HBO Max No Longer Focusing on “Live-Action Kids and Family Programming”

On Friday, HBO Max announced that it was cancelling the 1980s coming of age comedy series Gordita Chronicles after just one season and while the news was disappointing for fans of the critically acclaimed series, it is part of a larger strategy with HBO Max. In the announcement of Gordita Chronicles‘ cancellation, the streamer revealed that it will no longer be focusing on “live-action kids and family programming”.

“Live-action kids and family programming will not be part of our programming focus in the immediate future, and as a result, we’ve had to make the very difficult decision to end Gordita Chronicles at HBO Max,” a statement read. “The series earned critical acclaim and a loyal following, and we are proud to have worked with creator Claudia Forestieri and our two powerhouse executive producers, Eva Longoria (who also masterfully directed the pilot) and Zoe Saldana, to bring Cucu’s journey to the screen. We thank them and the talented cast and crew for creating such a heartfelt, groundbreaking show that connected deeply with a very important demographic.”

While the statement doesn’t directly indicate a reason for the focus shift in programming, it’s very likely that this is related to the overall shift in WarnerMedia properties after the acquisition by Discovery earlier this year. Since the acquisition, there have been changes in various areas of leadership across Warner Bros. Discovery as well as other programming changes as well. In April it was announced that TNT and TBS would both cease to develop original scripted programming and, in June it was announced that TNT’s live-action series Snowpiercer had been cancelled after four seasons.

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav previously commented about the opportunities for the company’s streaming platform going forward.

“That means, I think, a lot of opportunity,” Zaslav told Variety at an Allen & Co. conference. “And Warner Bros. Discovery’s got great, quality content. So, I think the world has changed. And it’s not about how much, it’s about how good. And so, we’re pretty excited about our new company and getting to see everybody in this beautiful setting. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

As for Gordita Chronicles, Sony Pictures Television, the studio behind the series, has indicated that they plan to shop the series to other networks much in the same way it did with One Day at a Time following that series’ cancellation by Netflix.

Were you surprised by the cancellation of Gordita Chronicles? What do you think about the shift in the streaming platform’s programming regarding live-action kids and family programming? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.