The streaming deal for 'Sesame Street' is set to expire, leading to a revamp of the show.

• As its five-year deal with streaming giant Max nears expiration, "Sesame Street" is set to revamp its format.
• The classic show's magazine-style format will be replaced with two narrative-form segments and an animated segment.
• Since 2016, the iconic children's show has undergone significant changes, including a reduction in length from one hour to 30 minutes.

The Hollywood Reporter reported that Sesame Street will soon undergo a new format with the start of season 55, marking the end of the children's show's magazine-style structure, as announced by Sesame Workshop executives.

The most significant changes to "Sesame Street" since 2016 have been announced, including a new format and debut date. The show's five-year rights deal with Max has ended, and the revamped "Sesame Street" will debut in 2025.

"Sesame Street," a long-running children's show featuring characters such as Elmo and Big Bird, has faced a dramatic past few years as it moved its library to HBO Max. Since that move, the show's previous home, PBS, has been getting episodes nine months after they premiere. Last year, Max yanked about 200 older episodes of "Sesame Street" as the streaming service refined content for its target audience, which isn't children.

The upcoming show's major renovation will involve altering the content style to feature two 11-minute narrative-driven segments linked by a new animated series called "Tales from 123," according to executives. This change enables the writer's room to create two storylines that can interact with each other, resulting in a more complex viewing experience for the audience.

Steve Youngwood, CEO of Sesame Workshop, stated in a trade publication interview that with any change, there are evolutions, followed by slightly bigger steps while staying true to the company's core. He explained that this was an opportunity to take a moment and think bigger about how they could evolve their business.

The revamp of the show has been planned for some time, and it coincides with the end of the Max deal, according to a report. The current deal with Max expires after season 55, which is set to begin about a year from now. Sesame Workshop has not yet announced whether it will renew the deal or explore other options.

Youngwood stated that the timing of the new episodes coincides with the end of the current Warner deal and where the show will go next. He emphasized the importance of being relevant to the audience and giving them reasons to watch the new episodes while they can still access the library.

Max did not immediately respond to a request for comment through their representative.