Warner Bros. Discovery removes ‘Looney Tunes’ shorts, ‘The Flintstones’ in cost-cutting drive

Following Discovery’s acquisition of WarnerMedia in April 2022, the newly-formed form Warner Bros. Discovery moved to remove content off HBO Max that included classic 'Looney Tunes' shorts and 'The Flintstones' episodes, reported Variety on Tuesday.

As of December 31, HBO Max removed Seasons 16-31 of the original 'Looney Tunes' library. Season 1-15, which comprise 255 shorts spanning 1930-49 still remain, while the ones deleted were released between 1950 and 2004.

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In addition, HBO Max has pulled Season 4-6 of 'The Flintstones,' a total of 78 episodes. The first three seasons of the Hanna-Barbera classic are still available on the service, reported Variety.

The 'Looney Tunes' and 'Flintstones' content was licensed to HBO Max from Warner Bros. under an intra-company deal. Those licensing agreements expired at the end of 2022 and HBO Max did not renew them, as it seeks to reduce content expenses, according to the report. It was unclear whether the 'Looney Tunes' and 'Flintstones' content that is no longer on HBO Max will be available other streaming platforms.

Since Discovery’s acquisition of WarnerMedia, the company has made a series of content cutbacks aimed at reducing expenses. That has included cancelling HBO Max original series 'Minx' (reversing the Season 2 renewal) and HBO’s 'The Nevers.'

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Last year, HBO Max removed multiple exclusive film titles and original series along with 200 'Sesame Street' episodes. According to the report the company could incur content impairment and development write-off charges of up to $3.5 billion as the result of the merger.

Last month, Warner Bros. Discovery also announced plans to remove several shows from HBO Max — including 'Westworld,' 'The Nevers,' 'Raised by Wolves,' and more in order to license them to third-party free, ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) partners.

The newly-merged company is also preparing to release a HBO Max-Discovery+ platform, set to launch in the U.S. in the spring of 2023. The company hasn’t announced details on pricing, packaging or a name yet.

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