More Details On Max’s Looney Tunes Ditching

Following on from this morning’s report about Warner Bros. Discovery removing the entire remaining original “Looney Tunes” collection from the Max streaming service, further details have emerged as to why.

As previously indicated, all 31 seasons of the original 1930-1969 Looney Tunes animated shorts – the Golden Age of animation era – have been scrubbed from the service.

What’s left is just some modern titles – two seasons of 2015’s “New Looney Tunes,” six seasons of 2020’s “Looney Tunes Cartoons,” two seasons of 2002’s “Baby Looney Tunes,” two seasons of 2023’s “Tiny Toons Looniversity,” two seasons of 2022’s “Bugs Bunny Builders,” and five seasons of 1995’s “The Sylvester and Tweety Mysteries”

Now, Deadline has confirmed the removal with a representative and indicated that it is part of a new strategy “whereby the streamer will prioritize adult and family programming.”

As a result, what they deem “children’s programming” – including Looney Tunes and Sesame Street – is no longer viewed as a priority as it apparently doesn’t fare well in terms of viewership.

Dubbing it children’s animation despite many of the originals being theatrical shorts, several of which won Oscars, has launched a new wave of criticism on social media.

Sadly the move isn’t surprising as children’s animation has long seen a steady decline at Warner Bros. Discovery who last year shuttered Cartoon Network’s website, closed down its Boomerang streaming service, sold off the currently in release “The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Story” to indie distributor Ketchup Entertainment, and canned the in post-production “Coyote vs. Acme” for a $70 million tax write-off.

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