The HBO original miniseries The Sympathizer is the hottest new arrival to the Max streaming service in April 2024. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning 2015 novel of the same name by Viet Thanh Nguyen, The Sympathizer is described as part espionage thriller and part cross-culture satire. Renowned South Korean filmmaker Park Chan-wook steps into the spotlight as the co-creator, co-showrunner, and director of this miniseries, which is also a co-production between HBO and beloved indie studio A24. Known for movies such as Oldboy, The Handmaiden, and Decision to Leave, Park Chan-wook leading a new limited series from both HBO and A24 is already exciting enough. But the real cherry on top is the addition of recent Oscar-winner Robert Downey Jr. (Oppenheimer) as executive producer and star, oh and he’s playing not one but multiple characters in various layers of makeup.
Robert Downey Jr. isn’t the main star of The Sympathizer, though. Relative newcomer Hoa Xuande (Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop) leads the miniseries as a protagonist simply known as “The Captain” — a half-French, half-Vietnamese communist spy who finds himself torn between two worlds during the last days of the Vietnam War in 1975. When he’s forced to flee to the United States, more specifically Los Angeles, the Captain takes up residency in a community of South Vietnamese refugees. One of Downey Jr.’s characters, who’s only described as a “Master of Disguise,” takes the Captain under his wing and introduces him to the world of spycraft. Little does he know that the Captain is actually a communist secretly working for North Vietnam. The Captain’s original loyalties are tested as he’s given the chance to pursue the American Dream, but must do so without revealing his communist ties.
A slew of new HBO original documentaries are debuting on Max in April 2024, including docuseries like The Jinx – Part Two and The Synanon Fix and docufilms like Brandy Hellville & The Cult Of Fast Fashion and An American Bombing: The Road To April 19th. Max subscribers will be happy that comedian Conan O’Brien is finally making his comeback on April 18 with his new Max original unscripted series, Conan O’Brien Must Go. The Emmy-winning Late Night host is once again traveling across the world to meet his fans face-to-face while taking in the local culture. This time, though, he’s meeting up with friends of his popular Conan O’Brien Needs a Fan podcast. These first four episodes make stops in Norway, Thailand, Argentina, and Ireland; there’s no telling what surprises Conan has in store.
Fresh off its 2024 Oscar wins for Best International Feature and Best Sound, Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest is hitting Max on April 5, 2024. Two other A24 films will be able to stream on Max this month, Janicza Bravo’s Zola and Alex Garland’s Men (2022). The latter is extremely divisive, but Garland’s psychological horror might prove to be an interesting watch since his next feature, Civil War, releases in theaters this April as well. DiscussingFilm’s review of A24’s Civil War calls it Garland’s most audacious work yet and “the perfect movie for the modern moment, whether we like it or not.” Other notable additions to the Max streaming platform in April 2024 include Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, David Fincher’s The Social Network, Sofia Coppola’s Lost In Translation, and the Coen brothers’ A Serious Man.
Of course, it must be mentioned that all 8 original films in Warner Bros. Discovery’s Harry Potter franchise are coming back to the streamer at the very beginning of the month too. See the full list of everything getting added to HBO and Max in April 2024 below. You can also find what’s coming to Netflix, Hulu, and Prime Video in April 2024 right here on DiscussingFilm.
Our HBO and Max Recs for April 2024
The Sympathizer
Created by Park Chan-wook & Don McKellar.
Based on The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen.
Directed by Park Chan-wook, Fernando Meirelles, & Marc Munden.
Written by Mark Richard, Naomi Iizuka, Maegan Houang, Anchuli Felicia King, and Tea Ho.
Executive Produced by Park Chan-wook, Don McKellar, Robert Downey Jr., Susan Downey, Amanda Burrell, Niv Fichman, Kim Ly, Ron Schmidt, Viet Thanh Nguyen, & Jisun Beck.
Main Cast: Hoa Xuande, Fred Nguyen Khan, Toan Le, Duy Nguyễn, Vy Le, Kieu Chinh, Alan Trong, Kayli Tran, VyVy Nguyen, Ky Duyen, Scott Ly, Marine Delterme, Sandra Oh, & Robert Downey Jr.
Production Companies: A24, Team Downey, Rhombus Media, Cinetic Media, & Moho Film.
Episode Count: 7.
The Sympathizer premieres on Max on April 14, 2024!
Conan O’Brien Must Go
Executive Produced by Conan O’Brien and Jeff Ross.
Production Company: Conaco.
Episode Count: 4.
Conan O’Brien Must Go premieres on Max on April 18, 2024!
Everything New on HBO and Max in April 2024
Coming April 1
American Renegades (2018)
Basquiat (1996)
Black Swan (2010)
Body of Lies (2008)
Bridget Jones’s Diary (2001)
Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (2004)
Bridget Jones’s Baby (2016)
Bruce Lee: The Man and the Legend (1973)
Cane Toads: The Conquest (2010)
Ceddo (1977)
Conviction (2010)
Deepwater Horizon (2016)
Demonlover (2002)
Don’t Let Go (2019)
Elizabethtown (2005)
Emitaï (1971)
Eo (2022)
The Fluffy Movie (2014)
Frozen in Design (Special) (HGTV)
Gulliver’s Travels (2010)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone: Magical Movie Mode (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)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
The Heroic Trio (1993)
Hotel Artemis (2018)
Infernal Affairs (2002)
Infernal Affairs II (2003)
Infernal Affairs III (2003)
Inland Empire (2006)
Internal Affairs (1990)
Joy (2015)
Juliet, Naked (2018)
Kingpin (1996)
Leap of Faith (1992)
Lonesome Luke, Messenger (1917)
Lost In Translation (2003)
Love Affair (1939)
Lucky (2017)
McQueen (2018)
Miracles (1989)
National Security (2003)
The New World (2006)
Next Aisle Over (1919)
Once Upon a Time in China (1991)
Once Upon a Time in China (1992)
Once Upon a Time in China III (1993)
The Pink Panther (2006)
The Pink Panther 2 (2009)
The Power of Film (2024)
Pride and Glory (2008)
Ronin (1998)
Safe Haven (2013)
A Sammy in Siberia (1919)
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010)
The Sea of Trees (2016)
A Serious Man (2009)
The Social Network (2010)
Source Code (2011)
The Spongebob Squarepants Movie (2004)
Spring Fever (1919)
The Square (2017)
The Strangers (2008)
The Synanon Fix (HBO Original)
A Tale of Springtime (1990)
A Tale of Winter (1992)
A Tale of Summer (1996)
A Tale of Autumn (1998)
Terminator Salvation (2009)
This is Not a Burial, It’s a Resurrection (2019)
The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)
The Trial (1962)
The Unknown (1927)
Victor Frankenstein (2015)
The Watermelon Woman (1996)
Wes Craven Presents: They (2002)
Whiteout (2009)
Winter’s Tale (2014)
Wipeout, Season 2A
Youth (2015)
Zero Days (2016)
Zola (2021)
Coming April 2
Moonshiners, Season 13 (Discovery Channel)
Coming April 3
Ghost Adventures: House Calls, Season 2 (Discovery Channel)
Take My Tumor (TLC)
Coming April 4
Divided Youth (Da Ponte Pra La) (Max Original International)
HOP, Season 1A (Max Original)
Coming April 5
The Zone of Interest (A24)
Coming April 6
Alex Edelman: Just For Us (HBO Original)
Homegrown, Season 4 (Magnolia)
Metalocalypse: Army of the Doomstar (2023)
Coming April 7
Best Bite in Town, Season 1 (Food Network)
Coming April 9
Brandy Hellville & The Cult of Fast Fashion (HBO Original)
Mud Madness (Discovery Channel)
Teen Titans Go! To the Movies (2018) (Cartoon Network)
Coming April 10
Bail Jumpers (ID)
Coming April 11
Massacre of the Mormons (Max Original International)
Coming April 13
Jessica’s Big Little World, Season 1C (Cartoon Network)
Ready To Love, Season 9 (OWN)
Coming April 14
24 In 24: Last Chef Standing (Food Network)
The Sympathizer (HBO Original)
Coming April 16
90 Day Pillow Talk: The Single Life, Season 4 (TLC)
An American Bombing: The Road to April 19th (HBO Original)
Coming April 18
Conan O’Brien Must Go (Max Original)
Homefront (2013)
Men (2022)
Coming April 19
HGTV Smart Home 2024 (HGTV)
Coming April 21
Be My Guest with Ina Garten, Season 4 (Food Network)
The Jinx – Part Two (HBO Original)
Coming April 22
90 Day Fiancé: Love in Paradise, Season 4 (TLC)
The Green Planet (BBC)
Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One (2024)
Restoration Road with Clint Harp, Season 5 (Magnolia)
Ugliest House in America, Season 5 (HGTV)
Coming April 23
Farmhouse Fixer, Season 3 (HGTV)
The Losers (2010)
Roadkill Garage, Season 9 (MotorTrend)
Coming April 24
Vegas: The Story of Sin City (CNN)
Coming April 26
Caught! (Discovery Channel)
United States of Scandal with Jake Tapper (CNN)
We’re Here, Season 4 (HBO Original)
Coming April 28
Love & Marriage: D.C. (OWN)
New Bleacher Report Live Sports on Max in April 2024
Pre- and post-game programming will also be available to stream live, along with condensed replay highlights available after each game.
*Telecast will not be available in the local indicated market
NCAA Men’s Basketball
Coming April 6
2024 NCAA Men’s Final Four National Semifinals, 6 p.m. ET and 8:30 p.m. ET
Coming April 8
2024 NCAA Men’s National Championship, 9:00 p.m. ET
NBA
Coming April 2
Oklahoma City Thunder at Philadelphia 76ers, 7:30 p.m. ET
Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors*, 10:00 p.m. ET
Coming April 4
Atlanta Hawks at Dallas Mavericks, 7:30 p.m. ET
Denver Nuggets at Los Angeles Clippers, 10:00 p.m. ET
Coming April 9
Boston Celtics at Milwaukee Bucks, 7:30 p.m. ET
Golden State Warriors at Los Angeles Lakers, 10:00 p.m. ET
Coming April 11
New York Knicks at Boston Celtics, 7:30 p.m. ET
New Orleans Pelicans at Sacramento Kings, 10:00 p.m. ET
Coming April 16 & 19
2024 NBA Play-In Tournament (teams and times TBA)
Coming April 21
TNT Sports’ Coverage of 2024 NBA Playoffs Begins (teams and times TBA)
NHL
Coming April 3
New Jersey Devils at New York Rangers, 7:00 p.m. ET
Seattle Kraken at Los Angeles Kings, 9:30 p.m. ET
Coming April 7
Buffalo Sabres at Detroit Red Wings, 1:00 p.m. ET
Coming April 10
Vegas Golden Knights* at Edmonton Oilers, 8:30 p.m. ET
Coming April 14
Seattle Kraken at St. Louis Blues, 1:00 p.m. ET
Colorado Avalanche at Vegas Golden Knights, 3:30 p.m. ET
Coming April 17
Pittsburgh Penguins* at New York Islanders, 7:00 p.m. ET
St. Louis Blues at Dallas Stars, 9:30 p.m. ET
Coming April 20
TNT Sports’ Coverage of 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs Begins (Teams & Times, TBA)
MLB
Coming April 2
Cincinnati Reds at Philadelphia Phillies*, 6:30 p.m. ET
San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers*, 10:00 p.m. ET
Coming April 9
Chicago Cubs* at San Diego Padres*, 10 p.m. ET
Coming April 16
Atlanta Braves* at Houston Astros*, 8 p.m. ET
Coming April 23
Houston Astros* at Chicago Cubs*, 7:30 p.m. ET
U.S. Soccer (2024 SheBelieves Cup)
Coming April 6
U.S. Women’s National Team vs. Japan, 12:30 p.m. ET
Canada vs. Brazil, 3:30 p.m. ET
Coming April 9
Japan vs. Canada/Brazil, 4 p.m. ET
U.S. Women’s National Team vs. Canada/Brazil, 7:00 p.m. ET
MotoGP
Coming April 12-14
Red Bull Grand Prix of The Americas (Various)
Coming April 26-28
Spanish Grand Prix (Various)
Cycling
Coming April 1
Ronde of Mouscron
Coming April 1-6
2024 Itzulia Basque Country
Coming April 9-12
Giro d’Abruzzo (Men’s)
Coming April 12
Classic Grand Besançon
Coming April 13
Tour du Jura
Coming April 13-14 & April 20-21
2024 UCI Mountain Bike World Series (Brazil)
