HBO Max stops producing Norwegian content. Beforeigners removed – Dagsavisen

– This is just sad, says Nicolai Cleve Broch, who plays the lead role in the popular series «Beforeigners».

– Sorry, comments Ivar Køhn, general manager of «Beforeigners» ‘Norwegian producer Rubicon TV.

The second season of the popular Norwegian series, with the Norwegian title «Fremvandrerne», premiered on the streaming service HBO Max in December last year. It has been a viewer success both in Norway and internationally for HBO, which has financed the series and has the distribution rights.

But now both seasons of “Beforeigners” have been removed from the streaming service HBO Max. Last week, Rubicon TV was informed that the series will no longer be available on the streaming service, as a result of the merger between the media giants Discovery and Warner Media.

Warner owns HBO, and after the merger, Discovery + and HBO Max will become a streaming service, several media reported earlier this spring. On Monday this week, the trade magazine Variety announced that HBO would stop producing Nordic content as a result of the merger, and that Nordic content would be removed from the streaming service HBO Max.

– Last week we received a message from HBO that they are removing all Nordic content. Now we have started to get reactions from people who are wondering where “Beforeigners” has gone. It looks like HBO has removed the series for good. It is a great pity, says Ivar Køhn in Rubicon TV. He came to the position as Rubicon director from his job as drama director at NRK earlier this spring.

– There are purely financial reasons behind it. But I do not know much more than what I have read in online news stories. These are technical-economic conditions far beyond my comprehension, and beyond what we can do anything about, says Køhn.

“I sincerely hope that a solution is found, so that Beforeigners and other affected productions can be available to the public again. I am very proud of our series, and it feels deeply unfair that it should no longer have a life in meeting the audience “, comments protagonist Nicolai Cleve Brochby SMS to Dagsavisen.

Great series gone

“Beforeigners” was HBO’s first Nordic production and premiered in 2019. In the last couple of years, HBO Nordic has produced several major Nordic drama series, which are now away from the streaming service:

* The Norwegian series “Welcome to Utmark” produced by Paradox for HBO has been removed.

* The Danish series «Kamikaze» based on Erlend Loe’s novel «Muleum» has been removed.

* The Swedish series “Lust” is gone, barely four months after the premiere.

– Everything I looked for in Nordic content is gone from HBO, also a lot of European and American content is gone. The worst thing for us is that “Beforeigners” can no longer be seen, says Ivar Køhn.

Part of Norwegian popular culture is gone

– Ivar Køhn, Rubicon TV

– “Beforeigners” is a series we are very proud of. It is a part of Norwegian popular culture that is now gone. And there are public Norwegian funds involved in the production. This is unfortunate, Køhn thinks.

[ https://www.dagsavisen.no/kultur/tv/2021/12/03/tv-anmeldelse-fremvandrerne-pa-nye-veier/ ]

The first season of “Beforeigners” received ten million kroner in production support from the Norwegian Film Institute (NFI) and four million kroner through the incentive scheme for international productions. NFI later demanded that the production subsidy be repaid due to rights held by HBO, but Rubicon was allowed to keep the funds after processing in the Media Complaints Board. “Beforeigners” season two received 22 million in reimbursement funds through the incentive scheme.

Season one of “Beforeigners” set a viewership record for HBO Nordic in Norway, the streaming service announced during the launch of season two in November 2021. In October, HBO Nordic became HBO Max.

– We hope that it will eventually be possible to get the rights to “Beforeigners” back, and that another distributor will take over the series. There is no point in the series not being able to be streamed, says Ivar Køhn.

Two power services become one

The merger between Discovery and HBO was one of the topics during the industry conference Nordic Media Days in Bergen earlier this spring. Among other things, it was emphasized that the two streaming services would be combined in one app.

– We have noticed that something has been in the air. HBO has been hesitant in the feedback on productions we have had under development. During a debate at the Media Days, Discovery announced that there would be major changes, and that it would also affect HBO, says Ivar Køhn.

[ Tobias Santelmann om «Beforeigners»: – Noe av det feteste jeg har vært med på  ]

– We have had a good collaboration with HBO Nordic so far. We have not experienced anything like this before a power service takes such a drastic step. We have become accustomed to the fact that streaming services have come up with more and more content. Now it has suddenly become smaller, comments Køhn.

– We work with many power services and have a lot of other things in development, so this has no immediate effect for Rubicon, other than that we lose a good customer. But it is a pity that “Beforeigners” has disappeared, says Ivar Køhn. He says that Rubicon has had the plans ready for a third season of “Beforeigners”, but now the plans have been put on hold. Rubicon applied for the incentive scheme for “Beforeigners 3” earlier this year, but did not receive a contract, writes the industry magazine Rushprint.

HBO: “Global Review”

Dagsavisen has asked HBO’s Norwegian PR manager to comment on the fact that “Beforeigners” and other Nordic content have been removed from the streaming service.

Asked by VG yesterday about the consequences of the merger for Norwegian series, HBO Max commented: “As part of a global review, we are in the process of evaluating series that are currently in production or post-production in the Nordic countries, Central Europe and the Netherlands. to decide if they will be made available on HBO Max, or if another licensing scheme can be entered into ».

Keep yourself updated. Receive a daily newsletter from Dagsavisen