The Cult of Mac Store just kicked off its big Fourth of July sale, offering 15% off all items when you spend $50 or more.
Take your pick from some of the best iPhone, iPad and AirPods cases, stands, Apple Watch bands and more — all hand-picked and approved by members of the Cult of Mac team.
The offer ends today, so enjoy it while you can!
Apple TV+ just keeps adding new movies and shows, but how many people are watching? Only Apple knows for sure.
An entertainment industry expert takes a look at the current state of Apple TV+ — and outlines what the future might hold for the streaming video service. Read the Q&A to find out what “success” might look like for Apple TV+.
That’s our cover story in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. Download it to read on your iPhone or iPad, or get the links to the week’s top Apple news, reviews and how-tos below.
A year and a half in, Apple TV+ remains something of a black box. Ever since the streaming video service’s launch in November 2019, Cupertino has refused to reveal hard data about just how well Apple TV+ is doing.
In some respects, the future looks promising. Apple TV+ continues to add high-profile projects to its production queue. Apple TV+ shows and movies continue to rack up awards. And upcoming originals like an epic sci-fi adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation and the second season of surprise hit Ted Lasso are generating buzz.
Plus, with the original one-year free trials ending — and new free Apple TV+ trials slashed to just three months — the $4.99-a-month streaming service seems increasingly confident about its value proposition for viewers.
Still, the Apple TV+ library continues to be dwarfed by rivals like Netflix and Disney+.
So what does the future hold? And what does “success” look like for Apple TV+ anyway? Cult of Mac asked the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a pseudonymous entertainment executive who writes about the business, how Apple TV+ is faring and what to expect next. His responses have been lightly edited for clarity.
With a showdown on the horizon, Lisey gets back in touch with her sisters — in the most intense way imaginable — in this week’s installment of Lisey’s Story, the fantastical Apple TV+ series based on Stephen King’s novel.
It’s only a matter of time before Lisey has to take down her foes, real and imaginary, and she’s gonna need all the help she can get.
The bestseller City on Fire will be adapted into a series for Apple TV+. The story of a tangled murder investigation will be written by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, who’ve worked on multiple successful TV series together.
You can get the best part of this year’s Apple TV update — the totally redesigned Siri Remote — at a healthy $9 off from Verizon Wireless right now. It’s the first discount we’ve seen on the new Apple TV remote, and it drops the price to just $49.99 with free shipping.
By buying the remote separately, current Apple TV owners gain major benefits while avoiding the big (and mostly pointless) investment in the pricey new set-top box. And you don’t need to be a Verizon Wireless subscriber to jump on this hot deal, either.
Apple has teamed up with Earvin “Magic” Johnson and other producers to develop a new drama series, according to a new report. The show will tell the stories of baseball legend Leroy “Satchel” Paige and the Negro Leagues.
Apple has landed a combined 25 Daytime Emmy Award nominations for Apple TV+ originals.
Ghostwriter, Helpsters, Long Way Up and others have been recognized in the Children’s & Animation and Lifestyle categories. Winners will be announced by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences on July 17 and July 18, 2021.
Apple TV+ finally revealed the debut date for Foundation, its much-anticipated adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s classic series of novels. The wait will be over on September 24, 2021.
And a second “teaser trailer” debuted on Monday… though it does a bit more than tease.
Lorne Michaels’ parody/homage to musicals will soon leap onto Apple TV+. Schmigadoon! is loaded with big names singing and dancing, and it’ll premier on July 16.
Apple released the hilarious first trailer for the series. Watch it now.
Scott Landon relives the worst trauma of his childhood on this week’s episode of Lisey’s Story, the Stephen King miniseries on Apple TV+. It’s his turn to go back to the foundational horrors that propel him. And what he finds is ugly indeed.
Apple TV+ has another hagiographic documentary for you, and this one proves just as insubstantial as its last aimless doc. It’s called Who Are You, Charlie Brown?, and it premieres today on Apple’s streaming service.
Unfortunately, if you were hoping for a deep dive into the craft and artistic impulses behind Charles M. Schulz and his world-renowned Peanuts characters, maybe read a book instead.
Central Park, the Apple TV+ animated musical about a family living and caring for the titular New York park, returns for more arbitrary, up-with-people high-jinks in its second season.
Nothing brings out the worst impulses in a writer’s room like encouragement. And the second season of the show — created by Bob’s Burgers duo Nora Smith and Loren Bouchard along with Josh Gad (Frozen) — is aggressively larger and more precious than the first. If it’s not your thing, you’ll be looking for the nearest open window.
Fathom, the new Apple TV+ documentary about whales, tells the story of a couple of women who made it their life’s work to figure out why the humpback sings — and what that song means. Though there’s a lot to like here, and the vibes are admirable, the whole effort could have used more … (30-minute pause) depth.
Fathom, which premieres today, keeps the network’s focus on mass-market biological documentary alive. It joins such outstanding efforts as Tiny World and Earth at Night in Color.
Apple Studios has debuted the trailer for CODA, a movie which swept the 2021 Sundance Film Festival — capturing its Special Jury Award for Ensemble Cast, Directing Award, Audience Award, and Grand Jury Prize.
A coming-of-age drama starring Emilia Jones and previous Oscar winner Marlee Matlin (Children of a Lesser God), the movie is about a teenaged girl torn between following her musical dreams and staying with deaf family who rely on her. The title is an acronym standing for “Child of Deaf Adults.”
Check out the trailer below.
Apple TV+ original animated series Stillwater won a Peabody Award today for excellence in storytelling, and for work that encourages empathy. Actor Goldie Hawn, who has worked extensively with kids on various forms of programming, presented the award in a video.
The wait for the Apple TV+ adaptation of Foundation is almost over. The same goes for The Problem With Jon Stewart. Apple’s streaming service announced the premiere dates for these shows and more, all coming this fall.
The free Apple TV+ trial offered when the service debuted runs out at the end of June, and the iPhone-maker is trying to build excitement for upcoming series by announcing their debut dates.
Dan Harmon will reportedly turn Nathan Pyle’s humorous Strange Planet webcomic into an Apple TV+ animated series. This will combine a comic that’s already become a series of best-selling graphic novels with the creator/writer of Rick and Morty.
A new Apple TV+ video gives a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the creation of new perm- and leotard-filled dark comedy Physical. The retro series follows the 1980s transformation of a timid housewife into an aerobics influencer extraordinaire.
The four-and-a-half-minute “making of” video features input from Physical stars Rose Byrne, Rory Scovel, Della Saba and Dierdre Friel, along with series showrunner Annie Weisman. It includes discussions of the show’s themes, including central character Sheila Rubin’s eating disorder.
Apple TV users can get a free month of Paramount+, the streaming service formerly known as CBS All Access, Apple said Monday in a tweet.
The trial offer, running now through June 30, is available to new Paramount+ subscribers in the United States when they sign up through the Apple TV app. As not all free trial offers on Apple TV last a full month, this is a good one. Here’s how to jump on it and watch Paramount+ originals like Star Trek: Picard and Jordan Peele’s reboot of The Twilight Zone. The streaming service also offers movies from the Mission: Impossible and Star Trek franchises.
If the stark aluminum chassis of the new Siri Remote leaves you cold, a stylish new silicone case from Elago could warm your heart.
It’s not only about making the Apple TV remote more comfortable in your hands, though. The R1 Intelli Case packs a trick or two. And it comes in any color you want — as long as that color is “black as Steve Jobs’ turtleneck.”
Starting today, fans can buy all sorts of merchandise associated with Apple TV+ hit Ted Lasso and its fictional English soccer club, A.F.C. Richmond.
This comes as yet more upbeat news-for-a-Monday from the relentlessly cheerful franchise. Earlier today, Apple TV released the Ted Lasso season 2 trailer. Also earlier today, the sitcom won a Peabody Award for countering “the enduring prevalence of toxic masculinity.” The show’s star and executive producer, Jason Sudeikis, accepted the prize.
The Apple TV+ comedy series Ted Lasso was awarded a Peabody on Monday. The show offers “a charming dose of radical optimism,” according to the jury, along with “the perfect counter to the enduring prevalence of toxic masculinity.”
Brett Goldstein, a writer on Apple TV+ comedy Ted Lasso, who also plays footballer Roy Ken, has shared a new trailer for the upcoming second season of the show on Twitter.
The trailer for the second season comes one month ahead of its July 23 launch. Set to the strains of David Bowie and Queen’s “Under Pressure,” the trailer suggests the laughs — and surprisingly uplifting drama — will continue for another crop of episodes. Check it out below.
Apple TV+ went fishing for its own Glow but instead landed the transparent, overcooked and overdetermined Physical, which debuts today.
Star Rose Byrne tries as hard as she can to enliven this mishmash of cliches. However, its grotesque, fetishistic anti-nostalgia goes nowhere fast.