On the 25th of March, a slew of A-list celebrities crowded the Steve Jobs Theatre to hype Apple’s latest attempt at complete corporate domination: The Apple Streaming Service. Here’s all the original content we can expect to see on the service.
An M. Night Shyamalan Thriller, a Reese Witherspoon drama and a slew of Oprah-led documentaries. These are just some of the projects slated to premier on Apple’s new streaming service. All up we’re talking about almost twenty-four projects primed and ready to kick off Apple’s foray into original content. To put that into perspective: Netflix put out six projects in its first year creating original content. Amazon Prime Video put out about five.
Apple doesn’t fuck around.
In the hallowed halls of the Steve Jobs theatre, guests were treated to a musical performance by Sara Bareilles, a lecture from Steven Spielberg and an hilarious story by Kumail Nanjiani. In-between the star-studded moments and the drama of Apple’s signature “epic announcement”-style, Monday’s event gave us a semi-clear breakdown of what we can expect from Apple’s original content.
Steven Spielberg’s Amazing Stories:
Headlining the event was Steven Spielberg’s announcement that he will reboot his 1970s sci-fi horror series, Amazing Stories. Based on a 1926 magazine series of the same name, Spielberg’s adaptation gained a cult following even after it initially failed to deliver in the ratings. This adaptation promises to be as weird and horrific as the original.
Morning Show:
Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston and Steve Carrell are all slated to star in a series about the chaos of Morning TV. Based on Brian Stelter’s novel Top of the Morning, Morning Show marks Aniston’s first time back on TV since Friends. According to Witherspoon, the show examines the dynamics between men and women in front of and behind the camera.
Little Voice:
J.J. Abrams and Sara Bareilles are collaborating on a drama centred around the lives of struggling musicians. Loosely based on Bareilles’ own experiences, it examines “the reality about what is hard and wonderful and transformative about being a young woman who has to ultimately find her voice as an artist but also as a person through music”. Bareilles then went on to sing the title song she composed for the series (I’m not crying, you’re crying).
Oprah Winfrey:
Oprah Winfrey announced that she will be partnering with Apple on three new projects: two documentaries and one “Book Club”-style talk show. While the details of these projects are held under lock and key, we know that one documentary will examine the effects of workplace harassment and the other will delve into mental health.
Other Projects:
Damien Chazelle, our favourite La La Land director, has been circling a 10-episode series with Apple that remains under wraps. M. Night Shyamalan is tied to a series that promises to be characteristically jam-packed with twists. And the classic children’s series, Peanuts, will also be rebooted.
While Apple seems less invested in original films, it has confirmed at least one project starring Bill Murray and Rashida Jones. Partnering with indie-darling of the film world, A24, this project – entitled On the Rocks – will also be directed by Sofia Coppola.
Officially, Apple hasn’t told us when this storm of original content will launch. We also don’t know how much we’ll have to pay to subscribe / give Apple access to more of our data. Maybe Apple is hoping that these unanswered questions will stir up some kind of alluring mystery. Or maybe they’re waiting see what Netflix’s schedule for upcoming original content looks like.
You’re move, Netflix.
Just another streaming service to sign up too – not mad about it though. Do you think you’ll sign up for Apple’s newest venture? Let us know in the comments.