HBO Max Abandons Batman Movie, Gets Picked Up By Competitor

By Klein Felt Updated:
Batman, HBO Max

After being abandoned by HBO Max, the Batman movie Merry Little Batman is now headed to Amazon Prime Video. 

According to new info from The Hollywood Reporter, Merry Little Batman and its animated spin-off TV show will stream on the HBO Max competitor in a similar fashion to J.J. Abrams, Matt Reeves, and Bruce Timm's Batman: Caped Crusader

Warner Bros. Animation chief Sam Register noted in a statement that they "are excited to partner with Amazon to begin an all-new animated chapter of Batman:"

“We are excited to partner with Amazon to begin an all-new animated chapter of Batman. From the cinematic noir storytelling of 'Batman: Caped Crusader' to the comedic adventures of 'Merry Little Batman' and 'Bat-Family,' these new projects ensure that there will be an animated Batman story ready to excite fans of all ages."

While also serving as the first official confirmation of Caped Crusader heading to Prime Video, the retail and streaming giant offered up details on this new animated Batman action-comedy coming as well. 

Merry Little Batman follows the adventures of young Damian Wayne, as he transforms into a hero known as "Little Batman" to defend Gotham City from villains aiming to destroy the holidays. 

The animated film will see Regular Show's Mike Roth take the directing seat, with a script written by Morgan Evans of Teen Titans Go! fame. 

 The Merry Little Batman spin-off series is titled Bat-Family, focusing on the greater Bat-Fam of Batman, Alfred, and Damian Wayne, as they "navigate the fun and frustrations of life as a super family."

The Warner-Amazon Animation Alliance

merrylittlebatman
Warner Bros. Animation

As Warner Bros. refocuses its super-powered ventures under the watchful eye of James Gunn, it is also retooling its overall streaming strategy a tad, resulting in deals such as this. 

As Gunn and co. look to reinvent the studio's DC efforts within an interconnected story across both movie and TV, WB is moving away from anything that does not play into the great DCU vision.

And that is where deals such as the one described above come into play. Gunn himself seems open to having his own DC titles move over to other streamers, but for right now Warner looks to be making these deals with competitors to get anything not connected to the DCU off the service. 

This includes the above trio of titles at Prime Video and Dead Boy Detectives heading to Netflix

It is unknown if this is a widespread streaming strategy for WB, but it sure seems like a pattern is starting to emerge. 

No release timing for Merry Little Batman, Bat-Family, or Batman: Caped Crusader has been made public as of yet. 

- About The Author: Klein Felt
Klein Felt is a Senior Editor at The Direct. Joining the website back in 2020, he helped jumpstart video game content on The Direct. Klein plays a vital role as a part of the site's content team, demonstrating expertise in all things PlayStation, Marvel, and the greater entertainment industry.