You wouldn’t be wrong with saying that Apple has zero experience making TV series. And the tech company still doesn’t know if its upcoming Apple TV+ streaming service will even make money. However, there’s one thing that the tech company has and knows isn’t going anywhere — cash. And with that cash, Apple is ensuring that its creators are taken care of and that the new original shows get a chance to live past their initial orders.
We’ve already known that the crown jewel of the Apple TV+ launch lineup, “The Morning Show,” was signed for two seasons, reportedly costing upwards of $300 million. But according to THR, the tech company is shelling out big cash to make sure its other launch series, such as “See” and “Dickinson,” as well as other series like “Little America” and “Home Before Dark,” aren’t just one-and-done either.
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The report claims that Apple is paying somewhere in the range of $240 million for two seasons of the Jason Momoa-led sci-fi series “See.” And the company has already paid to begin production on the second season of the comedy series, “Dickinson,” starring Hailee Steinfeld as the classic poet Emily Dickinson. All of this before a second of either series has even aired on the streaming service.
You can’t blame Apple for being bullish on its launch lineup. The streaming service is banking on the big-name factor of people like Momoa, Steinfeld, and “The Morning Show” cast (Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, and Steve Carell) to draw in curious eyeballs to its $4.99 per month service. And if the tech company wants a steady rollout of content, it has to assume that these series are going to be popular and, with their high production values, the decision has to be made well ahead of time to continue or not.
The report also says that Apple is leveraging its tech dominance as an added bonus for its creators and top-level stars. Apparently, the company is offering free Apple products to the showrunners and A-listers as a thank you for being part of the TV+ service. I mean, that’s likely not going to be enough to sway Aniston, Witherspoon, or Momoa to keep going with the service (the multi-million dollar paychecks do that), but still, it does show that Apple cares…well, a little at least.
Apple TV+ is set to launch on November 1.