What’s on HBO tonight? Here is the full HBO schedule for Thursday, October 29, 2026, with times in Eastern Time (ET).

HBO’s best slot tonight is the movie before primetime starts

See also: What's on tonight across all channels | Wednesday's TV guide

The best thing on HBO on Thursday is not in primetime at all. “The Firm” starts at 6:24pm ET, runs 156 minutes and finishes at 9pm, which is exactly when the evening’s other programming begins. It is a 1993 crime thriller directed by Sydney Pollack, with Tom Cruise and Gene Hackman among the cast, and it is the only film in the evening window.

After that the night belongs to strands. War goes out at 9pm and again at 9:50pm ET/PT (8pm and 8:50pm Central), and “The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story” follows at 10:40pm. Both air every day in the window, so they are fixtures, and the schedule gives no sign tonight is any different. Both are short, at about 50 minutes each, which makes them easy to dip into but hard to call an event.

Elsewhere in the day, the movie slots are decent. “The Royal Tenenbaums” (2001, Wes Anderson) sits at 11:35am and “Anyone but You” (2023) opens the overnight at 12:59am. The late-night talk is also covered: Real Time with Bill Maher and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver each air twice, mid-morning to afternoon and again overnight.

Against the networks at 9pm, War faces Ghosts on CBS and 9-1-1: Nashville on ABC. Anyone wanting a proper evening’s viewing here should go for the early film and then decide whether the rest earns the sofa.


Also on TV tonight at 8pm ET

  • ABC: 9-1-1
  • NBC: The Traitors: New Blood
  • CBS: Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage
  • FOX: Hell’s Kitchen
  • PBS: This Old House
  • The CW: Scrabble
  • ION: FBI
  • TCM: The Beguiled
  • AMC: It (from 6pm ET)
  • FX: Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (from 5:30pm ET)

Every channel tonight, side by side · Movies on TV this week · Tomorrow’s TV


Frequently asked questions

What’s on HBO tonight?

On Thursday, October 29, 2026, HBO shows War at 9pm ET, War at 9:50pm ET and The Pet Cemetery Murders: A Ghost Story at 10:40pm ET.

Is there a movie on HBO tonight?

Yes: The Firm (1993) at 6:24pm ET.

What’s on HBO late tonight?

After 11pm ET, HBO has War at 11:35pm ET.

What time does HBO’s evening start?

The evening schedule starts with The Firm at 6:24pm ET.