Fans of Saturday Night Live alum Kristen Wiig and the rest of the star-studded cast of Apple TV comedy Palm Royale have reason to rejoice — season 2 streams Wednesday. And according to reviews, it brings a new murder mystery and a darker tone to the comedy.
You not only get Wiig, you get legend Carol Burnett, pop icon Ricky Martin and veteran actors Bruce and Laura Dern — among others! Newsweek calls the new season “darker, funnier and deeper.” People.com notes Burnett’s character crafts a typically “wicked plan” in the first episode. Comic Book Resources even claims the show is Apple TV’s best comedy.
Stars come out to play circa 1969 in comedy Palm Royale season 2
March 20, 2024: Emmy and Oscar nominee Wiig created plenty of funny characters on Saturday Night Live and in movies like Bridesmaids. Now she appears as Maxine Simmons in new Apple TV+ comedy series Palm Royale, set in upscale Palm Beach, Florida, in 1969.
How’s this for a comedy premise: A character played by Saturday Night Live alum Wiig strives to break into Palm Beach’s jet set in 1969. Now add a star-studded ensemble cast including Laura and Bruce Dern, Carol Burnett and Ricky Martin, and new Apple TV+ comedy Palm Royale shows real potential.
Notable cast of characters
Photo: Apple
As Apple TV+ noted, the series is loaded with talent, including some Hollywood legends:
Oscar and Emmy winners Laura Dern and Allison Janney join Ricky Martin, Josh Lucas, Leslie Bibb, Amber Chardae Robinson, Mindy Cohn, Julia Duffy and Kaia Gerber. With extra special guest star turns by the legendary Bruce Dern and the iconic, multiple-award winning Carol Burnett.
Based on a popular book
Photo: Apple
And here’s the story, based on the novel Mr. and Mrs. American Pie by Juliet McDaniel:
Palm Royale is a true underdog story that follows Maxine Simmons (Wiig) as she endeavors to break into Palm Beach high society. As Maxine attempts to cross that impermeable line between the haves and the have-nots, Palm Royale asks the same question that still baffles us today: “How much of yourself are you willing to sacrifice to get what someone else has?” Set during the powder keg year of 1969, Palm Royale is a testament to every outsider fighting for their chance to truly belong.
Apple Studios produces the show, with Abe Sylvia serving as writer, executive producer and showrunner. Laura Dern, Jayme Lemons Wiig, Katie O’Connell Marsh, Tate Taylor, John Norris, Sharr White and Sheri Holman serve as executive producers. Taylor, Sylvia, Claire Scanlon and Stephanie Laing direct the show.
Watch it on Apple TV+
Photo: Apple
Palm Royale debuted on Apple TV+ with its first three episodes on March 20, 2024. These will be followed by a new episode each Wednesday through May 8.
Apple TV+ is available by subscription for $12.99 with a seven-day free trial. You can also get it via any tier of the Apple One subscription bundle. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac or iPod touch can enjoy three months of Apple TV+ for free.
In November 2019, “Apple TV+ became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 580 wins and 2,787 award nominations and counting,” the service said.
Those include multi-Emmy Award-winning comedy Ted Lasso and historic Oscar Best Picture winner CODA.
This article was first published December 12, 2023. It was updated March 20, 2024, with the release of Palm Royale and when season 2 started airing on November 12, 2025.
Source: Apple
David Snow, an expert on Apple hardware and software, writes on a variety of technological and cultural topics for Cult of Mac. They include Apple news, technology buying guides, and features about computer setups and Apple TV shows and movies.
With 30 years of experience covering technology and other subjects, he has written and edited for numerous print and online publications, including CMP Media, TechTV.com, CNET, Wired News, Red Herring magazine, Law.com, The National Law Journal and Law Technology News magazine. Among other roles, he served as executive editor of the Law.com network of websites and editorial director, technology, for ALM Media.
Snow graduated with a B.A. from Syracuse University with majors in magazine journalism and psychology. While there, he worked as a reporter for The Daily Orange newspaper and associate editor of Equal Time magazine.
Founder of the blog At the Waterline, he can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) via @atthewaterline and on Mastodon via @dsnow.
