HBO MAX subscribers might one day stream a Japanese Batman anime or a live-action Brazilian Supergirl series. as the streaming platform looks to target different international territories outside of North America.
According to Deadline, Casey Bloys, Chief Content Officer HBO and HBO Max, is said to be "exploring what DC-related content it could make outside of the U.S. based on its library of genre titles."
Under such direction, cool concepts like the old, animated Batman of Shanghai short from DC Nation could become a live-action series on HBO Max that's marketed and targeted for the streamer's (potential) audience in China.
This latest, wave-making development comes on the heels of HBO Max revealing yesterday that its full slate of 2021 films would premiere on the streaming platform the same day that they are released in theaters.
HBO Max already has a number of live-action and animated DC properties in various stages of development including (but not limited to) the animated Harley Quinn series, James Gunn's Peacemaker spinoff and new seasons for Doom Patrol, Young Justice and Titans in the pipeline.
This move would also appear to be an indication that HBO Max is following the Netflix formula which has seen the streaming leader find success by creating Netflix Originals for various territories around the world. The U.S. is Netflix's leading streaming platform, followed by Brazil, the U.K., Mexico, France and then Canada.
During a virtual Web Summit conference, Bloys stated, "We’re also going to work to see DC content in other countries outside of the U.S....One of the things that we’re going to do with Max is that all of our international productions will eventually live on Max and we’re going to do a much better job of coordinating between all of the folks programming in Europe, Latin America and Asia so if there’s anything that we’re developing that has real cross-border appeal, we’ll be able to highlight that."
The Head of HBO Max Global Andy Forssell added, "The plan is to be in 190 countries, it’s just how fast can we do that roll-out."
HBO Max is currently only operating in the U.S. but will become available in Europe and Latin America next year.