HBO’s greatest shortcoming has been the unavailability of its streaming service Max to a wider global audience. Now, it appears that Warner Bros. Discovery has found a workaround to this through the licensing of past HBO shows to bigger streaming services like Netflix – which explains why Ballers is now listed in your Netflix catalog.
Created by Stephen Levinson, Ballers is a sports dramedy that follows former NFL player Spencer Strasmore (portrayed by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) as he transitions from his football career to becoming a financial manager for current players. Alongside his partner Joe Krutel, Spencer navigates the challenges of managing the wealth, egos, and personal issues of his clients.
Set against the backdrop of the glamorous and competitive world of professional sports, Ballers sheds a spotlight on the intricacies of business deals, personal relationships, and the pursuit of success in the high-profile world of athletes and the entertainment industry.
Warner Bros. Discovery began negotiating a non-exclusive streaming agreement with Netflix in June, which proved to be successful after all five seasons of Issa Rae’s comedy series Insecure were added to the platform last month. More HBO shows, including Six Feet Under, the highly acclaimed war drama miniseries Band of Brothers, and its companion show The Pacific, are expected to make their Netflix debut sometime in the near future.
While Ballers and Insecure remain accessible on Max, other HBO shows like Westworld, Raised by Wolves, The Nevers, and Lovecraft Country have departed the platform, finding new homes on free ad-supported streamers such as Roku and Tubi. This strategy seems to be Warner Bros. Discovery’s attempt to recover losses incurred from a series of unsuccessful projects. Interestingly, Netflix will not be extending a similar deal to Max or any other service.
Ted Sarandos, the streaming giant’s co-CEO, made it clear that Netflix won’t be pursuing such an arrangement with its rivals, stating:
We’ve always have found that we offer this content to our members in an unbelievable value on Netflix as now. And then, almost anywhere else we put it, there’s either a crossover, and they otherwise have Netflix account or have a much smaller viewing base. We think we’re taking the right course in terms of offering the content to our members and having it around even after its original run on Netflix.
All five seasons of HBO’s Ballers are currently streaming on Netflix in select regions across the world.
