HBO Max and Max Say “Twitter Won’t Let” Them Swap X Names Back

Sometimes, X is not Gon’ Give It To Ya. It’s a hard lesson that the rebranded de-branded(?) HBO Max is learning this morning.

As of Wednesday, HBO Max is no longer Max and is back to being HBO Max, just on the Max platform. We know, it’s confusing. Either way, it appears that X (fka Twitter) is not playing ball with all of this back and forth — or at any rate, it has not played ball yet.

“twitter won’t let me change my name back,” the pinned @StreamOnMax tweet reads.

Well, maybe if you called the platform by its own new name, X, it would be more agreeable.

As for @hbomax, its profile reads: “twitter won’t let us switch our handles ¯_(ツ)_/¯”

It’s glaring for a few reasons: 1) We knew the streaming video platform’s name reversion was coming for months now. 2) We knew it was coming today since yesterday. And 3) The other social media platforms have been quick to allow the swap.

As of this story posting, X is the only major platform to still have the Max handle as the primary profile for the core Warner Bros. Discovery streaming service; Facebook, TikTok and Instagram have all obliged the change.

It’s certainly probable that there is just some delay here — we can’t speak for X. The Hollywood Reporter reached out to X’s head of communications, but we did not immediately receive a response. THR also did not immediately hear back from our request for (further) comment from HBO Max.

X has a very TV-friendly CEO — Linda Yaccarino was formerly chairwoman of global advertising & partnerships at NBCUniversal. We’ll see if she steps in to expedite the now-public request.

THR reported on Tuesday that Warner Bros. Discovery would officially rebrand its Max streaming service to HBO Max on Wednesday, per a source familiar with the matter.

The name change back to HBO Max, the name it used from 2020 until 2023, was first announced onstage at WBD’s upfront presentation back in May. “I know you’re all shocked, but the good news is I have a drawer full of stationery from the last time around,” HBO chief Casey Bloys quipped at the upfront.

The pivot comes after WBD decided to change its streaming strategy and lean into the premium nature of HBO’s offering, pulling back in some areas like unscripted and kids and family programming, rather than compete on scale with the likes of Netflix.

“This evolution has been influenced by changing consumer needs, and the fact that no consumer today is saying they want more content, but most consumers are saying they want better content,” the company said in a statement connected to the (latest) name change. “With other services filling the more basic needs with volume, WBD has clearly distinguished itself through its quality and distinct stories, and no brand has done that better and more consistently over 50-plus years than HBO.”

WBD is set to undergo larger changes, with the company to be split in two next year. HBO Max will be part of a new company led by David Zaslav alongside the Warner Bros. film and TV studios, with the linear TV networks spun into a new company to be led by Gunnar Weidenfels.

The company is also taking HBO Max globally, launching the brand in 12 new markets this month.

Alex Weprin contributed to this story.