‘Batman: Caped Crusader’ Animated Series from Bruce Timm, J.J. Abrams, Matt Reeves Not Moving Forward at HBO Max, Will Be Shopped Elsewhere

HBO Max has canceled six upcoming animated series, including “Batman: Caped Crusader,” Variety has learned. The project was ordered to series in May 2021 with Bruce Timm, J.J. Abrams, Matt Reeves attached to executive produce.

The other series on the chopping block are “Merry Little Batman,” “The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie,” “Bye Bye Bunny: A Looney Tunes Musical,” “Did I Do That to The Holidays: A Steve Urkel Story” and “The Amazing World of Gumball: The Movie.” Production on all six series continues, with plans to shop them to platforms besides HBO Max. Warner Bros. Animation is the studio for each, with the exception of “The Amazing Word of Gumball,” which is being produced by H-B Studios Europe.

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“Batman: Caped Crusader” was meant to build on “Batman: The Animated Series,” which was co-created by Timm and aired on Fox Kids for 85 episodes from 1992-1995. This is the second project from J.J. Abrams that Warner Bros. Discovery has recently decided not to move forward with — HBO let go of his science fiction drama “Demimonde” in June.

The decision not to release these series on HBO Max is part of a larger trend as parent company Warner Bros. Discovery largely divests from kids and family content. For example, last week, kids programs including “Little Ellen” and several seasons of “Sesame Street” were removed from HBO Max, and earlier this month HBO and HBO Max laid off staffers from the kids and family department. CEO David Zaslav noted this shift in priorities during WBD’s recent earnings call. Additionally, after cancelling “Gordita Chronicles” after one season last month, a spokesperson for HBO Max said, “Live-action kids and family programming will not be part of our programming focus in the immediate future.”