The streaming home of shows from across the WBD empire, the newly re-christened HBO Max has been one of the best streaming services so far in 2025.
The best Max shows have naturally also been some of the most-watched with audiences tuning in for everything from post-apocalyptic revenge to intense medical drama. There’s also been plenty of comedy from romcom to satire as well as the debut of an all new anime.
Plenty to choose from then, but with the streamer’s vast library, it can be difficult to pick the best of the bunch, especially with the newer arrivals. But we’ve got you, with our pick of the biggest HBO Max shows in 2025.
The Last of Us season 2
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Episodes: 7
Main cast: Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsay, Isabella Merced, Kaitlyn Dever, Gabriel Luna
The hit video-game adaptation returned, picking up five years after the events of the first season.
With Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsay) now living a peaceful life in Jackson, Wyoming their biggest problem is their own frayed relationship. However, in a world populated by vicious zombies and even more vicious humans, domestic bliss was never going to last, and it’s not long before secrets from the past lead to a shocking event that sets in motion a brutal and bloody quest for vengeance.
The Righteous Gemstones season 4
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Episodes: 9
Main cast: John Goodman, Danny McBride, Edi Patterson, Adam DeVine, Cassidy Freeman, Tim Baltz, Tony Cavalero, Walton Goggins
Telling the story of world-famous televangelists, The Righteous Gemstones concluded with its fourth season.
The Danny McBride comedy follows the Gemstones, a family with a long history of greed, deviance and charitable work. The final season sees the family facing the truth of their own fraudulent beginnings, including the introduction of Bradley Cooper’s Civil War-era ancestor. With the Gemstones finally facing up to the consequences of their actions, the question is, can they seek redemption before its too late?
The Pitt
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Episodes: 15
Main cast: Noah Wyle, Taylor Dearden, Isa Briones, Shawn Hatosy, Fiona Dourif
From one of the minds behind ER and starring ER’s Noah Wyle, you’d be forgiven for thinking this emergency room drama was a follow-on to the 90s hit.
But while it may share some creative DNA with the Michael Crichton drama, The Pitt is an altogether different beast, with the soapy antics of smouldering doctors swapped for an intense look at the realities of a Pittsburgh urgent care unit.
Wyle plays Robby, a senior doctor dealing with staff shortages, underfunding and inefficient resources while grappling with COVID-19 induced PTSD. Each real time episode covers one hour of a 15 hour shift, with the series making for a gripping, and harrowing, binge.
The White Lotus season 3
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Episodes: 8
Main cast: Aimee Lou Wood, Parker Posey, Leslie Bibb, Carrie Coon, Jason Isaacs, Walton Goggins, Michelle Monaghan. Lalisa Manobal
Mike White’s satire of the awfully rich and richly awful heads to Thailand for its third outing.
Somewhat less chaotic and more deliberate with its pacing than previous seasons, The White Lotus’ third outing serves as an excellent character study, spending time with our motley group before all hell breaks loose in the closing moments of the finale. From the wealthy Ratliff family to a trio of frenemy gal pals and more, there’s plenty of subtle satire to get stuck into, with a certain character’s reappearance providing just enough ongoing intrigue to keep things moving along nicely.
Hacks season 4
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Episodes: 10
Main cast: Jean Smart, Hannah Einbinder, Mark Indelicato, Christopher McDonald, Kaitlin Olson
Returning for a fourth season, Hacks continues to be one of the best comedies on TV.
The show follows Deborah Vance (Jean Smart), a Las Vegas comedian in desperate need of reinvention who hires recently cancelled comedy writer Ava (Hannah Einbinder) to modernise her act. Season four sees Deborah preparing to launch a late-night talk show, but as the cameras get ready to roll, she and Ava find themselves butting heads, again. As hilarious and heartfelt as the preceding installments, Hacks season 4 is a must watch for comedy fans.
And Just Like That… season 3
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Episodes: 10
Main cast: Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, Kristin Davis, Sarita Choudhury, Nicole Ari Parker, Cathy Ang, Mario Cantone, Niall Cunningham, David Eigenberg, Evan Handler
The Sex and the City sequel is back, with Carrie (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte (Kristin Davis) and co. navigating the complex reality of life and love in the city in your 50s.
The latest season sees Carrie trying to balance her relationship with Aiden while finding a hot new neighbour catching her eye, while newly single Miranda continues to explore her sexuality. Charlotte, her own relationship drama well behind her, instead is dealing with the most complex romances of all — those of her teenage daughters. Whether a fan of the original show, or a newcomer, there’s plenty to enjoy in the return of these NYC icons.
Duster
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Episodes: 8
Main cast: Josh Holloway, Rachel Hilson, Keith David, Sydney Elisabeth, Greg Grunberg
Reuniting Lost boys J.J. Abrams and Josh Holloway, Duster is a retro crime thriller that oozes 70s cool.
A throwback to an era when all you needed was an open highway, some rock & roll and a roaring engine, the show stars Holloway as Jim, a getaway driver for a crime syndicate run by Keith David’s Ezra. But when FBI agent Nina (Rachel Hilson) tracks him down and presents him with an ultimatum, Jim finds his loyalties torn between his dangerous employer and proposition on the table.
Set in the sun-soaked American southwest, Duster features sizzling chemistry between the two leads, plenty of action and some classic American muscle. If classics like The Getaway and Two-Lane Blacktop are your thing, then Duster is the renovation project you need.
Lazarus
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Episodes: 13
Main cast: Jack Stansbury, Jovan Jackson, Luci Christian, Bryson Baugus, Annie Wild
Premiering on Adult Swim in the US, Lazarus is an ambitious sci-fi anime from the creator of Cowboy Bebop that wowed audiences the world over.
Set in 2049, the utopian world is set to get even more perfect when a scientist creates a new drug that relieves the user of any pain, no matter what the ailment. Shortly after releasing the drug to the market, Skinner, the scientist, disappears, taking all trace of his work with him. However, three years later, an online video featuring Skinner appears, announcing that all who took the drug will die three years after taking it.
With time running out for the first recipients of the drug, a new task force, Lazarus, is created with the aim of tracking Skinner down and creating a vaccine before it’s too late. With a complex story and creative action scenes (overseen by John Wick creator Chad Stahelski), Lazarus is a treat for anime fans.
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