By In a fairly surprising update, Warner Media has announced that NBC Universal’s Peacock streaming service will be the new home for the Harry Potter film saga starting later this year. In a move that’s likely a middle-finger to author J.K. Rowling, the film’s will be made available to stream for absolutely free with ad-support.
Currently, the Harry Potter films reside on HBO Max, which works like every other paid subscription service. Despite making a rather lucrative deal, the films will be leaving on August 25 and begin to roll over to Peacock. The transition will start with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in October and continue on until the final film is available in early 2021. This will likely work with bi-monthly updates.
Frances Manfredi, Peacock’s president of content acquisition and strategy, said to the press, “The Harry Potter franchise is beloved by people of all ages and represents the caliber of quality entertainment customers can expect to find on Peacock. We’ve built a world-class collection of iconic movies and shows, and we will continue to expand the film library with treasured titles from NBCUniversal and beyond that will surprise and delight Peacock customers time and time again.”
I’m not sure I have any real desire to revisit any of the Harry Potter movies, but it’s nice that viewers won’t need to shell out for yet another subscription just to rewatch them. At least Warner isn’t going the Disney route and charging $30 on top of a buy-in fee.
Source: Variety
