Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of HBO and the streaming service Max, has decided not to renew its contract with Sesame Workshop for new episodes of Sesame Street.
Sesame Street has been premiering new episodes of the children’s program on HBO and its sister streaming services since 2016. The program moved to Max in 2020. Sesame Street’s upcoming 55th season will begin streaming on Max next month. Max will then continue to license episodes from the Sesame library through 2027.
WBD’s decision was first revealed by The Hollywood Reporter. A Max spokesperson told the publication that the move stems from a strategic shift to focus on adult and family programming. Collider reported earlier this month that other kids fare, including some Cartoon Network shows, will leave Max next year.
“It has been a wonderful, creative experience working with everyone at Sesame Street on the iconic children’s series and we are thrilled to be able to keep some of the library series on Max in the U.S.,” the spokesperson said.
In a statement to Current, a Sesame Workshop spokesperson said the nonprofit is “excited” to extend its 10-year partnership with WBD to keep Sesame Street’s content library on Max for the next few years. “We will continue to invest in our best-in-class programming and look forward to announcing our new distribution plans in the coming months, ensuring that Sesame Street reaches as many children as possible for generations to come,” the spokesperson said.
It is unclear what’s next for Sesame Street, which debuted in 1969 and began airing on PBS in 1970. With the WBD relationship ending, a streaming company such as Disney+, Apple TV+, Netflix or Amazon Prime Video could potentially pick up the distribution position. The show’s back catalog of 4,700 episodes could also be part of a new deal.
Sesame Workshop’s deal with HBO drew criticism, with some objecting to the corporatization of a beloved children’s series. HBO also sparked blowback in 2022 when it removed hundreds of Sesame Street episodes from Max as part of a larger reorganization resulting from the WarnerMedia-Discovery merger.
But the HBO deal helped pull Sesame Workshop out of a financial hole by 2018, according to a report in Forbes. It also led to the producer shortening Sesame’s format from an hour to 30 minutes, and the show took on a new look with its HBO debut, according to the Washington Post.
The Sesame Workshop spokesperson told Current that Sesame Street may look different if it finds a new partner. Plans include incorporating elements from its animated series Tales From 123.