In 2022, Warner Bros. Discovery formed DC Studios—with James Gunn and Peter Safran as co-CEOs—with the intention to finally give DC a successful and unified cinematic universe. Since the studio's inception, four projects have been released under the DC Studios banner (unveiled in July of 2024): Creature Commandos, Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, Superman and Peacemaker Season 2.
Now, however, in an unexpected turn of events, HBO Max has given a surprising project the DC Studios label: Batman: The Animated Series. The show was released in 1992, long preceding the formation of DC Studios. Below are two screenshots of what the show looks like now on the streaming service:
Reddit user BatmanNewsChris also posted high-resolution artwork of the show with the DC Studios logo, claiming the files came from the HBO Max website.
Upon examining the content offerings on HBO Max, Batman: The Animated Series is currently the only animated DC show labeled as a DC Studios product. The show itself, however, does not have the DC Studios logo or fanfare neither at the start nor the end of episodes. As of now, shows like Superman: The Animated Series, Justice League, Young Justice, Teen Titans or Teen Titans Go! don't carry the DC Studios logo.
It's difficult to tell the reason behind the change, particularly since James Gunn previously expressed his reluctance to give a project the DC Studios logo if the studio was not directly (or heavily) involved in its production.
As an example, there have been three major DC products released since the studio's logo was revealed that did not have said logo on their promotional material: Harley Quinn Season 5, Joker: Folie à Deux and The Penguin. Shortly after Joker: Folie à Deux's release, James Gunn was asked on Threads why the sequel wasn't labeled as a DC Studios production, to which James Gunn replied: "Because it's not a DC Studios film."
HBO's The Penguin, part of Matt Reeves' The Batman saga, was released shortly after the Joker sequel. The show was also missing the DC Studios label on its posters, but had it during its episodes' closing credits. The animated series Harley Quinn, on the other hand—which released its fifth season in 2025—is not labeled as a DC Studios production. In January 2025, a fan asked Gunn why Harley Quinn and The Penguin were missing the logo, to which the co-CEO replied:
"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."
Considering Gunn's reasoning, and the fact that there's no official explanation from Warner Bros. Discovery about the change, the reason behind Batman: The Animated Series being given the DC Studios label remains a mystery. Adding to the confusion is the fact that Batman is currently the only DC animated property on HBO Max to have the new logo.
One explanation could be that it was a simple mistake. However, the change was spotted by Reddit user GillGruntFan53 on October 17. The number of days the show has been up on HBO Max with the new logo could indicate it was a deliberate choice. Either way, we will keep you updated if new information comes out.
Now, it's important to keep in mind that the show being given the DC Studios logo likely doesn't mean anything significant in terms of a potential future Batman announcement. It's simply a surprising change, given that the show was released long before the formation of DC Studios.
Batman: The Animated Series is streaming on HBO Max.