The Fate Of Harley Quinn On HBO Max Has Been Decided
The Warner Bros Discovery merger has led to many cancelations at HBO Max, and now the streamer has decided the fate of the Harley Quinn show.
Following several brutal cuts to its animation department, HBO Max has renewed the very adult Harley Quinn for a fourth season. Along with the renewal, the streamer also announced that Sarah Peters has been promoted to executive producer and will take over showrunner duties from creators Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker. The 39-year-old has written for the show since season one and previously served as a consulting producer.
The news comes as Harley Quinn’s third season will be ending on September 15th. The current installment, which premiered in July, is the animated show’s first outing on HBO Max. The project was originally created for the DC Universe streaming service which has since been dissolved and restructured as the digital comics service DC Universe Infinite. Speaking about the renewal, Halpern and Schumacker said they are ecstatic that the story of Harley and Ivy gets to continue on HBO Max.
“We are equally thrilled that this next season will be in great hands with Sarah Peters as our showrunner,” the duo said in a statement via Variety. Ceci Aranovich will oversee animation production, as she has also greatly influenced the Harley Quinn show with her brilliance since the beginning. The series is produced by Delicious Non-Sequitur Productions and Yes, Norman Productions in association with Warner Bros Animation. Along with Halpern and Schumacker, Kaley Cuoco, Peters, Sam Register, Jessica Goldstein, and Chrissy Pietrosh serve as executive producers.
Created by Justin Halpern, Patrick Schumacker, and Dean Lorey, Harley Quinn is billed as an animated dark comedy. Based on the DC Comics character of the same name, the story follows the misadventures of the popular antihero following her break-up with the Joker. As she tries to become an independent villain, she teams up with Poison Ivy who becomes a close friend and ally. The show premiered to critical acclaim and received praise for its animation, humor, dark tone, voice acting, and Kaley Cuoco’s portrayal of the titular protagonist.
Season three finds Harley Quinn (Kaley Cuoco) and Poison Ivy (Lake Bell) in a romantic relationship. As they return to Gotham as the new power couple of DC villainy, the pair strives to become the best version of themselves while also working toward Ivy’s long-desired goal of transforming Gotham into an Eden paradise. Starring alongside Kaley Cuoco and Lake Bell are Ron Funches, J.B. Smoove, Alan Tudyk, Matt Oberg, Christopher Meloni, Andy Daly, Diedrich Bader, James Adomian, Sanaa Lathan, Briana Cuoco, and Harvey Guillén.
The good news for Harley Quinn follows a bunch of less-good news for other animated HBO Max shows. The reimagining of the Batman mythology Batman: Caped Crusader is no longer headed for the streamer, but is continuing production, according to TVLine. Other axed series seeking new homes include the family action-comedy Merry Little Batman, The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie (starring Porky and Daffy), Bye Bye Bunny: A Looney Tunes Musical, the animated musical holiday special Did I Do That to the Holidays? A Steve Urkel Story, and The Amazing World of Gumball: The Movie.
