All Eight 'Harry Potter' Movies Will Be Available On Peacock This October
The Harry Potter movies are an extremely important film franchise for Warner Bros. However, just a few months after the launch of HBO Max, Warner's new streaming service, all eight original Potter movies are leaving the service and shuffling over to a service run by one of WB's biggest rivals: NBCUniversal.
While all eight films will be disappearing from HBO Max later this month, you'll be able to watch Harry Potter on Peacock starting in October – and you won't have to pay anything (other than your time) to see them.
According to a new Peacock press release, all eight Harry Potter films will be available to stream for free in windows over the next six months starting later this year and into 2021. Starting in October 2020, you'll be able to stream Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007), Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009), and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 (2010) and Part 2 (2011).
Deadline says the movies will have a six-month run on NBCUniversal's newly-launched service before they cycle off again, so once October rolls around, fans will have until April 2021 to bask in the Wizarding World before they disappear like a vanishing spell was cast on them.
It was a big deal when HBO Max announced that all eight Potter movies would be available for that product's launch because Potter and the Fantastic Beasts movies have long been one of Warner Bros.' biggest and most important film franchises, but it didn't take long for HBO Max to lose that pillar to a rival streaming service. Honestly, it's surprising that HBO Max had access to those films at all: back in 2016, long before proprietary streaming services were being eyed by either company, NBCU signed a deal with WB worth a reported $250 million for the TV and digital rights to the Harry Potter movies. That deal, the largest movie acquisition in the company's history, was supposed to give NBCU exclusive access to those films until 2025, so one assumes WB must have paid a hefty sum back to NBCU in order to gain access to these movies for just three months.
"The Harry Potter franchise is beloved by people of all ages and represents the caliber of quality entertainment customers can expect to find on Peacock," said Frances Manfredi, Peacock's president of content acquisition and strategy. "We've built a world-class collection of iconic movies and shows, and we will continue to expand the film library with treasured titles from NBCUniversal and beyond that will surprise and delight Peacock customers time and time again."