Apple TV+

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Apple TV+ keeps producing hit series and films.

Apple TV+ is a subscription-based video streaming service launched in 2019. It offers a variety of original TV shows, movies, documentaries, and other content produced by Apple and its partners.

Read Cult of Mac’s latest posts on Apple TV+:

Spy thriller Slow Horses season 4 pulls in a huge audience week after week

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Gary Oldman in Slow Horses Season 4 streaming on Apple TV+
This, believe it or not, is Gary Oldman starring in Slow Horses.
Photo: Apple TV+

Season 4 of Slow Horses stayed at the top of a rating’s company’s popularity chart for the second week. This darkly funny espionage drama starring Gary Oldman follows a team of British intelligence agents who’ve all made career-ending mistakes yet are somehow always in the center of the action. New episodes stream each Wednesday on Apple TV+.

Plus, Apple’s crime comedy Bad Monkey starring Vince Vaughn held onto popularity, too.

Pitt and Clooney reluctantly team up in madcap Wolfs on Apple TV+ [Updated: Now streaming]

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Clooney and Pitt in Wolf trailer
The superstar actors pair up in a movie for the first time since 2008.
Photo: Sony Pictures Entertainment

Annoyingly handsome superstar actors George Clooney and Brad Pitt pair up in the amusing new trailer for action-comedy movie Wolfs. Sony Pictures Entertainment dropped it Wednesday on YouTube the day after Apple TV+ released a 30-second teaser trailer.

The two stars play underworld “fixers” who accidentally come together over a job that turns out to be more than the simple disposal of a body it first appears. The movie comes out in theaters September 20 and should stream on Apple TV+ after that.

UPDATE: After seeing its larger theatrical run busted down to one week in limited venues, madcap comedy caper film Wolfs streams on Apple TV+ Friday. Reviews so far are mixed, mainly saying superstars Clooney and Pitt carry the somewhat-problematic film, with various opinions on how well they fare. At the very least, it should be a good popcorn flick for this weekend. And Apple Original Film already plans a sequel with writer, director and producer Jon Watts.

Shrinking season 2 finds humor in a therapist who needs a therapist [Apple TV+ trailer]

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Shrinking Season 2 on Apple TV+
The Emmy-nominated comedy drama Shrinking returns for season two on October 16, 2024 on Apple TV+.
Image: Apple

Season two of the hit Apple TV+ comedy/drama Shrinking premieres in October, with Jason Segel and Harrison Ford once again starring as therapists with problems of their own. A trailer released Thursday previews the new season, with Segel’s character making progress dealing with his daughter, his crusty mentor and all his other issues.

Dark truths close in on Cate Blanchett in psychothriller Disclaimer [Apple TV+ trailer]

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trailer for Disclaimer
"Disclaimer" debuts on Apple TV+ with two episodes October 11.
Photo: Apple TV+

A revered London journalist’s life seems picture-perfect at the start of the new trailer for Apple TV+ psychological thriller series Disclaimer. But by the end of the trailer, she stands on the precipice of ugly ruin.

Created and directed by five-time Academy Award winner Alfonso Cuarón, Disclaimer stars Cate Blanchett as the journalist, Sacha Baron Cohen as her supportive husband, and Kevin Kline as a man bent on destroying her by revealing “the truth.” The trailer for Disclaimer, released Tuesday, looks seriously enthralling. The show premieres October 11 on Apple TV+.

Burning London separates mother and son in Steve McQueen’s epic Blitz [Apple TV+ trailer]

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A still showing Saoirse Ronan and Elliott Heffernan in the
Saoirse Ronan and Elliott Heffernan star in Steve McQueen's Blitz.
Photo: Apple TV+

As bombs rain down on London during World War II, a mother sends her young son to safety in the countryside — only to learn he’s actually lost in the city’s fiery mayhem. His journey and her frantic search unfold in a new trailer dropped Thursday for new Apple Original Film Blitz, written and directed by Academy Award winner Sir Steve McQueen.

Saoirse Ronan stars as the mother in desperate search for her son in the film, set to premiere in theaters November 1 and stream on Apple TV+ November 22. Watch the trailer below.

Time’s up: After 1 season, Apple TV+ cancels Time Bandits

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Apple TV+ cancels Time Bandits
A combination of economic factors put an end to this gang of time-traveling thieves' hijinx.
Photo: Apple TV+

Despite positive reviews, bankable star Lisa Kudrow as a main character and much-loved source material, Apple TV+ opted to pull the plug on its fantasy adventure series Time Bandits after just one season, according to a new report.

Based on Terry Gilliam’s cult classic 1981 film (but rendered in more family-friendly fashion), the show’s 10-episode first season — now streaming on Apple TV+ — will have to stand alone.

Apple TV+ bags 10 Emmys, including first for Slow Horses

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Apple TV+ wins 10 Primetime Emmy Awards
"Slow Horses" creator and executive producer Will Smith won a Primetime Emmy for the show's writing.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+ scored 10 wins at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards Sunday, including the first for darkly comedic espionage thriller Slow Horses, plus a second for The Morning Show star Billy Crudup as Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.

In all, five Apple TV+ shows and one commercial won Primetime Emmys, on top of the eight wins that five shows garnered recently in the Creative Arts Emmy Awards. Primetime-winning shows included Palm Royale, Lessons in Chemistry, Masters of the Air and Girls State.

Where’s Wanda? might be funnier in German [Dubbed Apple TV+ trailer]

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Apple TV+ trailer for German comedy Where's Wanda
The trailer is dubbed in English, but the series is supposed to air in German (with subtitles of your choice).
Photo: Apple TV+

There’s an old stereotype that Germans aren’t funny (because they’re so orderly, strict and serious, supposedly). But with a new trailer for German-language dark comedy Where’s Wanda?, Apple TV+ seems to want to prove that stereotype wrong once and for all, American sitcom-style.

But is it funny? Sort of. It’s also just odd because the trailer is dubbed in English. The show is supposed to be in German. And that may feel more natural and less like an imitation of an American sitcom than the trailer does. But most American viewers will need subtitles for the show itself. So get ready for that when the eight-episode series debuts October 2 on Apple TV+. It might actually be funnier in its mother tongue, even with subtitles.

Vince Vaughn’s Bad Monkey keeps pulling in big audiences

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Bad Monkey trailer
Vince Vaughn stars in the new Apple TV+ comedy series "Bad Monkey."
Photo: Apple TV+

Crime comedy Bad Monkey starring Vince Vaughn spent another week near the top of the streaming ratings charts. The Apple TV+ show follows a former detective turned restaurant inspector solving an oddball murder in hopes of getting his old job back.

And it’s not Apple’s only current hit. Slow Horses just launched and the spy thriller is doing well.

Korean grandma guardians of the sea fight to stave off extinction [Apple TV+ trailer]

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The Last of the Sea Women trailer
They're not giving up without a fight.
Photo: Apple TV+

In the upcoming The Last of the Sea Women documentary, the way of life of South Korea’s haenyeo, or sea women of Jeju Island, is disappearing. But it won’t happen without a fierce fight from the grandmother-warrior divers, often called “real-life mermaids,” and a younger generation of helpers, according to the trailer Apple TV+ dropped Thursday.

The documentary film from producer Malala Yousafzai and director Sue Kim premieres on Apple TV+ on October 11.

Slow Horses season 4 ratchets up the heart-pounding action [Updated: Now streaming]

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Slow Horses season 4 trailer
Slow Horses season four just started streaming. It's an action-packed comedy spy thriller.
Image: Apple TV+

London is under threat from shopping-mall car bombers and espionage masterminds, and somehow Gary Oldman’s MI5 screwups once again end up in the middle of the action. That’s according to the new Slow Horses season four trailer for the black-comedy spy-thriller series.

The Emmy-nominated and BAFTA-winning series stars Oldman as MI5’s irascible Slough House section chief Jackson Lamb. The six-episode season premieres September 4 on Apple TV+.

UPDATE: Season 4 of Slow Horses gets underway Wednesday with the first episode, entitled “Identity Theft,” on Apple TV+. “A London bombing triggers and explosive hidden past,” notes the streamer’s tagline. A season review in The Guardian calls the show “faultlessly directed,” notes the cast is even better than before and says “Gary Oldman roars like a bear dipped in chip fat.”

Go behind the scenes of struggle to become K-Pop Idols [Now on Apple TV+]

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K-pop Idols on Apple TV+
K-Pop Idols docuseries streams globally on Apple TV+.
Image: Apple TV+

An Apple TV+ documentary brings a whole lot of gritty reality to dreams of becoming a Korean pop star. K-Pop Idols features interviews with young singers that reveal the enormous amount of effort needed to make their performances look effortless.

The trailer for the series includes one of its young stars saying, “I thought being a K-pop idol was going to be all great and beautiful, but that’s not the reality.”

UPDATE: The new docuseries premiered on Apple TV+ on Friday. All six episodes are ready to stream now.

Napoleon: The Director’s Cut adds 48 mins to Ridley Scott’s epic

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Napoleon: The Director’s Cut storms Apple TV+
Napoleon: The Director’s Cut takes a longer look at history's greatest general.
Photo: Apple TV+

Before Napoleon hit theaters in late 2023, director Ridley Scott promised a longer, more complete cut would follow on Apple TV+. The streaming service fulfilled that promise on Thursday.

The original lasts 2 hours and 38 minutes, while Napoleon: The Director’s Cut brings nearly an hour more of Joaquin Phoenix as the infamous French emperor and conqueror of much of Europe.

Acapulco season 4 gets thumbs up from Apple TV+

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Acapulco Season Four on Apple TV+
Apple global hit comedy Acapulco has been renewed for a fourth season.
Image: Apple TV+

¡Ay, caramba! Apple TV+ greenlit season four of its comedy Acapulco on Tuesday. While bilingual shows often struggle on American TV, this one earns high praise from critics.

Apple has become more wiling to cancel underperforming series, so keeping Acapulco going for this long means it must have found an audience.

Just what we need, another pretentious show about French fashion (en français!) [Apple TV+ trailer]

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La Maison trailer
Couldn't get enough of "The New Look" and its French fashion designers under Nazi occupation? Well, here's a contemporary melodrama about French high fashion houses pour vous.
Photo: Apple TV+

First Apple TV+ unveiled The New Look, a World War II drama depicting French fashion designers heroically carrying on with their vital work in Nazi-occupied Paris. Now the trailer for La Maison, a melodramatic family saga about a fictional French fashion house in crisis, struts down the catwalk. And it’s entirely in French. Hey, it could be great. Or, as the trailer suggests, it could be preposterously self-important.

And check out that tagline: “The fabric of power.” Seriously?

On the plus side, the show is brought to us by some talented folks behind good stuff — The Returned, Lupin and Le Bureau des Légendes. So I’ll leave out the “La Maison du Merde” jokes for now. La Maison debuts on Apple TV+ September 20.

Thriller Criminal Record returns for season 2 on Apple TV+

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Criminal Record returns for season 2 on Apple TV+
Fans of complex, engrossing police procedurals rejoice: "Criminal Record" returns.
Photo: Apple TV+

Two brilliant detectives will clash again as acclaimed London-based thriller Criminal Record returns for a second season, Apple TV+ said Thursday. The engrossing series stars Peter Capaldi of Doctor Who and Cush Jumbo of The Good Wife.

So the streamer confirmed what Jumbo said on a talk show back in February. The renewal is great news for fans of the show. If you haven’t tried it, you should stream the first season.

Midnight Family of Mexico City paramedics struggles to serve — and survive [Apple TV+ trailer]

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Midnight Family trailer
In a city of 10 million people and only about 100 public ambulances, a family tries to make a living while making up the difference.
Photo: Apple TV+

A talented Mexico City medical student studies hard by day and saves lives by night, hurtling around the sprawling metropolis in her family’s private ambulance. But it looks like something’s got to give under the strain of it all in the trailer Apple TV+ dropped Tuesday for the upcoming Spanish-language drama series Midnight Family.

Sure, you might need subtitles, but it looks like a rewarding ride. The 10-episode series, based on a documentary, debuts on Apple TV+ September 25.

Bad Sisters trust no one in season 2 of Sharon Horgan’s dark comedy

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Bad Sisters season 2
The Garvey women of “Bad Sisters" -- from left, Sarah Greene, Eva Birthistle, Sharon Horgan, Anne-Marie Duff and Eve Hewson -- return for season two November 13 on Apple TV+. They look determined and unified.
Photo: Apple TV+

To the delight of their many fans like me, the Garvey women of Ireland will return soon in Bad Sisters season two, Apple TV+ said Monday. The streamer offered a “first look” photograph along with scant plot details. The darkly comedic drama’s creator and star, Sharon Horgan, returns with her close-knit fictional siblings on November 13.

But with one abusive husband down in season one of Bad Sisters, what new nemesis will emerge in the sophomore season? From the sound of it, two years after they took care of that problem in white-knuckle fashion, it could be them against everybody. Because they’re not in the clear yet.

The Instigators arrives as the most popular film on streaming

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The Instigators trailer on Apple TV+
"The Instigators" pulls in a big audience its first week on streaming.
Photo: Apple TV+

A new buddy action comedy starring Matt Damon and Casey Affleck is more popular than any film on streaming, according to a rating analysis firm. And The Instigators is more popular than any streaming series, too.

Meanwhile, three Apple TV+ series pull in plenty of viewers too, including the newly launched Bad Monkey.

The multiverse journey continues in Dark Matter season 2

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Dark Matter on Apple TV+
Get ready for more adventures in the Box.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+ committed on Friday to Dark Matter season two so fans of the popular sci-fi series won’t be left wondering what will happen with Ryan and Amanda.

The show now heads into uncharted territory — season one followed the events of a bestselling novel, but there’s no sequel for the book.

Seeing (and hearing) may not be believing in psycho-thriller Disclaimer [Updated]

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Disclaimer trailer on Apple TV+
The teaser trailer doesn't tell us much.
Photo: Apple TV+

The enigmatic teaser trailer Apple TV+ dropped Wednesday for psychological thriller series Disclaimer, from Oscar-winning director Alfonso Cuarón and starring Oscar winners Cate Blanchett and Kevin Kline, disclaims very little beyond a dark and foreboding mood and a warning to “be aware” of the assumptions that color our understanding of a story.

The seven-episode limited series debuts on Apple TV+ October 11.

UPDATE: After publishing the initial post, I realized a clever deep fake appears to be in play in the trailer’s narration, so I thought I’d better mention it (better late than never!) It only took seven days after posting about the trailer for me to realize I knew the narrator’s voice. And it seems she never said what she seemed to say in the trailer. See below.

Ted Lasso creator spanks Bad Monkey in new comedy [Now streaming on Apple TV+]

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Bad Monkey trailer
Vince Vaughn stars in the new Apple TV+ comedy series "Bad Monkey."
Photo: Apple TV+

Curiously, a furry primate only shows up in glimpses in Wednesday’s new trailer for Bill Lawrence’s new Apple TV+ comedy series Bad Monkey. Not counting glib ex-detective Vince Vaughn, that is. Lawrence brought us vaunted comedy smash hit Ted Lasso, by the way.

The show, based on Carl Hiaasen’s New York Times-bestselling novel, debuts on Apple TV+ on August 14.

UPDATE: The new 10-episode comedy series Bad Monkey from Ted Lasso creator Bill Lawrence is now streaming on Apple TV+ as of Wednesday. Vince Vaughn stars as a disgraced Miami detective who might get his job back if he can just transport a severed arm from point A to point B, and maybe prove murder along the way. Reviews so far seem to like Vaughn in the wise-cracking role, with a few caveats. Time‘s review headline: “Bad Monkey Is a Beachy Crime Drama Drowning in Ted Lasso Quirk.” You can watch and decide if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

The Instigators is old-school action-comedy fun [3 Reasons to Watch]

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Hong Chau, Casey Affleck and Matt Damon in
Hong Chau, Casey Affleck go on the lam in The Instigators..
Photo: Apple TV+

New Apple TV+ action comedy The Instigators is getting a bad rap. The action-comedy about a Boston heist gone wrong, which stars Matt Damon and Casey Affleck, currently achieves a lackluster 41% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes. But those critics are missing the point. The Instigators is an unpretentious buddy film that doesn’t take itself too seriously.

The critics who panned the movie apparently don’t know how to sit back and enjoy a fun flick. (The Instigators’ audience score sits at a much higher 71%.) Here are three reasons you should give this underappreciated action-comedy a stream on Apple TV+.

Lisa Kudrow’s Time Bandits becomes a surprise hit

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'Time Bandits' on Apple TV+
The Apple TV+adaptation of Time Bandits is for the whole family.
Photo: Apple TV+

Some people were skeptical when Apple TV+ turned the 1981 cult classic movie Time Bandits into a comedic adventure series for all ages. But it’s hard to argue with success — for the second week, the show starring Lisa Kudrow is one of the most popular on any streaming service.

And Jake Gyllenhaal’s crime drama Presumed Innocent continues to pull in a huge audience.

Hit comedy Shrinking returns this fall for season 2 [Updated]

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Shrinking season 2 on Apple TV+
The cast of Shrinking is coming back to Apple TV+ for season 2.
Image: Apple TV+/Cult of Mac

Shrinking, the hit comedy starring Jason Segel and Harrison Ford as therapists with problems of their own, returns to Apple TV+ on October 16. Friday’s’s announcement came with a tiny teaser video for season 2.

This is another entry in Apple’s collection of shows with a radical premise: People in sitcoms don’t have to be horrible to each other.

Update: Apple TV+ posted on social media about Shrinking season 2 on August 5, then pulled the post and video shortly afterward. The teaser trailer came back on Friday.