HBO Max has not yet completed its content deletion process. After yesterday’s culling, during which many popular shows, including Generation, Infinity Train, and the original series Summer Camp Island, were removed from the streaming service, the company has now reduced the number of Sesame Street episodes available. Probably as part of a further cost-cutting initiative through Warner Bros. Discovery to save on residuals, over 200 episodes of the long-running children’s programme have been withdrawn completely.
The move comes in advance of a merger between HBO Max and Discovery+, for which the latter will also drop certain programming. It used to be that all 650 episodes were available on HBO Max. All but 29 episodes from the first 38 seasons were eliminated after the culling, bringing the total number of episodes down to 456. Newer episodes, starting with Season 39, can still be watched in their entirety. The remaining 29 great episodes include a diverse collection from the first, fifth, and seventh seasons.
Except for the previously cancelled Not So Late Show with Elmo, all seven seasons of My Sesame Street Friends, as well as spin-offs like Sesame Street Mecha Builders and The Magical Wand Chase, may still be seen on HBO Max. In 2015, HBO and Sesame Workshop reached an agreement that guarantees the premium network early access to all new episodes before they air on PBS, the network’s traditional broadcast home. It also ensured greater long-term funding for Sesame Street by providing its streaming platform with exclusive access to the whole repertoire, keeping the show alive for a new generation. HBO’s announcement that “certain specials from the series’ library might be withdrawn” gave fans merely a hint that episodes would be yanked without much notice.
HBO and Sesame Workshop have not issued a joint statement as of yet. The choice to cut most of the original Sesame Street episodes was heavily criticised, as was the decision to cut so many other animated and written series. For many, this decision goes against one of Sesame Street’s fundamental tenets: that all children should have equal access to the show.
This series has been around for a long time, and it’s widely used to help kids get ready for school and learn to be good people who can handle the good and bad that life throws at them. This is the most recent in a line of controversial choices that began with the deletion of Batgirl. Since then, HBO has implemented a variety of cost-cutting initiatives, most notably the discreet cancellation of series including Camping, Vinyl, and Mrs Fletcher.