HBO has made several news announcements in the last few days, starting with the cancellation of Katja Blicfeld and Ben Sinclair’s comedy-drama anthology “High Maintenance” after four seasons.
The cancellation comes nine months after the fourth season last year. An HBO representative says they’re planning new projects with the pair, saying the network: “look(s) forward to hearing what they come up with next.”
Then comes word that HBO Max has given an eight-episode series order for “Julia,” a new drama based on the life of famed chef Julia Child. Sarah Lancashire plays Child and stars alongside David Hyde Pierce, Brittany Bradford, Fran Kranz, Fiona Glascott, Bebe Neuwirth, Isabella Rossellini, and Jefferson Mays.
Next, Tessa Thompson has launched the new production company Viva Maude and has made a first-look deal with HBO and HBO Max with two projects underway as part of that deal – adaptations of the novels “Who Fears Death” and “The Secret Lives of Church Ladies” which she will executive produce.
Nnedi Okorafor’s “Who Fears Death” is a coming-of-age story that follows an outcast girl named Onyesowu living in post-apocalyptic North Africa. Deesha Philyaw’s short story collection “The Secret Lives of Church Ladies” explores the “raw and tender places where Black women and girls dare to follow their desires and pursue a momentary reprieve from being good.”
Finally, the network has set a February 14th premiere date for the eighth season of its Emmy-winning “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” and released a new promo you can see below:
