Why Does HBO Max Keep Crashing on Roku? & Solutions

You’re a few years behind on the Game of Thrones craze, but now you’re committed to watching the entire series using the HBO Max channel on your Roku. However, you can’t seem to watch it for more than a few minutes before your HBO Max channel crashes.

Is your Roku on the fritz? Is the HBO Max channel down?

Have no fear! We’ll go over a few reasons why your Roku’s HBO Max channel is crashing and how to fix it.

Let’s get started!

1. Be Patient

We understand you want to watch the next episode of your favorite series as soon as possible, but your impatience may be causing your HBO Max channel to crash.

Many users have found that trying to click on different thumbnails and browse the app’s options while the app is still loading causes it to suddenly shut down and close.

So, instead of playing the series’ next episode as soon as you’ve opened the app, wait a few seconds until the home screen is finished loading.

If you can play content without the app crashing, then you’ve found your culprit.

2. Sign Out of HBO Max

Your Roku device could be trying to access your old HBO (not to be confused with HBO Max) account, and using outdated login info.

Since this account doesn’t exist or is different from your HBO Max account, it causes the channel to crash.

One way to resolve this is to sign out of all of your HBO Max accounts, then sign back in using the right login credentials.

Let’s go over how to log out of your HBO Max accounts on a smartphone and the official HBO Max website.

Using a Smartphone

Step 1: Launch the HBO Max app on your smartphone. If you don’t have it already, you can download it from the Google Play Store on Android phones and the App Store on iPhones or iPads.

Step 2: Once you’ve opened the app, tap on Profile in the top corner. Now is also a good time to double-check that you’re using an adult profile.

Step 3: Next, open Settings and head to Manage Devices. You will see a list of devices that you’re logged into. Your Roku device should be on this list of devices.

Step 4: Find your Roku device and tap the X next to it, which will sign you out of your account. Alternatively, you can tap Sign All Devices Out to log out of all of your devices.

Using a Website

Step 1: Go to the official HBO Max website on your computer. You can also open the website on your smartphone, but we recommend using a computer to make the website easier to navigate.

Step 2: You will find the account name (e.g. your name) in the top-right corner of the home page. Click on it then go to Manage Devices.

Step 3: If you’ve logged into the same account being used on your Roku, you should see your Roku’s name in the list. To sign out of your account, click on the Sign Out button next to its name. If you want to log out of your account on all devices, click Sign All Devices Out.

Step 4: You will see a confirmation screen asking you to confirm that you’d like to log out of your account. To log out, click Sign Out.

Watch the video below demonstrating how to sign out of your HBO Max on both your smartphone and the HBO Max website.

3. You Must Use Roku Search

If you’re struggling to watch content on HBO Max on your Roku, you can try using Roku Search. Unfortunately, this won’t solve the crashing issue, but it will allow you to stream TV shows and movies without the app randomly closing.

Step 1: Press your Roku remote’s Home button to go to the Home page.

Step 2: Scroll down and click on Search.

Step 3: Using your Roku remote’s voice command feature or the on-screen keyboard, enter the title of the HBO Max content you want to watch.

Now, you should be able to watch full episodes of TV shows without your app closing. However, your HBO Max app may still crash whenever you try to play content directly from the app’s home screen.

4. Your Roku Needs to Be Restarted

Accidents happen, and your Roku may have glitched when it started up. The app could have loaded improperly or your Roku’s software could have bugged out.

The best (and easiest) solution for this is to restart your Roku. We recommend restarting it through the settings by following the steps below instead of just unplugging it from your TV, as it will allow your Roku software to fully reboot.

Let’s learn how to restart your Roku!

Step 1: Navigate to your Roku’s Home screen by pressing your remote’s Home button.

Step 2: Scroll down and click on Settings. Then, go to System.

Step 3: If you see a Power option on-screen, click on it. Then, on the right, select System Restart. If your Roku doesn’t have a Power option, proceed to the next step.

Step 4: Go to System, then Power settings. Next, head to System restart and click Restart on the right-hand side of the screen.

5. The HBO Max Channel Must Be Reinstalled

If the rest of your Roku channels are functioning correctly and HBO Max is the only one crashing, you may need to reinstall it. Something could have gone wrong when you initially installed it, causing the channel to glitch and close.

Don’t worry. Reinstalling your HBO Max channel won’t delete your account. Instead, it will just remove the channel and log you out.

Step 1: Press your Roku remote’s Home button to go to the Home screen.

Step 2: Hover over the HBO Max channel thumbnail with your remote, highlighting it. Then, press the Asterisk (*) button.

Step 3: You will see a pop-up window on-screen. If you don’t see a Remove channel option, click on Manage Subscription. Then, click Cancel subscription followed by Cancel subscription once more.

Next, go back and repeat steps 1 and 2.

Step 4: If the pop-up window has a Remove channel option, select it. Then, select Remove.

Step 5: Next, restart your Roku. If you don’t know how to restart your Roku, consult solution 4. Your Roku Needs to Be Restarted.

Step 6: Once your Roku has restarted, go to the Home screen and select Streaming channels.

Step 7: Go to the Channel store and click on Search channels on the left-hand side of the screen. Search for HBO Max.

Step 8: Once you’ve found the HBO Max channel, click on Add channel. If prompted to, enter your PIN, then click OK to confirm that you’d like to add the channel to your Roku.

Step 9: Now that you’ve reinstalled the HBO Max channel, you can launch it from your home screen. When asked if you want to subscribe to HBO Max through Roku, decline.

Instead, select Sign-in and enter your login credentials to access your account. Your watch history and account preferences will sync with your Roku’s HBO Max channel.

If you’re a visual learner, watch the video below demonstrating how to reinstall channels on a Roku.

6. Your Roku Needs has Pending Updates

Your Roku may need to be updated as its current software could be causing the channels to glitch. Updating your Roku will also update all of its channels, ensuring you’re using the latest version.

Your Roku will need to have a stable internet connection to do this.

Step 1: Press the Roku remote’s Home button.

Step 2: Scroll down and navigate to Settings, followed by System.

Step 3: On the right of your screen you will see the System sub-menu. Select Software update from this sub-menu.

Step 4: Click on Check now to check for updates.

7. There are Glitches in the Software

Last, but not least, there could be a glitch in your Roku software.

A quick glance at some Roku customer forums will reveal that countless users have encountered this problem. This leads us to believe that this is not a result of user error and is instead a result of bugs in either the HBO Max app or the Roku software code.

Luckily, HBO Max developers announced in August 2021 that they are working on a new app that will fix these bugs and foster a smooth user experience.

If you can’t wait for the new HBO Max app, have no fear. In September 2021, users claim that updating their Roku to version 50.45 fixed the crashing problem as the HBO Max app was also updated.

So, we recommend checking which software version your Roku is currently using and updating it if possible.

If you’re still struggling to use the HBO Max app after trying all of the solutions listed above, we recommend contacting Roku customer support.

Good luck!