Apple TV+ is launching this fall, bringing yet another big budget prestige streaming service into a market that is already overwhelmed with content. If you’re wondering whether or not you should shell out for yet another streaming service, Apple is pulling out all the stops with a star-studded new series designed to grab your eyeballs and dollars.
With its first trailer, The Morning Show makes a compelling argument for adding another streaming subscription. First, there’s the A-list cast: Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, and Steve Carell star in the series (Aniston and Witherspoon are also producing), along with Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Billy Crudup, and Mark Duplass. Aniston and Carell’s return to television are especially noteworthy, as they are two of the biggest TV stars of the last few decades, as evidenced by the continued popularity of Friends and The Office on Netflix.
Then there’s the timely story: a long-running morning show team is thrown into a tailspin when Carell’s character is fired for sexual harassment. Aniston must struggle with the fallout, as a new anchor (Witherspoon) captures public attention. The series is based on Brian Stelter’s book Top of the Morning: Inside the Cutthroat World of Morning TV, and is no doubt influenced by the Matt Lauer scandal, among countless other Me Too Movement reckonings.
The synopsis reads: “What happens when the people you trust to tell the truth prove themselves to be dishonest? The Morning Show follows the free fall of an early morning newscast in the wake of a scandal, and its struggle to survive in an era when news arrives in the palm of your hand. The Morning Show stars Academy Award winner Reese Witherspoon, Emmy winner Jennifer Aniston and Golden Globe winner Steve Carell in a high-stakes drama that pulls back the curtain on the morning news.”
While the trailer recalls Aaron Sorkin’s HBO series The Newsroom, The Morning Show appears to be more focused on the interpersonal relationships between its characters. And unlike Sorkin’s drama, it looks like the female characters will actually have some agency and power. While stories like Lauer’s often focus on the man behaving badly, I’m more interested in how the fallout affects everyone in their orbit (especially the women who have struggled to work alongside men like this).
I’m especially intrigued by the Aniston/Witherspoon dynamic. While the trailer alludes to producers thinking that Aniston is over the hill, it’s far more engaging to see her go up against a woman her own age (Witherspoon) as opposed to a younger competitor. The trailer also forgoes any soapy competitiveness between the women, which is a welcome angle. It also features women behind the scenes: Mimi Leder (On the Basis of Sex) is directing the series, with Kerry Ehrin (Bates Motel) showrunning.
Witherspoon also produced and starred in Big Little Lies, and has made it clear that she is committed to telling stories about complicated, nuanced women. And it looks like Apple shares her commitment: the series has already been ordered for two seasons of 10 episodes each.
The Morning Show is set to premiere sometime this fall on Apple TV+. What did you think of the trailer? Is it compelling enough to add another subscription service to your roster?
(via Collider, image: Apple TV+)
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