Casey Bloys, HBO Chief, Discusses U.K. HBO Max Launch, 'Harry Potter' Series, And More

TV & Film

Mar 26

HBO Max is preparing to launch in the U.K. and Ireland, so HBO Chief Casey Bloys traveled to London to promote the new market. While in town, Bloys spoke to The Hollywood Reporter to reveal plans for the company’s future. When asked if the new market would lead to local programming, Bloys mentioned the U.K. talent in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, the upcoming Harry Potter series, and Sharon Horgan, who is directing a new show. He also mentioned that they would have to figure out the streaming rights.

Unfortunately, Bloys couldn’t share much about the Harry Potter series other than he’s “very happy with what he’s seeing.” When asked how the cast and crew are dealing with fan backlash in part due to J.K. Rowling’s controversial statements. Bloys explained, “The good news-bad news with big IP worlds is you have a lot of passionate fans, huge passionate fan bases. That also comes with people having very specific opinions, people who feel like they’re fierce protectors. So anytime we do a show like that, not just Harry Potter, but any kind of big IP show, we will always talk to anybody participating about social media and best practices and things like that. It is just a reality.”

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A young Harry Potter in the HBO series — Image Source: Teen Vogue

Bloys also spoke about the success of The Pitt, saying that it filled a niche that has been missing for a while. Bloys said, “These are shows where, in theory, you could watch one episode in isolation and enjoy it, as opposed to heavily serialized programming. I feel like The Pitt has struck a really good balance doing that. But what we found and what’s been great is it’s not just core HBO viewers watching it. We’re also seeing people who are more likely to watch the Warner Bros. TV or movie libraries … interested in watching The Pitt.”

All of these plans are tentative as Paramount is looking to merge with HBO’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery. Bloys clarified that HBO usually plans things two years in advance, so the plan is business as usual while keeping the merger in mind. Bloys also expressed excitement about the tax credit expansions in California.

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