HBO Max Reverses Decision to Drop ‘Gone with the Wind’ + ‘Cops’ Canceled Amid Protests Over Police Brutality

YouTube video

*The long-running TV reality series “Cops has been cancelled at Paramount Network following a nearly seven-year run. 

The show debuted on Fox in 1989 and aired for 25 seasons. In 2013, Spike TV ordered new episodes, and rebranded as Paramount Network in 2018.  As noted by TV Line, altogether, 32 seasons and more than 1,100 episodes of “Cops” have aired. 

“Cops is not on the Paramount Network, and we don’t have any current or future plans for it to return,” a network spokesperson said in a statement.

Cancellation of the docuseries comes amid national protests over police brutality. 

OTHER NEWS YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED: FedEx Employee & NJ Corrections Officer Fired After After Mocking George Floyd’s Death

Gone With The Wind - 1939
Photo by Selznick/MGM/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock (5886286a)
Hattie McDaniel, Clark Gable in Gone With The Wind – 1939

*HBO Max has reversed its decision to remove “Gone With the Wind” from the platform following criticism over the film’s depiction of slavery. 

The platform previously announced that it would temporarily pull the iconic drama after “12 Years a Slave” screenwriter John Ridley published an op-ed in the Los Angeles calling for the removal of the title because it depicts slavery in a positive light. 

Ridley writes, in part:

Let me be real clear: I don’t believe in censorship. I don’t think “Gone With the Wind” should be relegated to a vault in Burbank. I would just ask, after a respectful amount of time has passed, that the film be re-introduced to the HBO Max platform along with other films that give a more broad-based and complete picture of what slavery and the Confederacy truly were. Or, perhaps it could be paired with conversations about narratives and why it’s important to have many voices sharing stories from different perspectives rather than merely those reinforcing the views of the prevailing culture.

Currently, there is not even a warning or disclaimer preceding the film.

I know taking down a film — particularly a classic Hollywood film — seems like a big request. But it’s not nearly as big a demand as when your children ask whether they can join protests in the streets against racial intolerance, or when they come to you wanting to know what you did to make the world a better place.

At a moment when we are all considering what more we can do to fight bigotry and intolerance, I would ask that all content providers look at their libraries and make a good-faith effort to separate programming that might be lacking in its representation from that which is blatant in its demonization.

Following outcry from cinephiles and fans of the classic, the streaming service said the original film would be brought back but “with a discussion of its historical context and a denouncement” of racist scenes and the depictions of slavery, per TMZ

HBO Max added, “‘Gone With The Wind’ is a product of its time and depicts some of the ethnic and racial prejudices that have, unfortunately, been commonplace in American society.” When the movie returns, it’ll be “presented as it was originally created, because to do otherwise would be the same as claiming these prejudices never existed.”

Read Ridley’s full article here.  

We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!

Beyond the Gates
pan-seared salmon with skin on
Kanye West (Jean-Baptiste Lacroix-AFP-Getty Images)
Eric Adams - screenshot
Serena Williams - via X
Apple's “Goldie”
SZA - via Instagram
Elon Musk (Brendan Smialowski-AFP-Getty Images)
Jayne Kennedy - Regina Jones
Nick Cannon - screenshot
Cherelle Parker - screenshot
Read More
Kanye West and Bianca Censori on Grammy Red Carpet - screenshot
Read More
Damon Wayans
Read More
Denzel Washington - Gladiator II
Read More
Rymir Satterthwaite - screenshot
Read More
Learjet after crashing - via Grok AI
Read More
Sunny Hostin
Read More
Amtrak
Read More
Will Smith (AI character from 'I Am Legend 2'
Read More
Bevelyn Beatty Williams
Read More

POPULAR

Beyond the Gates
CBS to Air Special on New Daytime Soap Opera 'Beyond The Gates'
pan-seared salmon with skin on
Health Benefits of Eating Salmon Skin
Kanye West (Jean-Baptiste Lacroix-AFP-Getty Images)
Kanye West's $20 T-Shirt with Swastika Sells Out After Antisemitic Controversy
Eric Adams - screenshot
Justice Department Orders Dismissal of NYC Mayor Eric Adams' Corruption Case
Serena Williams - via X
Stephen A. Smith Weighs in on Serena Williams' Surprise Super Bowl Appearance
Apple's “Goldie”
Exclusive First Look: Apple’s 'Goldie' Brings a Heartwarming Celebration of Uniqueness This Valentine’s Day
SZA - via Instagram
SZA Shines Light On Body Shaming ‘Weird’ Troll, Explains Why She ‘Don’t Feel Comfortable W Yall Anymore’
Elon Musk (Brendan Smialowski-AFP-Getty Images)
The Real Reason Musk Wants to End USAID - The Journal of Steffanie Rivers | WATCH
Jayne Kennedy - Regina Jones
Trailblazers in Media and Culture: Jayne Kennedy and Regina Jones to be Honored at GreenLight Women Black History Month Event
1 2 3 8,551