MOST WANTED: TEEN HACKER - Release date & time, streaming details, and more

Most Wanted: Teen Hacker premieres on September 5, 2025, on HBO Max. The four-part documentary series, directed by Finnish filmmaker Sami Kieksi and co-written with Joni Soila, tells the true story of Julius Kivimäki.

Julius Kivimäki is a teen hacker, who became infamous worldwide. At the age of 15, Kivimäki carried out brazen cybercrime, such as knocking out PlayStation's online platform, causing a US passenger plane to make an emergency landing, and staging SWAT-style raids on individual citizens.

The series employs reenactments and archival footage. It also features first-hand interviews with the FBI agents, cybersecurity experts, and even Kivimäki himself to create a chilling portrait of how one single teen was able to infiltrate worldwide systems and the massive manhunt that finally caught up with him.

Release date & streaming details of Most Wanted: Teen Hacker

Following the September 5, 2025, premiere of Most Wanted: Teen Hacker, new episodes are set to come out weekly on HBO Max/Max in a number of countries, including the USA, Europe, Latin America, Australia, and Southeast Asia. Presented as a Max Original, the documentary blends Nordic storytelling with in-depth investigation.

HBO Max subscription starts at $9.99 per month (Basic with ads). The Standard plan costs $16.99 per month and the Premium plan comes at $20.99 per month.

The documentary consists of four episodes, each of which focuses on a different chapter of Kivimäki's cyber adventures. The precise duration of each episode is not made public at the time of writing. However, for high-end documentary formats, typical episodes last between 45 and 60 minutes.

The official synopsis reads:

"This series traces the journey of Julius (Aleksanteri) Kivimäki, a teenage hacker whose exploits–crippling video game networks, hacking an airliner into an emergency landing, and orchestrating SWAT-style kettles–made him one of the most infamous cybercriminals on the FBI’s radar."

"Through immersive reenactments, firsthand retellings, and expert commentary, the show unpacks how his actions shook global systems and eventually drew the full force of law enforcement to catch him," the synopsis adds.

Here is the release time of Most Wanted: Teen Hacker across different time zones:

Region / Time zone	Release time and date
Eastern Time (ET)	12 am (midnight), September 5, 2025
Pacific Time (PT)	9 pm, September 4, 2025
UK (BST)	5 am, September 5, 2025
Central Europe (CEST)	6 am, September 5, 2025
India (IST)	9:30 am, September 5, 2025
Australia (AEST)	2 pm, September 5, 2025

What made Julius Kivimäki one of the world’s most notorious hackers

Julius Kivimäki is the most wanted hacker (Representative image via Unsplash/ @ Towfiqu barbhuiya)

Julius Kivimäki smoothly transitioned from inquisitive coding to worldwide chaos. Julius, who started out as a tech-savvy teen from Finland, used his abilities from the comfort of his bedroom, but what he unleashed had global repercussions.

One of his most well-known exploits was taking down the PlayStation network over the holidays, which caused a great deal of chaos and anxiety. He went one step further and compromised aviation systems, causing a US airliner to make an emergency landing, obfuscating the distinction between cybercrime and real-world danger.

Equally brazen was his orchestration of SWAT-style attacks on unsuspecting individuals, including one that targeted an FBI agent’s family. These aren’t fictional plot points; they are real events that catapulted a teenager onto the FBI’s radar as one of the planet’s most dangerous hackers.

The docuseries explores how a young mind, armed with online invisibility, became capable of vast disruption, and how the digital world’s vulnerability becomes terrifying when weaponized by a single individual with access and ambition.

Lessons and themes: cybersecurity, accountability, and the digital era

Most Wanted: Teen Hacker explores (Image via Unsplash/ @ Markus Winkler)

Most Wanted: Teen Hacker explores more significant issues regarding our interconnected world than just the cloak-and-dagger aspects. The show serves as a warning about how brittle contemporary systems can be, in addition to being about sensational cybercrimes.

The psychology of a teenage hacker is also examined, including how curiosity can turn into obsession, how anonymity can breed boldness, and how the need for recognition can drive risky behavior.

In the end, the show promotes greater digital literacy, improved supervision, and a well-rounded strategy where ethics and innovation coexist. By doing this, it presents itself as a contemporary parable about the obligations that each of us has in the digital age, in addition to being a crime story.

Stay tuned for more news and updates on Most Wanted: Teen Hacker.

About the author

Arvind Singh covers anime and pop culture at Sportskeeda, with a knack for capturing the essence of entertainment through his words. Although he graduated with a BSc in Transportation Technology, his interest in pop culture was ingrained in him from a young age. Witnessing Michael Jackson’s live concert on TV at just 4 years old ignited a lifelong admiration for diverse music and storytelling.

Arvind’s experience includes over a year as an Anime Writer for Sportskeeda, alongside contributions to GameRant’s anime division. He also held a position as a UK Custom Export Executive at Aquatic Freights Pvt. Ltd before delving into the world of journalistic writing. He is dedicated to ethical and relevant reporting through his meticulous sourcing of facts, ensuring he only conveys accurate information devoid of any bias.

In his leisure time, Arvind enjoys listening to rock music, writing poetry, and playing adventure video games. He admires the charisma of icons like Shahrukh Khan, the eloquence of Matthew McConaughey, and the smooth yet powerful vocals of Chester Bennington. Writing is an integral part of his life, and when it comes to expressing his interest and putting a whole scene into words, he could do it all day.

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Edited by Arunava Dutta