The chairman and chief executive of content for HBO and Max has apologized for attacking critics who wrote critical reviews of HBO shows using a fake X/Twitter account.
Casey Bloys admitted that keeping his X account hidden was a “really bad idea,” but he defended his actions by saying that he was just “overly excited” about the things on his network.
He said those who know him well know he is a programming executive who cares deeply about the series they choose to make.
Bloys said in 2020 and 2021, he was at home, working remotely, and spending far too much time perusing Twitter. To release his pent-up tension, he came up with his scheme.
The results of tweeting only six times a year and a half are apparent. Although there were just a small number of texts that were released, he apologized to the people who were mentioned in them.
He said no one wants to be mentioned in a narrative where they play no role. But also, he’s made the transition to DMs over the past couple of years. So now, when he disagrees with something in a review or something he observes, he directs messages, and many are gracious enough to have a dialog with him, which he believes is a better way.
Bloys brought up the phony X/Twitter account in answer to a wrongful termination complaint filed by an ex-employee.
According to reports, Bloys and SVP of drama programming Kathleen McCaffrey texted back and forth about Bloys’ use of the phony X account to respond to critics.
Sully Temori, suing the cable movie network, claims that Bloys directed him to make a phony X account to harass the network’s critics secretly.
According to Temori, Bloys told him to defend the network’s shows and movies online against angry viewers.
The disgruntled worker claims his supervisors harassed him when he was working as a script coordinator on the 2021 season of The Idol.
This year, Bloys has been put in several uncomfortable situations. When the highly anticipated Max streaming service launched in May, it experienced technical difficulties on launch day. Streaming service Max has taken over for HBO Max.
In April, Bloys was criticized for leaving out Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling from a documentary about the series.
Bloys stated that Rowling’s exclusion from the production is too complex and subtle to discuss; therefore, they chose not to.
