In preparation of Paramount+ With Showtime launch on June 27 at $12 per month, the streamer has removed many major movies and TV shows from it’s platform. Much to the surprise and disappointment of subscribers, many popular titles were also erased along with last week’s Grease, Prodigy, The Game and Queen of the Universe removal. The Nickelodeon side suffered especially hard.
Which titles have been removed from Paramount+ With Showtime?
Among the latest titles to be removed from the Global-owned streaming platform are comedian Amy Schumer’s Inside Amy Schumer and Kevin Williamson’s Tell Me a Story. Other shows/movies that are being deleted from the platform include From Cradle to Stage which is a Dave Grohl docuseries, Ghislaine: Partner in Crime which is a documentary by Susan Zirinsky (the former CBS News President), Fantasy Football which was directed by Lebron James and picked up as part of Brian Robbins’ push to get content which is appealing to younger viewers. The popular family musical Snow Day was also purged from the service. The Nickelodeon fare was affected heavily with the removals of many new and old series including All In With Cam Newton, Allegra’s Window, Becca’s Bunch, Bella and the Bulldogs, Crashletes, Digby Dragon, The Fresh Beat Band, The Halo Effect, Legendary Dudas, Monsters vs. Aliens, Mutt & Stuff, Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn, Peter Rabbit, Pig Goat Banana Cricket, Ride and The Troop.
Why is this purge happening on the streamers?
Paramount+ seems to be joining Warner Bros. Discovery and Disney+ in deleting “underperforming titles” from their streaming services in exchange for more financial freedom, not caring whether they’re good or not. They do have to continue paying various licensing fees to keep the shows on their platforms though, and streamers like WBD even removed low-rated series from their service and licensed the titles to free, ad supported streamers in a desperate attempt to recover a bit of the money they lost on the production of these originals. This quote down below also expresses why these titles keep getting removed from Paramount+ and various other platforms.
“As we prepare to combine Paramount+ and Showtime later this month in the U.S., we are refining our content offering to deliver the best streaming experience for subscribers. This is consistent with our content strategy since launch and across our business, which ensures we make smart, efficient choices, informed by audience data and insights. We are removing select programming as we look to optimize Showtime’s robust slate of premium originals.”
A statement from a spokesperson from Paramount+