New trailer for The Studio looks like Apple TV Plus' star-studded cringe comedy response to HBO's superhero satire series The Franchise

Apple's new comedy series is already making me cringe – and that's just its teaser trailer, too

News By Tom Power published 20 November 2024

• Apple TV Plus has released the first teaser for a new tragicomedy series called The Studio
• The show, which stars and has been co-created by Seth Rogen, will be released in March 2025
• Rogen plays the new CEO of a fictional film studio struggling to survive in the cut-throat world of movie making

Have you ever heard of 'twin films' or 'copycat movies'? It's a term used to describe two movies with near-identical stories that are released by different studios in close proximity to one another. Think back to 1998 when Pixar's A Bug's Life and DreamWorks' Antz came out. Or, more recently, two new movies in Immaculate and the First Omen, with the two horror flicks releasing within weeks of each other earlier this year.

Why am I telling you about this? Because this phenomenon isn't restricted to movies anymore. Indeed, just two months after satirical superhero series The Franchise debuted on Max and HBO, Apple has produced its own comedy-oriented take on the corporate world of movie making with a new show called The Studio. Co-created by and starring Seth Rogen, it'll debut on Apple TV Plus next March – and its first trailer, which you can watch below, makes it look like a more star-studded offering that's coming for The Franchise's cringe comedy TV crown.

The Studio — Official Teaser | Apple TV+ - YouTube

Watch On

Did you spot every A-lister who'll cameo in The Studio? I suspect you noticed Marvel stars like Kathryn Hahn (Agatha All Along, WandaVision) and Anthony Mackie (Captain America: Brave New World), as well as other esteemed actors including Catherine O'Hara, Bryan Cranston, Paul Dano, and Charlize Theron. I bet you didn't spot legendary director Martin Scorsese or actor-director Zoe Kravitz, though. All the more reason to go back and watch it, especially if you're a fan of proverbially curling up in a ball and dying while laughing your butt off.

What is Apple TV Plus' The Studio series about?

As tragically funny as The Studio looks, I imagine you're wondering what it's actually about. Fear not, for I am – or, rather, Apple is – to answer that question by way of a press release's story brief.

"In The Studio, Seth Rogen stars as Matt Remick, the newly appointed head of embattled Continental Studios," the plot synopsis reads. "As movies struggle to stay alive and relevant, Matt and his core team of infighting executives battle their own insecurities as they wrangle narcissistic artists and craven corporate overlords in the ever-elusive pursuit of making great films.

"With their power suits masking their never-ending sense of panic, every party, set visit, casting decision, marketing meeting, and award show presents them with an opportunity for glittering success or career-ending catastrophe. As someone who eats, sleeps, and breathes movies, it's the job Matt's been pursuing his whole life, and it may very well destroy him."

As I mentioned, the 10-episode, half-hour comedy has been co-developed by Rogen, with his frequent collaborator Evan Goldberg (The Boys, Sausage Party) creating the series alongside him. The pair are also among the show's five-strong executive producing team, with Rogen also directing a number of episodes. Multi-Emmy award winners Peter Huyck, Frida Perez, and Alex Gregory also helped to pen the scripts.

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