HBO Max Will No Longer Produce Live-Action Kids And Family Programming

HBO Max has canceled its comedy Gordita Chronicles, a move the streamer says is motivated by a change in strategy at its parent company.

The show, which centers on a 12-year-old Dominican girl (Oliva Goncalves) in 1980s Miami, debuted its full first — and now only — season on June 23. An HBO Max spokesperson said in a statement that the show fell victim to a change in priorities for the streamer.

“Live-action kids and family programming will not be part of our programming focus in the immediate future, and as a result, we’ve had to make the very difficult decision to end Gordita Chronicles at HBO Max,” the statement reads. “The series earned critical acclaim and a loyal following, and we are proud to have worked with creator Claudia Forestieri and our two powerhouse executive producers, Eva Longoria (who also masterfully directed the pilot) and Zoe Saldaña, to bring Cucu’s journey to the screen. We thank them and the talented cast and crew for creating such a heartfelt, groundbreaking show that connected deeply with a very important demographic.”

Sony Pictures Television produced the series, which creator Forestieri based on her own life. The cast also includes Diana Maria Riva, Juan Javier Cardenas, Savannah Nicole Ruiz, Noah Rico, Cosette Hauer and Dascha Polanco. Brigitte Muñoz-Liebowitz served as showrunner.

“We are heartbroken by the larger programming changes at HBO Max that will not allow our special show that is Gordita Chronicles, showrun by Latinx comedy powerhouse Brigitte Muñoz-Liebowitz, to have a second season at its original home,” executive producers Longoria and Saldaña said in a statement. “As producers and storytellers who are continually seeking out the authentic and original stories that highlight our community’s joy and talent, we are so proud to have worked on this piece of magic. We continue to be blown away by the overwhelmingly positive critical response coupled with our growing audience numbers, which prove that viewers recognize the importance of this show’s existence and the crucial space it is filling for Latinx content in the media landscape.”

Since HBO Max’s parent, WarnerMedia, and Discovery completed their merger in the spring, Warner Bros. Discovery has made a number of changes in strategy, most notably at its cable channels TBS, TNT and TruTV — where an ongoing move away from original scripted programming has accelerated. The company is all-in on a streaming first strategy, but family programming hasn’t had a huge presence in the two-plus years of HBO Max’s existence. WBD will continue with development of animated projects aimed at younger viewers via its Cartoon Network and Warner Bros. Animation arms.

HBO Max has also gone one and done with a Head of the Class reboot, and a decision on The Garcias, a follow-up to the 2000-04 Nickelodeon series The Brothers Garcia, has yet to be made. HBO Max has renewed its Gossip Girl redo and just debuted Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, both of which are aimed at young adults.

Forestieri, Muñoz-Liebowitz (via her Bons Mots Emporium), Longoria (via her UnbeliEVAble shingle) and Saldaña (via Cinestar Pictures) executive produce Gordita Chronicles along with Josh Berman, Jennifer Robinson and Chris King of Osprey Productions and Cinestar’s Mariel Saldaña and Cisely Saldaña.

Credits: Deadline

eToonz, eMovies, eMovies Extra And eExtra To Relaunch On DStv Following Pending Investigation

In a judgment handed down on Monday, the court – which is a special division of the high court – overturned an earlier decision by the Competition Tribunal that the channels could be removed from MultiChoice’s DStv bouquets.

This is pending the final determination of the complaint, which has been referred by the appeal court to the Competition Commission for further investigation.

“The unannounced switch-off left eMedia without sufficient time to communicate to viewers

The appeal court ordered MultiChoice to reinstate the channels that were removed from DStv at the end of May. MultiChoice terminated the channels immediately upon receiving the decision of the tribunal.

The channels that were cut and that now must be reinstated pending the commission’s investigation are eToonz, eMovies, eMovies Extra and e.tv Extra.
It’s understood that MultiChoice has also been ordered to pay eMedia’s legal costs for the appeal, including the cost of two counsel.

eMedia dragged MultiChoice to the tribunal in April to seek relief after a renewed channel supply agreement between the parties saw DStv opting not to carry the four channels.

“No reasons were provided for the ruling by the Competition Tribunal. The unannounced switch-off also left eMedia without sufficient time to communicate to viewers. Viewers are angry and disappointed that they are no longer able to see their programmes via the DStv platform,” eMedia claimed in a brief statement at the time.

Asked for comment on Monday, a spokesman for MultiChoice said: “We are aware of the decision made by the competition appeal court in favour of eMedia. We are considering the court’s decision to grant the order requiring us to carry the four eMedia channels for a limited period of six months while the Competition Commission conducts its investigation.”

New 24/7 Movie Channel On DStv Offers A Ticket To Couch Potato Paradise

Cinema buffs, action afficionados and casual viewers alike will be spoilt with choice when a new, creatively curated movie channel goes live on August 27. Launching to all DStv Premium, Compact+, Compact, Family and Access customers on channel 113, Movie Room is the brainchild of Ngwato Nkosi Group, known as the founders of the disruptive, audience-centric and highly successful Newzroom Afrika news and information service.

The company, which is a partnership between entrepreneurs Thabile Ngwato and Thokozani Nkosi, is building on the strong platform created by Newzroom Afrika to expand its entertainment business with the launch of Movie Room.

"This channel will offer entertaining local and international movies 24/7 from big blockbuster hits to unforgettable cinema classics." said Nkosi.

“We’ll be carefully curating the line-up to cater for every mood – whether it’s edge-of-your-seat action you’re after, or the comfort of an old favourite. Of course, we’ll also apply the unique perspective that we’ve become known for,” Nkosi says.

Ngwato says the company had a bold ambition to build an African news and entertainment platform for the future.

“This is an exciting next step in our journey. Newzroom Afrika has been successful beyond all expectations, and we will use the experience of setting up the channel from scratch to make smart decisions in our approach with Movie Room.

“Our team is entrepreneurial by nature and we have a core group of seasoned and creative talent that sets us apart,” Ngwato said.

Georginah Machiridza, executive head content strategy & 3rd party channels at MultiChoice says, Movie Room would give viewers even more options in their selection of entertainment for every viewing occasion.

“We’re excited to bring subscribers the widest possible choice of fine movies to satisfy all tastes and seasons,” says Machiridza.

New Channel Alert (Rumour): Could Movie Room Be The Exciting New Movie Channel Set To Replace eMovies And eMovies Extra On DStv?

Update: Movie Room will launch on the 27th of August on channel 113 which comes from the makers of Newsroom Afrika. The channel will feature a mix of local (80%) and international movies (20%).

MultiChoice scrapped e.tv's 4 channels several months back and promised consumers an exciting movie channel in the near future and after two months we finally get a look into the possible channel set to launch on DStv later in the month.

Movie Room from the looks of the offering is another Mzansi Bioskop as the lineup consists of a ton of local productions outside of the Bioskop banner most of which have been seen on the DStv platform like Beyond The River, Herb & Moon, Popbus, Season's Feelings and Pop, Lock & Roll.

This is only a portion of the lineup as they're still working on the rest of the schedule but from what's already seen on Movie Room. The channel serves as a competitor to Mzansi Wethu with a set of existing local content from M-Net Movies.

Again, this is just speculation as it could be another pop-up but from what's seen from most M-Net channels. They're usually labelled under M-Net Movies which just leads me to believe that this channel might have alterior motives.

In the court case with eMedia Investments, they boasted about how eMovies alongside eMedia's other 3 channels rebroadcast a lot of DStv content only for Movie Room to make the same mistake I mean if that wanted less repeats why not opt for ShortsTV or Christian channel, Positiv.

Movie Room just looks like another cheap addition that few customers primarily Access and possible Easyview will take a looking into should it be a permanent addition and not a pop-up like most M-Net Movie channels reserved on Premium and AddMovies.

Upcoming DStv Channel's Website Has Surfaced The Net

As reported later last month, INX Prime is an upcoming Islamic entertainment channel offering daily preaching and live sessions as seen with Hilaal TV alongside various content produced by their studios and sourced internationally.

As seen by readers, the only reliable source for INX Prime at the moment happens to be the promo uploaded onto their YouTube channel with MultiChoice being a potential distributor as the channel was first spotted on their platform.

Something we didn't mention when at the time which is best to bring up now is their media house aka production studio located in Houghton Estate, Johannesburg where most if not all the content will be produced.

Not long ago, a website under the banner INX Prime had surfaced the web which from the looks of it appears to be the official website for the channel which is still under construction and I mean major construction.

Most of the links to the options available on the website link you to either another construction page or refreshes the website. Even the YouTube and Facebook are of no use although the accounts are very much active to some extent.

For those trying to find the YouTube channel will be directed to the INX Prime Show Reel promo within the link comes the YouTube channel and for the Facebook page it is very much a complicated process for users without Facebook luckily the link has been inserted: click here.

I'm no illusionist but from what these developments suggest it may be a while till we get the greenlight on INX Prime but with the website onboard and all the necessary functions put in place it may not be too long till we get an official update.