HBO Max has lost the first half of its name and has now been rebranded as “Max,” and June 2023 is the first full month that the streaming service will be operating under the new name. And with tons of exciting new arrivals already here, with more still on the way, Max isn’t going to find any trouble leaving a strong impression on subscribers this month. New HBO originals on the streaming platform this June include The Weeknd and Sam Levinson’s head-turning drama series The Idol and new seasons of Painting With John and The Righteous Gemstones. In terms of Max originals, new seasons of the Sex and the City revival And Just Like That…, the animated sitcom Ten Year Old Tom, and the martial arts crime drama Warrior are premiering soon.
Max just added a massive wave of beloved films to its content library as well. For starters, every Evil Dead film including Army of Darkness and the 2013 remake is now available on Max in June 2023. This is great news for horror fans and Sam Raimi heads, especially since the latest installment in the franchise, Evil Dead Rise, is finally coming to Max as well on June 23. Next up, the two feature-length Sex and the City movies are back on the streaming service for those eager fans waiting for And Just Like That… Season 2. Also, funny enough, all three film remakes of A Star Is Born – from 1954, 1976, and 2018 – will be streaming on Max this month. Moviegoers who missed out on Magic Mike’s Last Dance in cinemas earlier this year can now watch it from the comfort of their homes on Max too.
Last but not least, Avatar: The Way of Water just got added to Max in June 2023. James Cameron’s sci-fi blockbuster epic – which now stands as the third highest-grossing film of all time – is releasing on both Max and Disney+ this month as part of a pre-existing deal with Warner Bros. Discovery that sends select 20th Century Studios titles to both platforms for a shared streaming window. Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Cliff Curtis, and Kate Winslet, Avatar: The Way of Water is not to be missed on Max. At the moment, James Cameron is currently working on the next multiple sequels with Avatar 3 slated to release in 2025. Already obsessed with the fantastical world of Pandora? Let us break down the purpose of the Tulkun and the most important scene in Avatar: The Way of Water for you.
Read more on our monthly recs below and then check out the full list of everything coming to HBO and Max in June 2023. You can also find out what just got added to and is leaving Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+ this month right here on DiscussingFilm.
Our Recs:
The Idol
HBO choosing to follow up the ending of Succession and Barry with The Idol may seem like a questionable choice to some, but almost anyone who’s been on the internet in the last few months has at least heard of this new original series. From Euphoria creator Sam Levinson, Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, and Reza Fahim, The Idol looks to tell a cautionary tale on the dangers of luxury and fame. Audiences follow up-and-coming pop star Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp) as she gets sucked into the unpredictable circle of Tedros (Tesfaye) after hitting rock bottom in her career. Tedros may seem like an inviting self-help guru who sees potential in Jocelyn at first, but it’s soon revealed that he’s the head of a modern Hollywood cult.
The Idol has already been criticized online for its provocative (or exploitative) nature, however, that’s up for audiences to decide on their own. The show is also set in the same universe as Euphoria because of course is it. A jam-packed supporting cast brings all kinds of exciting flavors to The Idol, including Suzanna Son, Troye Sivan, Jane Adams, Rachel Sennott, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Dan Levy, and Hank Azaria. After premiering at this year’s edition of the Cannes Film Festival, Sam Levinson and Abel Tesfaye’s HBO original series has a lot to live up to. With The Idol only being 5 episodes long, it won’t be much longer until viewers find out.
New episodes of The Idol premiere every Sunday in June 2023 on HBO and Max!
And Just Like That… (Season 2)
The follow-up series to HBO’s iconic Sex and the City is back and filled with even more drama. And Just Like That… Season 2 continues to follow Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), and Charlotte York Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis) as they navigate the ups and downs of their fifties. Carrie, still trying her best to move on from the death of her husband Mr. Big, is going to finally reunite with former lover and fan-favorite character Aiden Shaw (John Corbett). Meanwhile, Charlotte continues to struggle with parenthood with her two daughters Lily (Cathy Ang) and Rose (Alexa Swinton) opening up about their sex lives. Miranda, on the other hand, is going back and forth from Los Angeles to New York in order to make a relationship with new character Che (Sara Ramirez) work.
Returning faces from the first season of And Just Like That… include Nicole Ari Parker as Lisa Todd Wexley, Sarita Choudhury as Seema Patel, Karen Pittman as Dr. Nya Wallace, Evan Handler as Harry Goldenblatt, David Eigenberg as Steve Brady, Niall Cunningham as Brady Hobbes, Candice Bergen as Enid Frick, and Mario Cantone as Anthony Marentino. Additionally, Sam Smith and Gloria Steinem will be cameoing as themselves. Speaking of brief appearances, Kim Cattrall will be returning as Sex and the City icon Samantha Jones for a quick cameo that was reportedly filmed without speaking or being present with any of her former co-stars or showrunner Michael Patrick King. This is, of course, due to her ongoing feud with main star Sarah Jessica Parker. But hey, the fans are going to take anything they can get at this point!
The first two episodes of And Just Like That… Season 2 hit Max on June 22, 2023, with new episodes then releasing every Thursday!
Warrior (Season 3)
Fans of action cinema need to check out Warrior at all costs. The martial arts crime drama was the last remaining original program on Cinemax, and this latest season will be its first under the “Max original” branding. Based on the writings of the one and only Bruce Lee, Warrior takes place during the Tong Wars in late 1870s San Francisco and follows Ah Sahm (Andrew Koji), a rising martial arts master who emigrates from China in search of his lost sister. However, fate soon sees him becoming an enforcer for Chinatown’s most powerful tong (gang). Warrior Season 3 will follow the aftermath of the race riots that shook up the last season, with various characters looking to seize power over the city in the chaos.
Joining Andrew Koji in the main cast of Warrior is Olivia Cheng as Ah Toy, Jason Tobin as Young Jun, Dianne Doan as Mai Ling, Kieran Bew as Bill “Big Bill” O’Hara, Dean Jagger as Dylan Leary, Joanna Vanderham as Penelope Blake, Tom Weston-Jones as Richard Henry Lee, Hoon Lee as Wang Chao, Joe Taslim as Li Yong, and more. The series is produced by Justin Lin of Fast & Furious fame and Bruce Lee’s daughter Shannon Lee, who oversees that Bruce’s legacy is felt authentically. Banshee creator Jonathan Tropper serves as the showrunner alongside writers Evan Endicott and Josh Stoddard for Warrior Season 3. Those who haven’t jumped on the Warrior hype train need to fix that this June on Max.
Warrior Season 3 premieres June 29 on Max!
New HBO and Max Arrivals for June 2023
Coming June 1
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
A Star Is Born (1954)
A Star Is Born (1976)
Army of Darkness (1993)
Balls of Fury (2007)
Beautiful Creatures (2013)
Big Daddy (1999)
Breach (2007)
Bulworth (1998)
Class Act (1992)
Click (2006)
Dave (1993)
David Copperfield (1935)
Demolition Man (1993)
Diggers (2006)
Dog Day Afternoon (1975)
Dolphin Tale (2011)
Dumb & Dumber (1994)
Dumb & Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd (2003)
Eastern Promises (2007)
Edge of Darkness (2010)
Eli Roth Presents: The Legion Of Exorcists (Travel Channel)
Enter The Dragon (1973)
Fame (1980)
Fifty Shades Darker (2017, Extended Version)
Fifty Shades Freed (2018, Extended Version)
Gold Diggers of 1933
Gold Diggers of 1935
Grease (1978)
Hairspray (2007)
I Origins (2014)
I, Tonya (2017)
Jackie Brown (1997)
Jeremiah Johnson (1972)
Jersey Boys (2014)
Just Mercy (2019)
Knock Knock (2015)
Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
Magic Mike (2012)
Martin Lawrence Live: Runteldat (2002)
Military Wives (2019)
Moneyball (2011)
Monster-In-Law (2005)
Monsters vs. Aliens (2009)
Moonlight (2016)
Naked.Loud.Proud (Max Original)
Narc (2002)
National Lampoon’s European Vacation (1985)
Never Say Never Again (1983)
Objective, Burma! (1945)
On Moonlight Bay (1951)
Operation Crossbow (1965)
Police Academy (1984)
Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment (1985)
Police Academy 3: Back In Training (1986)
Police Academy 4: Citizens On Patrol (1987)
Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach (1988)
Radio (2003)
Ready Player One (2018)
Romance on the High Seas (1948)
Selena (1997)
Sex And The City (2008)
Sex And The City 2 (2010)
Sunday in New York (1964)
Tea for Two (1950)
The Big Wedding (2013)
The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015)
The Boy Next Door (2015)
The Dead Files (Travel Channel)
The Drop (2014)
The Evil Dead (1981)
The Evil Dead (2013)
The Evil Dead II (1987)
The Family (2013)
The Hurt Locker (2009)
The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete (2013)
The Lodge (2019)
The Nun’s Story (1959)
The Painter and the Thief (2020)
The Saint (1997)
The Turning Point (1977)
Tooth Fairy (2010)
Woodstock: The Director’s Cut (1994)
X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
You’re Next (2013)
Coming June 2
Magic Mike’s Last Dance (2023)
Painting With John, Season 3 (HBO Original)
Well Designed (Magnolia Network)
Coming June 4
90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days (TLC)
Battle on the Beach (HGTV)
The Idol (HBO Original) *4K UHD, HDR 10, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos
Coming June 5
Louisiana Law (Animal Planet)
Coming June 6
Burden of Proof (HBO Original)
Bugs Bunny Builders, Season 1E (Cartoon Network)
Coming June 7
Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) *4K UHD, HDR 10, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos
Ghost Adventures (Discovery)
Coming June 8
A Star Is Born (2018)
American Pain (Max Original)
Coming June 9
AEW All Access (TBS)
First Five (Max Original)
Coming June 10
Build It Forward (HGTV)
Red 2 (2013)
Walker, Season 3
Coming June 12
Celebrity IOU, Season 4A (HGTV)
Coming June 13
Vacation (2015)
Coming June 14
How Do You Measure A Year? (HBO Original)
Small Town Potential (HGTV)
Coming June 15
Awkwafina Is Nora From Queens, Season 3
Crack Addicts (TLC)
Outchef’d (Food Network)
Rap Battlefield, Season 2 (Max Original)
Coming June 16
Hoffman Family Gold (Discovery)
Meet the Batwheels shorts, Season 1C (Cartoon Network)
The Cabin Chronicles, Season 3 (Magnolia Network)
Coming June 17
John Early: Now More Than Ever (HBO Original)
Coming June 18
Beachside Brawl (Food Network)
The Great Food Truck Race: David vs. Goliath (Food Network)
The Righteous Gemstones, Season 3 (HBO Original)
We Baby Bears, Season 2A (Cartoon Network)
Coming June 19
Street Outlaws: Mega Cash Days (Discovery)
Coming June 21
7 Little Johnstons (TLC)
The Stroll (HBO Original)
Coming June 22
And Just Like That…, Season 2 (Max Original) *4K UHD, HDR 10, Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos
Christina On The Coast (HGTV)
Downey’s Dream Cars (Max Original)
Coming June 23
Rich & Shameless, Season 2A (TNT)
Teen Titans Go!, Season 8B (Cartoon Network)
Evil Dead Rise
Coming June 25
Mini Reni (Magnolia Network)
Coming June 26
Batman: The Doom That Came To Gotham (2023)
Coming June 27
Chopped (Food Network)
Taylor Mac’s 24-Decade History of Popular Music (HBO Original)
Coming June 28
Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed (HBO Original)
Coming June 29
Revealed (HGTV)
Ten-Year-Old Tom, Season 2 (Max Original)
Warrior, Season 3 (Max Original)
Coming June 30
Beachfront Bargain Hunt Renovation, Season 7 (Magnolia Network)
