HBO Max Originals Trailers: Anna Kendrick's 'Love Life,' Sundance Documentary 'On The Record,' New 'Looney Tunes Cartoons,' And More
HBO Max finally set its official launch date this morning, and with that announcement, the forthcoming WarnerMedia streaming platform released the first trailers for the HBO Max Originals that will debut on day one.
Half a dozen HBO Max Originals will be available to watch on the day of the platform's launch on May 27, including the new comedy series Love Life starring Anna Kendrick, a powerful Sundance documentary On the Record, and several new children's shows for the quarantined kids who are craving new content. Watch the HBO Max Originals trailers below.
HBO Max Originals Trailers
If you launch a new streaming platform and it doesn't include an original title starring Anna Kendrick, does it really exist? The A Simple Favor actress has managed to land a starring role in original films and shows for Disney+, Quibi, and now HBO Max.
But her upcoming HBO Max series Love Life seems the most promising, following Kendrick as a lovelorn New York City millennial who struggles through break-ups and bad dates. It does hit all the beats of a Girls-esque millennial dramedy a little too hard, and apart from Kendrick's natural charm, doesn't seem to offer anything original to the genre. However, with Kendrick's A Simple Favor director Paul Feig executive producing the series created and co-showrun by Sam Boyd (In a Relationship), Love Life could have some potential.
The powerful Me Too documentary On the Record debuted at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival to rave reviews, with critics praising the "heartbreaking" film centering around the victims of sexual abuse and harassment against hip hop mogul Russell Simmons.
Directed by Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering, On the Record features interviews with some of the over 20 women who have accused him, including Sil Lai Abrams, Sherri Hines, Jenny Lumet, Toni Sallie, and Alexia Norton Jones. The documentary was sparked by the story of music executive Drew Dixon, the first woman to publicly levy allegations of assault against Simmons detailed in a 2017 New York Times article, who provides the central focal point for On the Record.
Remember the HBO Max voguing competition series that The Good Place star Jameela Jamil caught flack for hosting — then, not hosting? That's Legendary, which spotlights the underground culture of ballroom, founded by primarily black and Latinx LGBTQ people in New York in the late 1980s. But while Jamil makes a brief appearance in this rousing teaser, it's more about the flamboyant and glamorous ballroom contestants, who strut, vogue, and walk their way to the prize of this competition series.
YouTuber LaurDIY hosts Craftopia, "the ultimate kids competition series" where the young competitors are met with "larger-than-life challenges" to make cool crafts. It seems like a fun and genial reality series that could provide a boon to parents who want to give their kids more to learn while watching streaming services.
Speaking of kids, a whole new generation of them will be introduced to the joy that is Looney Tunes. A new Looney Tunes Cartoons series is debuting on HBO Max, featuring all the old regulars, Bugs Bunny, Tweety Bird, Porky Pig, and Daffy Duck, in brand spanking new animation. Thankfully, Looney Tunes still maintains its 2D animated form, but it's even more brightly and cleanly animated than we've ever seen before.
The adorable breakout star of Sesame Street has yet another TV series under his belt: this time, a variety show. The Not Too Late Show With Elmo (because he's a toddler who goes to bed at 7:30 p.m.) features a slew of incredible guest hosts including John Mulaney (who already seems like a Sesame Street character come to life), the Jonas Brothers, Jimmy Fallon, Blake Lively, and more. It actually looks like a fun spin on the variety show format, which has already undergone quite a transformation since quarantine started. So in a way, The Not Too Late Show With Elmo is a return to the variety show as we knew it before quarantine.
HBO Max launches on May 27, 2020.