Created by Alan Ballthe drama True Bloodis based on the novels of the Sookie Stackhouse Cycle, written by the author from Stanitus Charlaine Harris; the HBO television series focuses on the co-existence between Southern vampires and humans in Bon Temps, a small and fictitious town in Louisiana. The television series aired on HBO from 2008 to 2014 for seven very successful seasons (it is currently available for viewing on the Now TV streaming platform).
In December 2020, it was reported that a reboot of the television series was in development by Ball and the showrunner of Riverdale Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. In the years since, there have been a few updates that had indicated that the reboot of True Blood had difficulty taking off.
The reboot of the vampire television series seems to be definitively dead from excessive costs
Speaking recently with Variety, the CEO of broadcaster HBO and streaming platform HBO Max, Casey Bloysstated that a reboot is being considered and scripts are also being developed, “but there was nothing that gave the impression of reaching its destination“. Bloys did not provide further details, but it looks like the reboot of True Blood has been cancelled.
The reboot’s cancellation is part of Warner Bros. Discovery’s larger efforts to cut costs at HBO and its other subsidiaries. Soon after Discovery’s acquisition of WarnerMedia, the new conglomerate promised to cut $3 billion in costs and reduce content spending.
One of the more controversial victims of this new cost-cutting philosophy has been the film’s Batgirl con Leslie Gracewhich had wrapped filming and was set to be released on HBO Max. Likewise, SCOOB! Holiday Haunt era “practically finishedbefore being canceled by Warner Bros. Discovery as a cost-cutting measure.
HBO’s flagship shows were also affected, such as Westworld, which was shockingly canceled after its fourth season and taken off HBO Max (and yet it was stated that the series would still be losing money to the platform), along with a number of other shows that were quietly pulled from the streaming service . Many other HBO television series have also been canceled while they were still in development, the latest being this long-awaited reboot of True Blood. However, based on the CEO’s comment, it appears the reboot failed for creative rather than financial reasons. Either way, the apparent permanent deletion of True Blood it will be a great disappointment for all those who have been looking forward to it.
