[Update: It's back on Max]
In a plot twist less than a week after the new year began, millennial dads found themselves in a festive frenzy as the Extended Edition of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King was mysteriously removed from the streaming service Max.
On Reddit, Lord of the Rings fans quickly pointed out that the movie was randomly removed from Max, despite the extended editions for the other two films in Peter Jackson's trilogy still readily available to stream.
"We watched about two hours yesterday and decided to watch the rest on New Year's (Today)," Redditor and original poster Jeriphro wrote in the Lord of the Rings subreddit. "Sadly, however, the movie disappeared. Only this one. Every other LOTR and Hobbit film, normal and extended, are still available."
Even weirder? The Return of the King Extended Edition is not listed on this month's "What's Leaving Max" list.
But don't panic; sources familiar with the matter told IGN that the film was removed from Max due to a "technical issue" and that the film will "be back up soon" on the streaming service.
This is not the first time a technical issue on Max caused the accidental removal of content. As Vulture points out, last month, the 2019 HBO limited series Watchmen was randomly pulled from Max before it was later revealed to be a technical error.
Though it is reasonable to question why some were quick to panic at the unexpected removal of the content from Max, over the last two years, WB has been removing shows and movies from the streaming service as a cost-saving measure following its merger with Discovery. Some content that has already been removed included the popular TV series Westworld.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
