Streaming wars heat up as Harry Potter movies shift to Peacock

The Harry Potter films are leaving streaming — and coming right back, by moving from HBO Max to NBC's Peacock.

Peacock announced the news in a press release on Wednesday, stating that the eight original films would be available on its platform throughout 2020 and 2021. The films will be offered for free in windows — they must just come and go a bit — and available on the paid Peacock Premium tier.

The films will be available starting in October, which marks the end of their six-month run on HBO Max, which launched in May with Harry Potter as a surprising acquisition. Per a deal between the two parent companies, the films would enjoy a temporary home on HBO before returning to a Universal-owned platform for the foreseeable future (which could be up to 2025).

“The Harry Potter franchise is beloved by people of all ages and represents the caliber of quality entertainment customers can expect to find on Peacock,” said Frances Manfredi, President, Content Acquisition and Strategy, Peacock.

“We’ve built a world-class collection of iconic movies and shows, and we will continue to expand the film library with treasured titles from NBCUniversal and beyond that will surprise and delight Peacock customers time and time again.”

The Harry Potter movies will arrive on Peacock in October.

Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that all eight movies would not be available at the same time. They will be, but not consistently.