By Adam Ross
With seven primary streaming services available in Australia – Netflix, Stan, Disney+, Apple TV+, Paramount+, Amazon Prime Video, and Binge – we are undoubtedly in the middle of the streaming wars. Subscribing to all of them is a costly venture, so all but the most affluent of couch potatoes have to be discerning with their subscriptions. Each service has its own unique strengths, whether it is Stan’s Australian content, Binge’s HBO shows or Disney+’s access to monolithic franchises, but one service that seems to be underappreciated is Apple TV+.
Since their launch in 2019, Apple TV+ has been honoured with over 763 award nominations and 190 wins, including Academy Award and BAFTA Award nominations, and 12 Primetime Emmy Award wins. They also have the distinction of being the first streaming service to ever win the Academy Award for Best Picture – for 2021’s CODA.
Apple TV+’s winning streak looks to continue with the service announcing its impressive 2023 slate, revealed at the Television Critics Association (TCA) Winter 2023 Press Tour.
Check out the highlights below:
Shrinking – January 27
The new comedy stars Jason Segel and is written by Emmy Award-winning Ted Lasso co-creator Bill Lawrence, Emmy Award-winning Ted Lasso star, writer and co-executive producer Brett Goldstein and Segel. Also starring Harrison Ford, Shrinking follows a grieving therapist (played by Segel) who starts to break the rules and tell his clients exactly what he thinks. Ignoring his training and ethics, he finds himself making huge, tumultuous changes to people’s lives including his own. In addition to Segel and Ford, Shrinking stars Christa Miller, Jessica Williams, Michael Urie, Luke Tennie and Lukita Maxwell.
Dear Edward – February 3
Dear Edward tells the story of Edward Adler (played by Colin O’Brien), a 12-year-old boy who survives a devastating commercial plane crash that kills every other passenger on the flight, including his family. As Edward and a diverse ensemble of others affected by the tragedy try to make sense of life after the crash, unexpected friendships, romances and communities are formed. The series reunites showrunner Jason Katims and co-star Connie Britton following their Emmy-winning collaboration on Friday Night Lights.
Hello Tomorrow! – February 17
Set in a retro-future world, Hello Tomorrow! centres around a group of travelling salesmen hawking lunar timeshares. Billy Crudup stars as Jack, a salesman of great talent and ambition, whose unshakable faith in a brighter tomorrow inspires his co-workers, and revitalises his desperate customers, but threatens to leave him dangerously lost in the very dream that sustains him. The ensemble cast includes Haneefah Wood, Alison Pill, Nicholas Podany, Dewshane Williams, Emmy Award winner Hank Azaria, Matthew Maher, and Academy Award nominee Jacki Weaver.
The Reluctant Traveller – February 24
Eugene Levy is (self-confessedly) not your typical travel show host — he’s not usually adventurous or well-versed in exploring the world, but now Levy agrees that the time is finally right for him to broaden his horizons. Levy packs his suitcase with trepidation but hopes his experiences might lead to a whole new chapter in life, even if it means confronting some of his long-held fears.
Extrapolations – March 17
Extrapolations is a bracing drama that introduces a near future where the chaotic effects of climate change have become embedded into our everyday lives. Eight interwoven stories about love, work, faith and family from across the globe will explore the intimate, life-altering choices that must be made when the planet is changing faster than the population. Every story is different, but the fight for our future is universal. And when the fate of humanity is up against a ticking clock, the battle between courage and complacency has never been more urgent. Are we brave enough to become the solution to our own undoing before it’s too late?
The series comes from writer/director Scott Z. Burns (The Bourne Ultimatum) and stars, wait for it, Meryl Streep, Sienna Miller, Kit Harington, Daveed Diggs, Edward Norton, Diane Lane, Tahar Rahim, Yara Shahidi, Matthew Rhys, Gemma Chan, David Schwimmer, Adarsh Gourav, Keri Russell, Marion Cotillard, Forest Whitaker, Eiza González, Murray Bartlett, Indira Varma, Tobey Maguire, MaameYaa Boafo, Hari Nef, Heather Graham, Michael Gandolfini, Cherry Jones, Gaz Choudhry, Ben Harper, Judd Hirsch and Neska Rose.
The Big Door Prize – Autumn
Based on M.O. Walsh’s novel of the same name, The Big Door Prize tells the story of a small town that is forever changed when a mysterious machine appears in the general store, promising to reveal each resident’s true life potential. Created by Emmy-Award winner David West Read (Schitt’s Creek), the series stars Chris O’Dowd, Gabrielle Dennis, Ally Maki, Josh Segarra, Damon Gupton, Crystal Fox, Sammy Fourlas and Djouliet Amara.
Schmigadoon! Season 2 – April 7
Having found true love in the town of Schmigadoon, season two will find Josh (Keegan-Michael Key) and Melissa (Cecily Strong) in Schmicago, the reimagined world of ’60s and ’70s musicals. The second season will include new original musical numbers from co-creator and executive producer Cinco Paul, as well as returning co-stars Ariana DeBose, Martin Short, Dove Cameron, Jaime Camil, Kristin Chenoweth, Alan Cumming, Ann Harada, Jane Krakowski, along with newcomers Tituss Burgess and Patrick Page.
The Last Thing He Told Me – April 14
The series follows Hannah (Jennifer Garner), a woman who must forge a relationship with her sixteen-year-old stepdaughter Bailey (Angourie Rice) in order to find the truth about why her husband has mysteriously disappeared.
Series creator Laura Dave adapts her acclaimed, #1 New York Times bestselling novel, working alongside her husband, series co-creator and Academy Award-winner Josh Singer (Spotlight, The Post). The Last Thing He Told Me also stars Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Aisha Tyler, Augusto Aguilera, Geoff Stults and John Harlan Kim.
The Afterparty Season 2 – April 28
Season 2 of this murder mystery comedy, from wunderkinds Christopher Miller and Phil Lord (Into the Spider-Verse) is set at a wedding where the groom is murdered, and every guest is a suspect. Season 1 stars Tiffany Haddish, Sam Richardson and Zoë Chao return and are joined by new cast additions Elizabeth Perkins, Zach Woods, Paul Walter Hauser, Poppy Liu, Anna Konkle, Jack Whitehall, Vivian Wu, John Cho and Ken Jeong.
City on Fire – May 12
Inspired by the acclaimed novel of the same name by Garth Risk Hallberg, this series follows the investigation of a shooting death of an NYU student in Central Park that may be connected to a series of citywide fires. The series is written and executive produced by Josh Schwartz (Gossip Girl) and Stephanie Savage (Runaways) and stars Wyatt Oleff, Chase Sui Wonders, Jemima Kirke, and John Cameron Mitchell.
Swagger Season 2 – June
Inspired by NBA superstar Kevin Durant’s experiences in the world of junior basketball, Swagger explores the world of elite youth basketball clubs, the players, their families and coaches, and “the game within the game”. The series stars O’Shea Jackson Jr., Isaiah Hill, Shinelle Azoroh, Academy Award nominee Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild) and Australian James Bingham.
Ted Lasso Season 3 – Spring
Jason Sudeikis’s underdog coach will return for a third and possibly last season. Ted Lasso has been a sensation for Apple TV+, with the first two seasons receiving 20 Primetime Emmy nominations each, and scoring 11 wins – including Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for Sudeikis.
