Using a "That's all, folks" joke right now would hit too close to home. Warner Bros. has officially pulled its entire collection of original Looney Tunes shorts from its streaming platform, HBO Max. These legendary cartoons, produced over nearly 40 years from 1930 to 1969, represent what is widely regarded as animation's "golden age." It almost goes without saying that these shorts were instrumental in building the Warner Brothers we know today.
Deadline confirmed the removal is part of a corporate strategy to "prioritize adult and family programming." Children's content, in particular, does not attract significant viewership numbers for the streamer and is consequently no longer a priority—evidently with little regard for the material's profound cultural importance. For instance, at the end of 2024, HBO ended its deal for new Sesame Street episodes, despite the show being a foundational element of childhood education since 1969. While some more recent Looney Tunes spinoffs remain on HBO Max, the core and soul of the original franchise has officially departed.
This blow to the Looney Tunes legacy arrives at an odd moment, as the new feature, The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Story, premiered in theaters on March 14. Max originally commissioned the project, but ultimately sold it to Ketchup Entertainment through the American Film Market following the Warner Bros. and Discovery merger. The smaller distribution company appeared to have a limited marketing budget, as the film earned just over $3 million during its opening weekend across more than 2,800 theaters nationwide.
Given the public outrage over last year's handling of Coyote vs. Acme, it seems likely that audiences would have flocked to see The Day the Earth Blew Up if they had simply known it was playing in theaters. A year ago, Warner Bros. Discovery opted not to release the completed Looney Tunes film Coyote vs. Acme, citing concerns over high distribution costs.
The decision has been met with widespread criticism from artists and animation enthusiasts. In February, star Will Forte called the move "absolute bullshit," stating that the choice to shelve the film was inexplicable and made his "blood boil."
