Moviefone Editorial

Tag: apple tv series

  • ‘Prince of Tides’ TV Adaptation in Development

    Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte
    (L to R) Barbra Streisand and Nick Nolte in 1991’s ‘The Prince of Tides.’

    Apple TV+ has not been shy about adapting other media into TV series for its ever-growing output. The likes of ‘Shining Girls’, ‘Slow Horses’, ‘Foundation’, and ‘Defending Jacob’ have all had their origins in books.

    Yet for ‘The Prince of Tides’, the streaming service is looking to pull off a similar trick to ‘The Mosquito Coast’, using a movie as its jumping off point.

    Don’t go expecting a paranoid patriarch trying to shield his family from the authorities though, as ‘The Prince of Tides’ will explore an even more troubled male figure at its core.

    The 1991 movie, directed by Barbra Streisand and starring her alongside Nick Nolte, adapts Pat Conroy’s novel (so the series will, by extension draw from a book), with Becky Johnston writing the script.

    When a Southern born New York writer tries to commit suicide, her “unemployed-football-coach” twin brother, Tom Wingo (Nolte), comes to her aid. While tending to his sister Savannah’s (Melinda Dillon) care, he meets her psychiatrist, Dr. Susan Lowenstein (Streisand), for whom he falls.

    Dr. Lowenstein, desperate to unlock the door to her patient’s self-destructive pattern, relies on Tom to be his sister’s memory. What she doesn’t realize is that the last thing Tom wants to do is remember. Haunted by a painful childhood and a domineering mother, Tom discovers the only thing worse than not remembering is not telling…

    Barbra Streisand
    Barbra Streisand in 1991’s ‘The Prince of Tides.’

    The result in theaters was a box office success and seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay for Johnston and Conroy, Best Actor for Nolte, and Best Cinematography (for director of photography Stephen Goldblatt).

    For the TV incarnation, ‘The Help’ and ‘Ma’ director Tate Taylor is on board to lead the writing team, with the scripts still being worked on as Apple develops the show. According to The Hollywood Reporter, it’s apparently going well so far, as offers are being made to A-list performers ahead of a potential production start this summer.

    And given its traumatic, emotional central story, it’s not hard to see why it would attract actors, and why Apple thinks it could make for good TV; plus, the series format means the characters can be explored even more deeply than the strictures of a movie – even one that runs more than two hours – allows.

    Taylor has had mixed fortunes on screens both big and small. While ‘The Help’ became a big success, and led to an Oscar for Octavia Spencer, other projects haven’t turned out quite so well. He has worked on series including ‘Grace and Frankie’, but the last time he created a TV show, the result was 2020’s ‘Filthy Rich’, which was unceremoniously pulled from the air after five episodes. With luck, he’ll have more of an impact should the Apple series make it to screens.

    Next up for Apple is ‘The Essex Serpent’, a miniseries starring Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston, while the company has a variety of series in the works, including ‘Bad Monkey’, starring Vince Vaughn, and produced by ‘Ted Lasso’ boss Bill Lawrence.

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  • Anne Hathaway Talks ‘WeCrashed’

    Anne Hathaway 'WeCrashed'
    Anne Hathaway for Apple TV+’s ‘WeCrashed.’

    Premiering on Apple TV+ beginning March 18th is the new drama series ‘WeCrashed,’ which was created by Lee Eisenberg (‘Bad Teacher’) and Drew Crevello, and directed by John Requa (‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’) and Glenn Ficarra (‘Focus’).

    The series stars Oscar winner Jared Leto (‘Dallas Buyers Club’) as Adam Neumann, co-founder of WeWork, and Oscar winner Anne Hathaway (‘Les Misérables’) as his wife, Rebekah Neumann. The series follows the rise and fall of WeWork, one of the world’s most valuable startups at the time.

    In addition to Leto and Hathaway, the series also features America Ferrera (‘End of Watch’), Kyle Marvin (‘The Climb’), O.T. Fagbenie (‘Black Widow’), and Anthony Edwards (‘Top Gun’).

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Anne Hathaway about her work on ‘WeCrashed.’

    You can read our full interview with Anne Hathaway below, or watch a video of our interviews with Hathaway, Jared Leto and Kyle Marvin in the video player above.

    WCPpfas6

    You can read our full interview with Anne Hathaway below, or watch a video of our interviews with Hathaway, Jared Leto and Kyle Marvin in the video player above.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your approach to portraying Rebekah Neumann in this series?

    Anne Hathaway: Well, thank you very much. It was fun. I did the same amount of work that I always do preparing a character. The fact that I had a voice recording of Rebekah and that she’s a real person definitely helped in terms of giving me an aim for what I wanted the voice to sound like. But I have to say she didn’t drop in until I met Adam Neumann, played by Jared Leto. There was something about the strength of their relationship and the love story that we were trying to tell that she came alive inside of me when her partner was there. That was really cool and felt very right for who they are.

    MF: Can you talk about the process of fleshing out the character of Rebekah Neumann’s backstory in order to figure out who she was at the time that this story takes place?

    AH: Well, I worked with an amazing researcher who I work with on different projects called Amy Hammond. I worked with Amy for the first time on ‘Les Misérables.’ Every time I get the opportunity to work with her, I find that it just raises everyone’s game on the project. She did at a lot of background information.

    Not a lot about Rebekah is known. So, I made sure I really understood her world and the world that she came up in and what would’ve been normal for her, that maybe is not the same as the way I was brought up. To understand that certain things that might seem unusual to most of us, to her, might not have been remarkable, because my goal with playing this woman was not to judge her, but to understand her.

    That research really helped me get insight into her. I also took a lot of the interviews that she gave, where she speaks very openly about her spirituality and the books that have had a huge influence on her. I made sure that I read those too.

    MF: Finally, the series really focuses on the relationship between Adam and Rebekah Neumann. Can you talk about developing the dynamic of that relationship with Jared Leto?

    AH: You would think that we sat down, and we had meetings and we strategized about how to do this love story, but the truth is he’s just a really fantastic actor and it just sort of happened. He came in and I just believed everything that he was, and I was in my character as well. It was just there, there was just this chemistry that I think exists between Adam and Rebekah in real life. So, we just kind of tapped into it. Then Jared and I, we never really talked about it. There was never a strategy to it, but we just kind of kept it going, you know?

    Every once in a while, we would check in over text and I was just really grateful. It was a really positive, crazy, fun experience. Whenever we would kind of come up for air and check in with each other, it was just always, “I’m so grateful to be doing this with you. I’m having such a great time.” So, we just kind of supported Adam and Rebekah’s love by keeping it very loving between the two of us.

    ‘WeCrashed’ premieres March 18th on Apple TV+.

    Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway 'WeCrashed.'
    (L to R) Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway in Apple TV+’s ‘WeCrashed.’

  • Jared Leto Talks ‘WeCrashed’

    Jared Leto WeCrashed
    Jared Leto for Apple TV+’s ‘WeCrashed.’

    Premiering on Apple TV+ beginning March 18th is the new drama series ‘WeCrashed,’ which was created by Lee Eisenberg (‘Bad Teacher’) and Drew Crevello, and directed by John Requa (‘Crazy, Stupid, Love’) and Glenn Ficarra (‘Focus’).

    The series stars Oscar winner Jared Leto (‘Dallas Buyers Club’) as Adam Neumann, co-founder of WeWork, and Oscar winner Anne Hathaway (‘Les Misérables’) as his wife, Rebekah Neumann. The series follows the rise and fall of WeWork, one of the world’s most valuable startups at the time.

    In addition to Leto and Hathaway, the series also features America Ferrera (‘End of Watch’), Kyle Marvin (‘All Wrong’), O.T. Fagbenie (‘Black Widow’), and Anthony Edwards (‘Top Gun’).

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Jared Leto about his work on ‘WeCrashed.’

    WCPpfas6

    You can read our full interview with Jared Leto below, or watch a video of our interviews with Leto, Anne Hathaway and Kyle Marvin in the video player above.

    Moviefone: To begin with, is there a scene in ‘WeCrashed’ that you shot that is completely different than the way it was written in the script, that you were able to make better on the day of filming?

    Jared Leto: Well, I don’t know how brilliant it is, but the food fight wasn’t scripted at all. I think it’s in the show. There was one point we were in a boardroom meeting, and I just, for some reason, I looked over at Kyle and I just had this instinct to start throwing the food, the platters, the stuff, and that we were in such a crazy moment of abandon and energy. I looked at his face, then at the food. He looked at me, and we just started hocking the food. I think at one point there was a salami flat on his eyeball, but it was quite unexpected and fun.

    MF: Can you talk about your approach to playing Adam Neumann and how you discovered the voice for the character?

    JL: That’s a great thing about telling such a modern story. There was so much material. I was really just buried in it. So, I love that. I love the research. I love to learn. I’m fascinated by the characters that I plan and being part of this was really fun because there was so much to draw from including incredible podcasts, and a couple of books. There’s a documentary, there’s all kinds of stuff, and I was just buried in it. I also worked with a great team of Israeli people developing the accent and the voice. The voice is a really important part of who he is, who he was, and how he communicated his ideas and he interacted with people.

    I love a weird start. When I’m on set and especially on ‘WeCrashed,’ I often try to break scenes, you know? You try and fail because from those moments, you can build back together something with an enormous amount of truth and magic. So, it’s always good to start off with something quite a little broken.

    MF: Finally, when you break a scene like that, are you doing it because you want to see what you can get out of the other actor, or because you want to see what you can do differently in that moment?

    JL: It’s a very astute and smart question. Sometimes both. Sometimes if a scene’s not working, you could try that sometimes. I always just think it’s a good habit in general, but to surprise yourself is a beautiful thing, too.

    ‘WeCrashed’ premieres March 18th on Apple TV+.

    Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto in 'WeCrashed'
    (L to R) Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto in Apple TV+’s ‘WeCrashed.’

  • TV Review: ‘The Afterparty’

    (L to R) Ben Schwartz and Sam Richardson in 'The Afterparty' on Apple TV+
    (L to R) Ben Schwartz and Sam Richardson in ‘The Afterparty’ on Apple TV+

    Premiering January 28th on Apple TV+ is the new murder mystery comedy ‘The Afterparty,’ from the creative minds of Christopher Miller and Phil Lord (‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’). The series features an impressive cast of comedic actors including Tiffany Haddish (‘Girls Trip’), Sam Richardson (‘The Tomorrow War’), Ben Schwartz (‘Sonic the Hedgehog’), Zoe Chao (‘The High Note’), Ike Barinholtz (‘Suicide Squad’), Ilana Glazer (‘Rough Night’), and Dave Franco (‘The Disaster Artist’).

    The eight-part series revolves around a murder that takes place at a high school reunion after party, and each episode is told from a different character’s perspective. The result is an innovative and hilarious whodunit with a charming cast led by Tiffany Haddish, Sam Richardson and Ben Schwartz.

    The series begins by introducing us to Aniq (Richardson), who is reluctantly attending his high school reunion in hopes of seeing the girl he had a crush on, Zoe (Chao). He first finds his friend Yasper (Schwartz), before eventually reuniting with Zoe. He is delighted to find that she is recently separated from Brett (Barinholtz), who Aniq thinks took her from him when they were in high school. But Aniq’s good time with Zoe is interrupted by the arrival of Xavier (Franco), who was a nerd in high school but is now a famous pop star and actor.

    Trouble begins when Xavier invites everyone over to his mansion for an after party, and he is soon murdered by one of his guests. Enter Detective Danner (Haddish), who suspects Aniq of the murder and questions him about the events of the night. Soon, everyone becomes a suspect and while Danner investigates and questions the other guests, Yasper tries to help Aniq clear his name.

    Sam Richardson in 'The Afterparty' on Apple TV+
    Sam Richardson in ‘The Afterparty’ on Apple TV+

    After seeing their previous work, including the Oscar winning animated movie ‘Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse,’ it’s no surprise that a new streaming series from Phil Lord and Christopher Miller would be fresh, funny, and completely unique.

    A high school reunion is a perfect backdrop for a comedic mystery and the characters are both over-the-top yet very relatable. The choice to center each episode on a particular character’s point of view of the evening’s events was brilliant, as it allows each character to come alive in a different way, and lets the actors play different versions of their characters.

    The ensemble cast is excellent, led by Tiffany Haddish as the outsider investigating the murder, Detective Danner. Haddish brings her own brand of humor to the series, while never overshadowing the plot or the other actors. She is especially excellent in the penultimate episode, where her character’s backstory is finally revealed.

    Sam Richardson is really the anchor of the series, as Aniq is the main character that we are rooting for to not only clear his name but win back Zoe’s heart as well. Richardson plays the role a bit nerdish, which is where the real comedy comes in. Equally great is Ben Schwartz as Aniq’s friend Yasper, who gets to perform a full-on musical during his character specific episode.

    Tiffany Haddish in 'The Afterparty' on Apple TV+
    Tiffany Haddish in ‘The Afterparty’ on Apple TV+

    Dave Franco is also hilarious as pop star Xavier, who ends up being the murder victim. The actor plays his character like an arrogant, insecure jerk, who you sympathize with once his backstory is revealed. Franco does some of his best work channeling a Justin Bieber/Machine Gun Kelly type character. Another funny character is Jamie Demetriou’s Walt, who is the guy from high school that no one remembers, which leads to some hilarious moments.

    Comedian Ike Barinholtz was perfectly cast as Brett, the high school bully who rivals Aniq for Zoe’s affection. The actor plays the role of a real jerk, but also shows us a bit of his character’s vulnerable side throughout the first season. Ilana Glazer, best known for her Comedy Central series ‘Broad City,’ has some great moments playing the pivotal role of Chelsea, a character that has more going on under the surface than it first appears.

    However, if there is a weak link in the cast, unfortunately its Zoe Chao, who plays Zoe. Her character never really rises to the level that you understand why Aniq, and Brett for that matter, care for her so much. Her character’s point-of-view episode helps to explain her different personalities with some really entertaining animation, but it doesn’t come until the sixth episode, which is a little late in the season to finally make the character interesting.

    One of the great aspects of ‘The Afterparty,’ which is baked into the Rashomon concept, is that nothing is as it seems. So, truly any character, even Aniq or Detective Danner, could be the murderer! My money is on Yasper, who just seems a little too nice, and a little too eager to help Aniq clear his name. But I also think it’s possible that Xavier is not dead, which could be the season’s big twist.

    Dave Franco in 'The Afterparty' on Apple TV+
    Dave Franco in ‘The Afterparty’ on Apple TV+

    Full disclosure, critics were only given the first seven episodes to screen, so your guess is as good as mine as to who the true killer is.

    In the end, ‘The Afterparty’ is a true joy to watch, and a murder-mystery-comedy on level with classics from the genre like ‘Clue.’ Lord and Miller have assembled a marvelous cast, which is truly a pleasure to watch. The characters are both ridiculous and relatable, and the show’s unique concept makes it a series that you won’t want to miss.

    ‘The Afterparty’ receives 4 out of 5 stars.

    (L to R) Sam Richardson, Jamie Demetriou, Ben Schwartz, John Early, Tiffany Haddish, Tiya Sircar, Ilana Glazer, Zoe Chao, and Ike Barinholtz in 'The Afterparty' on Apple TV+
    (L to R) Sam Richardson, Jamie Demetriou, Ben Schwartz, John Early, Tiffany Haddish, Tiya Sircar, Ilana Glazer, Zoe Chao, and Ike Barinholtz in ‘The Afterparty’ on Apple TV+
  • Apple Officially Unveils its TV Service, Apple TV+

    Apple Officially Unveils its TV Service, Apple TV+

    Apple TV

    At a splashy event at its campus in Cupertino, California on Monday, Apple finally unveiled its standalone TV service, including the official name and several of the big projects it will house. Along with those answers, though, there remained some key questions.

    During the event, Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed that the service will be called Apple TV+, and it will launch sometime this fall (an exact debut date is TBA). The subscription service will be available to all — and is not exclusive to Apple devices — in more than 100 countries; it will be ad-free, and most of its content will be downloadable.

    No pricing structure has been revealed yet.

    Many major stars were on hand to introduce their projects for the service, including Steven Spielberg (who’s producing a revival anthology of “Amazing Stories”); Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, and Steve Carell (who are starring in a morning TV drama that now has an official title: “The Morning Show”); Jason Momoa and Alfre Woodard (starring in sci-fi series “See,” about a world in which sight no longer exists); and Kumail Nanjiani (“Little America,” which tells true stories of immigrants from across the world who move to the United States).

    Even Big Bird made an appearance, introducing “Helpsters,” from the makers of “Sesame Street,” which will teach preschoolers about coding skills. And J.J. Abrams and Sara Bareilles were on hand to tout “Little Voice” (Bareilles performed the titular theme song), a series about a young woman finding her voice through music.

    Apple saved the biggest surprise for last, bringing out Oprah to announce that she’s reviving her immensely popular Book Club as a new series for the service. She’s also filming two documentaries for Apple TV+, one about sexual assault and one about mental health.

    One of the biggest gaps in the presentation, however, was the lack of clips — or even key art — from any of the announced projects, aside from a quick sneak peek package that spliced together a few seconds from each series. Instead, Apple offered a slick video introducing the service, featuring talking heads from several of the above creators, as well as collaborators including Sofia Coppola, M. Night Shyamalan, Ron Howard, Octavia Spencer, Hailee Steinfeld, Damien Chazelle.

    Stay tuned for additional Apple TV+ details as Apple unveils them.

  • Steve Carell Joins Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston’s Apple Morning Show Drama

    Steve Carell Joins Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston’s Apple Morning Show Drama

    Amazon Studios

    Apple’s upcoming drama series about the world of morning talk shows already had some major star power, thanks to A-list leading ladies Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Aniston. And now,  another big name has just joined the ensemble.

    Steve Carell is set to co-star in the as-yet-untitled project, his first series regular role since departing NBC hit “The Office” back in 2011. Variety reports that Carell will be playing a character named Mitch Kessler, described as “a morning show anchor who is struggling to maintain relevance in a changing media landscape.”

    Aniston and Witherspoon’s roles haven’t been revealed yet, though it’s assumed that that they, too, will be playing fellow morning show anchors. The series is inspired in part by CNN media reporter Brian Stelter’s 2013 book, “Top of the Morning,” which chronicles the rivalry between long-running programs “Today” and “Good Morning America.”

    Just how and when Apple plans to deliver this series to viewers is anyone’s guess. It has yet to launch its own streaming service (though that seems the most likely outlet, since it’s been acquiring content left and right lately), and additional details about the endeavor are being kept tightly under wraps for now.

    What we do know is that the Aniston-Witherspoon-Carell series has already received a two-season pickup, with each season running for 10 episodes. We’ll be eagerly awaiting its TBD arrival.

    [via: Variety]

  • Jason Momoa Is Returning to TV in Apple Drama ‘See’

    HBO

    Dearly departed “Game of Thrones” star Jason Momoa is rising again — this time on a new TV series.

    The actor has snagged the starring role on “See,” a drama being developed for Apple’s super-secretive new TV service. According to the show’s synopsis and Momoa’s character’s description, it certainly sounds like it will be familiar territory for the former Dothraki ruler (and current Aquaman).

    Here’s the breakdown, per The Hollywood Reporter:

    ‘See’ is described as an epic, world-building drama set in the future. Momoa will star in a lead role as Baba Voss, a fearless warrior, leader and guardian.

    We don’t know much else about the fantasy series, aside from the fact that it’s being written by Steven Knight (“Dirty Pretty Things,” “Peaky Blinders”), and directed by Francis Lawrence (who helmed the last three films in the “Hunger Games” series). Its first season will consist of eight episodes.

    Also unclear: Just how or when Apple plans to unveil all of the new content it’s developing. Stay tuned.

    [via: The Hollywood Reporter]