Max, which sits under the umbrella of brands owned by Warner Bros Discovery, has unveiled its new branding and identity created by design agency DixonBaxi.

Providing a mix of the content offered by HBO Max and Discovery+, the streaming service aims to offer a broad array of choices for audiences, and will house hit shows and movie franchises such as Succession, The Last of Us, Harry Potter, and Batman. 

Launching across the US on May 23, DixonBaxi has worked with Warner Bros Discovery to create an identity rooted in the concept ‘Where our world meets yours’. The Max logo pays homage to its legacy by fusing the iconic bullseye from HBO and the curves of the Warner Bros shield. The result is a clean, modern logo, but in lowercase letterforms to “convey warmth and approachability”.  

A bespoke typeface has also been created called Max Sans and “stretches from premium and cinematic to loud and expressive” depending on where it’s being used. Developed in partnership with type foundry F37, geometric letters with elegant curves that are a nod to the Max logo aim to unify the brand. Additionally, a Max Original logo has been crafted and the HBO Original logo has been updated to sit in line with the new design system.

As part of the branding, a graphic signature has also been created as an evolution of the Max logo. Called the Spotlight, it’s based on the curvature of the bullseye inside of the ‘a’ as it “shines a light on stories and characters”. The idea is for the signature to be discreet and pared-back to allow the platform’s shows to stand out. 

Max states that people strongly associate purple with HBO Max, and therefore it was important as part of this rebrand to signal a change to a broader catalogue. So the purple has been replaced in favour of a more vibrant blue taking inspiration from Warner Bros’ blue. The gradient has been kept though and combined with the accent colours it helps to add vibrancy. 

“Creating the Max brand was a huge undertaking and opportunity to seamlessly blend the rich legacies of storytelling giants to ignite a new era of entertainment,” says Karun Agimal, design director of the long-term project. This isn’t DixonBaxi’s first project working with an entertainment brand, having worked with Hulu, ITV, and Netflix in the past, where they’ve helped to unify and simplify these platforms.   

For Max, and it’s a clear signal that Warner Bros Discovery wants to compete with the other streaming giants like Disney+, and it’s banking on its 100 years of entertainment history to get audiences hooked.

dixonbaxi.com