Apple TV+, Apple’s streaming service, debuted in late 2019 with multiple “Apple Originals.” Over the years, Apple has released many original shows and movies, all with different concepts, but many have had the same tone. The vibe of many of the shows has been “comedy-drama with heartfelt moments.” This has made many of the shows feel very similar. Whenever they’ve branched out their concepts, the show they promoted was usually unsuccessful. An example of this was the show “See,” starring Jason Momoa. Similar to “Severance,” it is a science fiction drama. Although it had a great concept, it did not gain as much attention as Apple wanted, especially because it was one of their first projects.
Apple wanted to launch its streaming service with as many projects as possible. Because of this, they were rushing through production for many of their shows, causing them to be disorganized. They did find success in “Ted Lasso,” the sports comedy-drama, but still followed the format of most of the other shows.
“Severance,” the critically acclaimed TV show created by Dan Erickson and Ben Stiller, has brought in many fans. Apple has created many projects in the past, some of them successful, but none of them have garnered a cult following like “Severance.”
On Feb. 18, 2022, the first episode of “Severance” came out. As a dystopian sci-fi drama, it was something that Apple TV had no content about. Because of the amazing acting and writing, it immediately became popular and won many awards. Because of the show’s unanswered questions, styled after “Lost,” the immensely popular mystery-sci-fi series, it got people wanting more.
“Severance” also had a revolutionary cast. Dan Erickson, the creator, head writer, and executive producer of the show had only directed and written a few small movies in the past, but none for Apple TV+. Ben Stiller, the director of the show, was a very popular comedy actor prior to “Severance,” surprising many people with the serious tone of the show. Adam Scott, the main actor, had also mostly been in comedy shows and movies like “Parks and Recreation.” His role required him to play two different characters who were very different from each other, showing certain talents and abilities that had not been explored in his previous projects.
After the success of the season’s watch time and reviews, Apple wanted to get a second season out as soon as they could. Unfortunately, due to Dan Erickson’s perfectionism and the SAG-AFTRA strikes, it took three years to finally release season two, leaving the audience on a cliffhanger. Due to the excitement of the show continuing, the first episode of the new season continued the popularity of the series, raising Apple TV+’s subscriptions by 126% in the weeks around it.
With season two’s completion, the whole season got amazing reviews, proving that the first season’s fame was not by chance. The show has been renewed for a third season and is now in the process of being written.
“Severance” has set the standard for Apple TV+’s shows, showing that they should spend more time on what the fans want. They are working on this, renewing “Ted Lasso” for a spin-off series, proving that they want to stick with the shows that the fans like the most.
