Lonestar is getting a makeover from Canwest, which on Thursday announced the western-themed digichannel will be rebranded as MovieTime, ditching series and one-off specials in favor of wider-appeal action movies.

Canwest will do away with programs such as Bonanza and the espionage series Counterstrike, instead filling the schedule with films such as the Matt Damon-starrer The Bourne Identity and Will Smith’s Independence Day.

‘It will be all movies, all the time,’ Canwest EVP of content Barb Williams tells Playback Daily, noting that movies have significantly outperformed series on the channel. MovieTime will air 250 titles per month.

Canwest did not need CRTC approval for the rebrand, since all content still falls under the action/adventure category.

‘We stuck to the nature of the service that was in the original definition of the channel,’ says Williams, adding she expects to see continued growth for MovieTime on the ratings side. The channel was originally known as Adventure, but was reworked in 2001.

MovieTime launches Oct. 6. It will be available through carriers including Rogers, Shaw, Cogeco, and Bell TV.