Showtime has pulled several series from its streaming platform, becoming the latest banner to parse down its digital library in the past year. Sources close to the situation share that most removed titles will have the opportunity to sell to third-parties.
Among the removals are “American Gigolo” and “Let the Right One In,” both of which were not renewed for a second season, as announced by Showtime just earlier Monday afternoon. Both seasons of the Jim Carrey-starring “Kidding” are also no longer available to watch on the platform, as well as the single-season series “American Rust” and “On Becoming a God in Central Florida.”
The first season of “Super Pumped” has also been removed. The business anthology series had been renewed in Feb. 2022, with plans for a second season to focus on the history of Facebook. However, few updates have emerged on the project in the months since.
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Other impacted series include acquired content such as “The End” and “Wakefield.” The full list of removals from Showtime’s streaming service is currently unknown.
Earlier Monday, Paramount CEO Bob Bakish announced plans for an imminent shift to the Showtime banner. The cable network will be renamed to “Paramount+ With Showtime,” while its streaming service will be absorbed into Paramount+. The changes will be instituted later in 2023.
Over recent months, the removal of titles from streaming libraries has emerged as a viable business technique for studios to cut costs. HBO Max first quietly removed several original features from its library in August 2022, which has been followed by an ongoing series of cuts across the breadth of its TV content. Removing completely produced series allows streamers to take a tax write-down, while also opening the opportunity to sell underperforming titles to third-party buyers.
The Hollywood Reporter was first to report on the removal of various series from Showtime’s streaming platform.
