★★★★★
As far back as I could remember, Martin Scorsese has been synonymous with the movies. Now Apple TV+ has financed his latest work, an adaptation of David Grann’s true crime novel The Killers of the Flower Moon about the death of a native American community and the birth of the FBI to the tune of $200 million.
Killers of the Flower Moon will go down as one of the director’s boldest and most furious statements in a career full of them.
It’s 2003, and the United States leads the way on Mars in its Happy Valley Base, having turned its international space-race competitors into allies. But when an asteroid presents an almost-unimaginably rich mining opportunity, it’s back to pitched competition, as seen in the For All Mankind season four trailer Apple TV+ dropped Thursday.
The alternative-history sci-fi series started with an interesting premise — what if the United States lost the moon race in 1969 to the Soviets? — and has run with it into a fourth season, which debuts November 10 on Apple TV+.
Apple TV+ provided a first look Thursday at upcoming World War II drama series Masters of the Air, from the team behind the acclaimed wartime series Band of Brothers and The Pacific. That would be Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman.
So the gritty and realistic WWII action continues, and that’s OK by me. The new nine-episode series follows the harrowing missions of an 8th U.S. Army Air Force bomber group as it helped defeat Nazi Germany.
Apple TV+ unveiled a first look Tuesday at Criminal Record, an eight-episode crime thriller in which brilliant detectives clash over a high-profile murder in London.
Debuting January 12, the series stars Academy Award and BAFTA award winner Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who, The Thick of It) and Laurence Olivier Award and Critics Choice Award nominee Cush Jumbo (The Good Wife, The Good Fight, The Beast Must Die).
★☆☆☆☆
Apple TV+’s flagship drama The Morning Show returns today for another season of broadcast news back-stabbing after a truly disastrous second season. The show adds a new character — a tech exec played by Mad Men star Jon Hamm — to the toxic mix this time around.
But can the showrunners right The Morning Show’s course? And, perhaps more importantly, does it matter? The show, about a news network and its star executives and anchors, finds itself dealing with contemporary politics a day late and a dollar short.
Fans who miss the psychological dark dramedy Severance on Apple TV+ can now drone out to a full day of the show’s ghostly piano-based theme song with the “8 Hour Work Day Innie Mix,” which Apple released Tuesday on YouTube.
Get it, innies? You can play the eerie mix for your whole 8-hour workday. It’s like having the show’s credits roll all day in your head as you start to question your choices in life.
Martin Scorsese’s historical drama Killers of the Flower Moon will debut in theaters in late October. The real-life tale of a serial killer will appear on the Apple TV+ streaming service sometime after that.
The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Lily Gladstone and Robert De Niro, and Apple is clearly hoping it will earn an Oscar or two.
A new trailer for The Morning Show‘s upcoming third season depicts a major crisis hitting the show-within-a-show — but the solution might be worse than the problem.
That solution? A gigantic cash infusion from tech executive Paul Marks, a new character played by Mad Men star Jon Hamm. He dangles the money after the UBA TV network suffers a massive hack attack. The trailer, which Apple TV+ released Thursday, gives us a better look at Hamm as he joins Morning Show stars Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon and Billy Crudup.
Apple TV+ dropped a trailer Wednesday for it upcoming Irish dramedy Flora and Son, saying “never underestimate a Dublin woman with a guitar.”
Bad Sisters mainstay Eve Hewson stars as that Dublin woman, a beleaguered mom trying to give her rebellious teen son a focus in life through a beat-up old acoustic guitar.
The film debuts in theaters September 22 and streams on Apple TV+ September 29.
Apple TV+ is adapting Edith Wharton’s unfinished novel The Buccaneers into a drama series set to debut in fall 2023. It follows a group of American heiresses setting out to marry British aristocrats.
On Wednesday, the streaming service released the first images from the upcoming eight-part series.
★★★★★
Swagger closes out its brilliant second season in style this week, as the young basketball players prep for their futures and their most important game yet.
Jace needs to play his best to regain his sterling reputation in time to win over college recruiters — and that’s not all he’s worried about. Plus, Ike and Naim must patch things up in order to be there for the team ahead of a very important game. Entitled “Journey and Destination,” the Swagger season two finale is a very moving sendoff that only this team could provide.
The new Apple TV+ trailer for the upcoming drama series The Changeling starts off lightly enough — LaKeith Stanfield’s character, Apollo, can’t get a date with Clark Backo’s Emma in New York City because she’s moving to Brazil.
But once she’s there, dark magic soon reveals this Big Apple-based “drama” to be an absolute supernatural horror show. It premieres Friday, September 8.
★★★★★
Swagger finds Ike and Naim at odds this week, even as CJ and Camden share a road trip and some secrets. And while Emory and Ike pursue a common goal, the team faces more scrutiny than ever.
With so little left of the sports drama’s extremely strong second season, how will the building pressure come between the players and their goals? Entitled “Homecoming,” this week’s stirring and strong episode hits hard as we prepare to wrap up season two of this outstanding Apple TV+ show.
★★★★★
Swagger takes a look at personal responsibility this week, as Jace ponders his future after taking a tough stance.
He and Crystal spend an eventful, meaningful day together, while higher-ups decide what to do with the divisive athlete. Ike, Tonya and Emery must work through the Jace situation, while he needs to deal with his own confidence issues. Entitled “Jace + Crystal,” it’s a very fine episode of an Apple TV+ sports drama that produces little else.
Apple TV+ dropped a trailer Wednesday for season 2 of its sci-fi thriller series Invasion, and it looks like full-scale global war will erupt after season 1’s slow burn led up to frightening first contact.
Season 2 debuts August 23, with new episodes coming out on Wednesdays.
★★★★★
Swagger takes a hard look at incarceration this week in a season-best episode of the Apple TV+ basketball drama.
With the eyes of their community on them, Jace and Team Swagger head to a juvenile detention center to learn and to play as they sweat their futures. Entitled “Are We Free?,” it’s a terrific episode filled with great performance notes and stunning direction.
La Maison is a one-hour drama set within a contemporary French fashion house. It focuses on the lives of powerful families involved in the world of fashion, aspirational French elegance and luxury.
The upcoming Apple TV+ series stars a who’s who of French actors, including Lambert Wilson and Amira Casar.
★★★★☆
Superlative Apple TV basketball drama Swagger puts Jace in the hot seat this week, as allegations prove too tough to beat. Jace does something crazy in the name of helping his community but it makes things even more fraught.
Meanwhile, Ike and Emory are at loggerheads about how to handle their star player. And Crystal must decide how she feels about her life once more becoming the subject of public debate. Entitled “Through the Fire,” it’s a typically excellent installment of this fiery show.
Apple TV+ dropped a “first look” at a new drama/horror series and “parenthood fable” The Changeling, coming to the streaming service September 8. See the photographs below.
The eight-episode show stars LaKeith Stanfield (Atlanta, Sorry to Bother You) and comes from the critically acclaimed and bestselling book of the same name by Victor LaValle.
☆☆☆☆☆
Apple TV+ limited series The Crowded Room plays its final hand this week, and the show finally broke me the way it reportedly “broke” its lead actor, Tom Holland. Danny finally gets to know all of his personalities at Rya’s behest, though he may have blown his chances at a fair trial already.
The show’s prior attempts at sensitively depicting Danny’s mental illness take a turn for the deeply unserious this week. And for this recapper, there is just no sane way to move forward.
★★★★☆
This week on Swagger, Jace and Ike’s latest victory is a short-lived affair. When Crystal comes to Jace with worrying possibilities for his future, he shuts down — leaving Phil, Drew and Musa to panic.
Meanwhile, Jenna and Tonya start making plans. And Ike and Emery decide to hash out their differences the old-fashioned way. The episode, entitled “Rise + Fall,” is good and tense. And it points the way toward much darker events to come on the Apple TV+ basketball drama.
Apple TV+ dropped the official trailer Wednesday for its upcoming historical drama Killers of the Flower Moon. The sprawling period piece is filled with the rage and bloodshed of one of America’s most-enduring murder mysteries.
Based on a nonfiction account of a deadly conspiracy by white men to capture oil wealth held by the Osage Indian nation members in early-1900s Oklahoma, the Marin Scorsese film counts Leonardo Di Caprio and Robert De Niro among its sprawling cast.
★★★★☆
Apple TV+ sports drama Swagger finds Jace preparing for a big birthday this week. He’s dealing with obstacles he sees — and bracing to be blindsided by some he can’t.
An estranged dad, an old adversary, a new teammate and coach Ike (who’s looking to Jace to secure his future) all conspire to keep the young basketball star from his A game. But for Jace, there’s always a way through. And this week’s excellent episode, entitled “18,” is a potent reminder of that.
★★★☆☆
Criminologist Rya Goodwin takes center stage in this week’s episode of Apple TV+ drama The Crowded Room. She discovers that the way around the many dead-ends in her life is to crack the case of Danny Sullivan, the man who opened fire in a crowded Manhattan street, and the many personalities living in his head who drove him to murder and mayhem.
Entitled “Rya,” it’s an above-average outing of this oft-frustrating show.
In this installment of 3 Reasons to Watch, we’re touting stellar Apple TV+ basketball drama Swagger, produced by Kevin Durant and creatively shepherded by Reggie Rock Bythewood.
The show, about a high school phenom assailed by personal and professional pressures, just returned for its second season. And like its heroes, Swagger shows no signs of slacking now that the game is getting tougher. Here’s why you should give it a shot.