For Some Reason HBO Max Quietly Labels BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES as a DC Studios Project

Something strange is happening in Gotham. HBO Max has quietly added the DC Studios label to Batman: The Animated Series, and fans are trying to figure out why.

The legendary 1992 series predates DC Studios by decades, yet it now sits under the same banner as modern titles like Superman and Peacemaker Season 2.

In 2022, Warner Bros. Discovery created DC Studios, placing James Gunn and Peter Safran in charge to finally unify the DC Universe under one connected vision. Since its official branding launch in July 2024, only four projects have been released with the DC Studios label: Creature Commandos, Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, Superman, and Peacemaker Season 2.

Now, Batman: The Animated Series, a show that wrapped up over 30 years ago, has joined that lineup. Screenshots from HBO Max show the classic series now tagged as a “DC Studios” production, and Reddit user BatmanNewsChris even shared high-resolution artwork featuring the updated logo, reportedly sourced from the HBO Max website itself.

Batman: The Animated Series is currently the only animated DC show on the service carrying the DC Studios branding. Other classics like Superman: The Animated Series, Justice League, Young Justice, Teen Titans, and Teen Titans Go! remain unchanged.

As you know, Gunn has been very particular about what earns the DC Studios label. He’s even commented publicly on several occasions about the studio’s selective branding choices.

For example, three recent DC projects like Harley Quinn Season 5, Joker: Folie à Deux, and The Penguin were all released without the DC Studios tag. When asked about this on Threads after the release of Joker: Folie à Deux, Gunn responded bluntly: “Because it's not a DC Studios film.”

When a fan asked Gunn earlier this year why Harley Quinn and The Penguin were missing the DC Studios fanfare, he explained:

"All DC television & film projects are now under DC Studios. Because Harley Quinn was developed long before us, we didn't think it was fair to put the DC Studio fanfare on there.

“On Penguin, which we had a small hand in developing, we have a different DC Studios [animation] at the end. We're currently working on the DC Studios Elseworlds opening."

Given that reasoning, it’s unclear why Batman: The Animated Series suddenly carries the DC Studios label when it was created long before the studio even existed. There’s been no official statement from Warner Bros. Discovery or DC Studios explaining the change.

For now, the move doesn’t seem to signal anything major. It’s likely just a strange quirk in HBO Max’s catalog labeling. Still, for fans of the beloved animated classic, seeing it suddenly listed as a DC Studios project adds an unexpected twist to its long legacy.

Maybe the series is just so freakin’ awesome, they want to have it under the DC Studios banner to have some kind of ownership of it.

Batman: The Animated Series is streaming now on HBO Max.