Batman: The Animated Series’ spiritual successor has not been cancelled despite leaving HBO Max

Batman: Caped Crusader, the spiritual successor to Batman: The Animated Series brought to life by Bruce Timm, J.J. Abrams and The Batman director Matt Reeves, has not been cancelled – despite leaving its original HBO Max home.

TV Line initially reported that Batman: Caped Crusader was "no longer being produced for HBO Max." Given Batgirl’s cancelation and the wave of projects departing the streaming service, it left the animated series’ future up in the air.

The Hollywood Reporter’s Borys Kit has assuaged fears that the show would be cancelled, posting on Twitter, "The show is not cancelled, per sources, just not going to stream on HBO Max. The show is deep in production, nothing is paused. It will show up somewhere."

At the time of its announcement, Timm, Abrams, and Reeves laid out their mission statement for the Batman project in a joint press release. Caped Crusader "will be thrilling, cinematic and evocative of Batman’s noir roots, while diving deeper into the psychology of these iconic characters," they said at the time.

The HBO Max streaming service, meanwhile, has undergone big changes since the Warner Bros. Discovery merger. Batgirl is its most prominent casualty, a move DC fans derided as "ridiculous" and left directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah "saddened and shocked." Six HBO Max exclusives were later pulled from the service earlier in August, while dozens of shows – including Infinity Train, O.K. KO and select Sesame Street specials – were also removed.

For more from The Dark Knight’s on-screen career, check out our ranking of the best Batman movies. Plus, here are all The Batman 2 villains we want to see in a potential sequel.

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.