mr. Han, a character he first played in the 2010 film "The Karate Kid" opposite Jaden Smith.

"Now we've both become a Miyagi," Chan said, referring to both his and Macchio's characters becoming mentors.

"I remember when I saw the first one. Why him (Macchio)? Why not me? ... I want to be 'The Karate Kid'. (Now) We work together."

Wang, 25, said Chan's 2010 film introduced him to the franchise.

"Stepping into it, it's a terrifying thing in a certain way because it's a beloved franchise and ... the fans love it so much, so I want to do right by them," he said. "But it's also a great honor because a lot of people auditioned for this part, so I know how special and lucky it is that I get to do this with the two of them."