Of all the new streaming services to enter the world this year (and to die, RIP Quibi), HBO Max has had the most baffling ratio of actually worthwhile content to accessibility. Though that’s finally changing. Today, WarnerMedia announced that HBO Max will be available on Amazon Fire TV devices starting on Tuesday, November 17. HBO Max launched in May to much fanfare, but without availability on Fire TV, or Roku (a Roku deal is still yet to be announced), meaning that a significant portion of people who might try out the service simply couldn’t easily watch it on their preferred devices. According to Vulture’s Josef Adalian’s analysis at the time, the standoff likely hinged on two things: (1) how much of the HBO Max subscription money WarnerMedia wanted to share with distributors and (2) how WarnerMedia’s content was displayed on Roku and Fire TV devices — whether mixed into one big pot with everyone else’s movies and shows (as the platforms would prefer) or walled in a specific app (as HBO Max would).
When HBO Max comes to Fire TV devices, and if/when it eventually comes to Roku, those users will get access to its sizable library of old and new content. An HBO Max subscription covers HBO shows and movies, TV series like Friends, The Big Bang Theory, and The OC, DC content (including the eventual Snyder cut and new stuff like the Harley Quinn animated show), Cartoon Network and Adult Swim shows, TCM movies, Studio Ghibli movies, and original shows where Anna Kendrick and robots try to figure out how to date and raise children, respectively. The service is launching several new big titles soon, including the Kaley Cuoco thriller The Flight Attendant, a Fresh Prince reunion, and the soothing experience of watching Meryl Streep and Lucas Hedges on a cruise in Let Them All Talk.