HBO Refuses to Play Hacker's 'Game' After Leak of New 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' Episodes
HBO will not bend the knee to the hackers who keep leaking episodes and other sensitive information. The latest leak included episodes of the upcoming "Curb Your Enthusiasm" Season 9 -- premiering on HBO on October 1 -- as well as new episodes of "Insecure," "Ballers," and "The Deuce."
That follows leaks of "Game of Thrones" script intel and internal documents, plus the posting of GoT Season 7, Episode 4 in advance, although that was unrelated to the ongoing HBO hack.
The hackers want money, and they're doing this slow public drip of intel to pressure HBO to cave. So far, the network is not budging.
Here's how HBO responded to the latest leak (via Variety):
"We are not in communication with the hacker and we're not going to comment every time a new piece of information is released. It has been widely reported that there was a cyber incident at HBO. The hacker may continue to drop bits and pieces of stolen information in an attempt to generate media attention. That's a game we're not going to participate in. Obviously, no company wants their proprietary information stolen and released on the internet. Transparency with our employees, partners, and the creative talent that works with us has been our focus throughout this incident and will remain our focus as we move forward. This incident has not deterred us from ensuring HBO continues to do what we do best."
The leaks certainly have not hurt "Game of Thrones," which actually had its biggest audience ever for "The Spoils of War," which was posted online three days in advance. It sucks that "Curb" got spoiled in advance, but the leak was reportedly of "several episodes," not the full season. And even if fans track down leaked episodes, they'll still want to watch the full season. It's not like anyone is going to cancel his or her HBO subscription because they can possibly watch a low-quality episode ahead of time.
"Curb" Season 9 premieres Sunday, Oct. 1.
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