Several new details about upcoming streaming service HBO Max have been revealed during a WarnerMedia investor call. We now know that the new service will debut in May 2020 with over 10,000 hours of content, including a continuation of Adventure Time and a brand new Green Lantern series. Prior to this we learned that the new service would have exclusive rights to Friends, and will allow you to stream the films of Studio Ghibli for the first time ever.
The new app was shown off during the investor call, giving us our first glimpse of what HBO Max will look like. Below are screengrabs taken during the call, showing off the app's UI and features.
The app will open to a Netflix-style user selection screen, which will allow you to differentiate between adult and child accounts easily as you add them.
The front page shows off the curation lists that will be a prominent part of HBO Max--if you want to follow Regina King or Bill Hader, or anyone else featured, you'll be able to receive recommendations from them.
The web app looks, unsurprisingly, a lot like Netflix when you move into the selection screens, except with all the HBO content that Netflix is missing.
The Max Hubs page lets you easily access the major franchises and licenses that HBO Max has. It'll be easy to view the Studio Ghibli catalog, or look over the library of Cartoon Network, or binge through all of their DC shows and movies.
We also got a look at the mobile app, and how it'll scale for a smaller screen and portrait orientation.
Here's a peek at one of the curation videos on a mobile device. This one is from Zac Efron recommending The Exorcist, his "go-to scary movie."
Each celebrity curator will have a page for you to follow, listing their choices and providing a personal statement.
We were also given a glimpse at the parental controls available in the new app, showing how easy it will be to make sure that your children aren't watching Game of Thrones. HBO Max will feature every season of Sesame Street, among other things.
HBO has also today announced a new Game of Thrones prequel series, Fire & Blood, while also cancelling a different prequel series that was to star Naomi Watts.
