Warner Bros. sued over ‘Harry Potter’ series partnership with Sky

Sky Group I filed a lawsuit Friday against Warner Bros., accusing the studio of breaching their agreement by refusing to participate in the upcoming “Harry Potter” TV series.

Sky has long distributed Warner Bros. content. in the UK, but the relationship has deteriorated recently as Warners prepares to launch rival streaming service Max in Europe.

The lawsuit filed in New York federal court represents a complete collapse of the partnership. According to the suit, Warners is committed to delivering four Max series per year co-financed and co-produced by Sky and distributed exclusively to Sky viewers in the UK and other European territories.

But Sky claims Warner Bros. It has failed to fulfill that deal since it began in 2021, most recently by refusing to participate in the production of the upcoming “Harry Potter” series.

“Warner’s reason for refusing to fulfill its obligations to Sky could not be clearer,” the lawsuit said. “Warner has chosen to keep the Harry Potter franchise for itself and make the blockbuster series the cornerstone of its maximum rollout in Europe.”

Sky, which is owned by Comcast, claims it stands to lose hundreds of millions of dollars due to Warners Bros. Breach of agreement.

The agreement is scheduled to expire at the end of 2025. The Max has already begun rolling out in Europe, and is scheduled to launch in the UK in 2026.

In response, a Warner Bros. spokesperson said: The lawsuit is “a baseless attempt by Sky and Comcast to try to gain leverage” in talks for the World Bank’s post-2025 programming.

“We know that HBO-branded shows are important to Sky, as evidenced by their desire for more than a year to find a way to renew our agreements, and this lawsuit makes clear that Sky is deeply concerned about the viability of its business if it loses,” the spokesperson said. “Award-winning content Our Awards. “WBD will vigorously defend itself against this baseless lawsuit as we move forward undeterred with plans to launch Max, including the new HBO Harry Potter series, in the UK and other European markets in 2026.”

In the lawsuit, Sky accuses Warner Bros. By giving her an alternative idea to “Harry Potter”. The series was publicly announced in April 2023, but a month later, when Sky executives asked why it had not been shown on Sky under their partnership, Warner Bros. executives said it would not be released on Sky under their partnership. The series was not “requested” and they did not watch their series. A press release from the private company, according to the lawsuit.

In contradiction to the press release, executives said the series had not been greenlit, and probably never would be, and therefore was not subject to co-financing arrangements from Sky.

Meanwhile, Warner Bros. released A series of announcements over the past year have been about casting and additions to the show’s creative team.

Sky argues that Warner Bros. It had already failed to live up to its end of the bargain for two years by that point.

The contract attached to the lawsuit requires Sky to finance 20% to 25% of the budget of the shows it shares with Warner Bros. The company pledged to commit at least $40 million in the first year of the contract. To reach $100 million by 2025.

Sky Group CEO Dana Strong said at a conference in June that the two companies were in talks about how to extend their relationship after the contract expires.

“Regardless, in each scenario, Sky customers will have Warner content on Sky platforms,” she said at the time.