Max removes original 'Looney Tunes' cartoons: Here's why
What's the story
Warner Bros. Discovery-owned streaming service Max has taken down the original Looney Tunes animated shorts from its platform. A representative confirmed the decision to Deadline. The move is part of a larger plan to focus on adult and family programming on the service. Other spinoff versions of Looney Tunes remain available on Max, including six seasons of 2020's Looney Tunes Cartoons and two seasons each of 2015's New Looney Tunes and 2002's Baby Looney Tunes.
Platform changes
Max's previous commitment to keep 'Looney Tunes' streaming
Back in 2023, Max had assured users that Looney Tunes wouldn't be removed from the platform after it was accidentally added to a list of titles to be removed. The service said at the time, "Looney Tunes was included in error as a title leaving the platform. This is not the case and the show will continue streaming on Max." This had come after WBD removed 256 Looney Tunes titles back in 2022. Now, the entire 511-episode library is unavailable.
Industry trends
Decline of children's animation and other recent changes
The removal of Looney Tunes from Max is not an isolated incident but the latest addition to the trend showing the steady decline of children's animation. Last year, Warner Bros. Discovery shut down Cartoon Network's website and its Boomerang streaming service, which mainly aired classic cartoons from Warner Bros. Animation's library. The decision also comes around the time of the release of The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Story, the franchise's first fully animated feature-length project.
Strategic decisions
WBD's decision to sell and shelve 'Looney Tunes' projects
The decision to scrap Looney Tunes from Max comes after Warner Bros. Discovery sold The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Story to Ketchup Entertainment after initially greenlighting it for Max. Former Warner Bros. chief David Zaslav's administration had also greenlit a Looney Tunes feature film titled Coyote vs. Acme, which has been shelved by the current WBD administration due to high production costs.