During the announcement of Apple TV+, Apple announced a number of prominent writers, directors, and stars who would be featured in the service. The signing of high-profile talent was intended to attract viewers to the service. , five of the upcoming series had completed production, with six more well into filming. On September 10, 2019, Apple announced that Apple TV+ would have eight original series (seven scripted and one unscripted) and one original documentary available at launch, with plans to launch new original content every month thereafter. Most series were expected to launch with three episodes, with a new episode released weekly thereafter, although Apple said that not all series would follow that model and that some series might instead launch all at once. Early critical reaction to the bulk of the service's programming was mixed to poor, but commentators predicted that Apple would have time to grow into its new role as a content provider and to produce well-regarded content, especially as the free year of the service provided with many Apple product purchases enticed users to continue watching, and for some to eventually pay for a subscription, as new series are released. Apple's decision in mid-2020 to license large swaths of existing older content for the Apple TV+ service was viewed, in part, as buying time for its original content production during the pandemic by keeping users engaged and in a habit of visiting the service regularly, so that a viewer base would be in place by the time new Apple original content was released. In July 2020, the service won a heated bidding war for
Emancipation, a slavery-based action-thriller starring
Will Smith and directed by
Antoine Fuqua. Apple paid a record $105 million for the rights.
Celebrity partnerships, other original content and programming decisions 2017 In October 2017, following reports of
sexual abuse allegations against producer
Harvey Weinstein, Apple announced that it was severing ties with
The Weinstein Company (TWC) and cancelling a planned
biopic series about
Elvis Presley.
2018 In April 2018, Apple signed
Kerry Ehrin to a multi-year deal to produce original content. Ehrin and Apple renewed the deal in May 2020. In June 2018, Apple signed the
Writers Guild of America's minimum basic agreement and
Oprah Winfrey to a multi-year content partnership. The same month, Apple announced that it had given a multi-series order to
Sesame Workshop to produce various
live-action and animated series as well as a single puppet-based series. In September 2018, it was reported that Apple had decided to shelve
Vital Signs, a six-episode biopic television series centering on the life of hip-hop producer and performer
Dr. Dre and starring
Ian McShane,
Sam Rockwell, and
Michael K. Williams, due to concerns about the show's content being too graphic, with moments cited including characters using
cocaine, instances of
gun violence, and an explicit
orgy scene. Reports further indicated that Apple CEO Tim Cook was taking a hands-on approach to the company's Worldwide Video Unit, with programming decisions reportedly being aligned to Cook's personal taste, with a preference for family-friendly shows. Various programs in different stages of production apparently had their content altered, including the toning down of
The Morning Show and the removal of crucifixes from a scene in the
M. Night Shyamalan drama series. Additionally, Apple reportedly passed on a television series from comedian
Whitney Cummings about the #MeToo movement because it was "too sensitive a topic". Cummings's series was ultimately put into development by
Amazon Prime Video in October 2018. In November 2018, Apple entered into a multi-year agreement with entertainment company
A24 to produce a slate of original films in partnership with its Worldwide Video Unit. The same month, Apple signed a deal with DHX Media (now
WildBrain) and its subsidiary Peanuts Worldwide to develop and produce original programs, including new series, specials, and shorts based on the
Peanuts characters. One of the first productions created through the deal was an original short-form,
STEM-related series featuring astronaut
Snoopy. Also that month, Apple signed
Justin Lin and his production company, Perfect Storm Entertainment, to a multi-year overall deal to produce original television content.
2019 In January 2019, Apple signed
Jason Katims and his production company, True Jack Productions, to a multi-year overall production and development deal to produce original television content. The same month, Apple signed a first-look deal with
Imagine Documentaries to develop nonfiction features and series. In February 2019,
Harpo Productions hired Terry Wood as an executive vice president to oversee Harpo's production of original programming for Apple as part of the multi-year agreement between Winfrey and Apple. In March 2019, it was reported that five television series commissioned by Apple had finished filming and six series would finish in the next few months. On April 10, 2019,
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, announced on Instagram that he was working alongside Winfrey on the mental health documentary series as a co-creator and executive producer. In October 2019, Apple signed
Monica Beletsky to a multi-year deal.
2020 In January 2020, Apple signed a five-year production deal with
Richard Plepler, the former CEO and chairman of
HBO. Under the production deal, Plepler's production company, Eden Productions, will create television series, documentaries and feature films exclusively for Apple TV+. Also in January 2020, Apple signed a multi-year deal with
Lee Eisenberg, ahead of the premiere of his series
Little America, and another multi-year deal with
Julia Louis-Dreyfus. Louis-Dreyfus is set to develop new projects as both executive producer and star. In May 2020, Apple signed a two-year production deal with Annie Weisman, the creator of
Almost Family. As part of her deal with Apple, Weisman will create television projects exclusively for Apple TV+. In August 2020, Apple signed a multi-year first-look deal with
Leonardo DiCaprio's film and television production company,
Appian Way Productions. Also in August 2020, Apple signed a multi-year first-look deal with
Martin Scorsese's film and television production company,
Sikelia Productions. In September 2020, Apple officially acquired the film
Cherry, directed by
Anthony and Joe Russo and starring
Tom Holland, for around $40 million. It was released in theaters on February 26, 2021, before streaming exclusively on Apple TV+ on March 12. In October 2020, Apple announced it had struck a deal with comedian and former anchor of
Comedy Central's The Daily Show,
Jon Stewart, to host a regular, hour-long series on topics of national interest,
The Problem with Jon Stewart, premiered in the fall of 2021. In November 2020,
Steven Lightfoot signed a multi-year overall production deal with Apple, starting off as
showrunner of the upcoming drama
Shantaram.
2021 In January 2021, Apple TV+ announced a new show,
WeCrashed, that follows the launch, rise, and fall of
WeWork.
Jared Leto and
Anne Hathaway played Adam and Rebekah Neumann. In addition, Apple bought the Sundance Film Festival hit
CODA, about a girl who is the only person in her family who can hear, paying a festival-record $25 million for the film's worldwide rights. In February 2021, it was reported that Apple and
Skydance Animation entered into a multi-year partnership to develop animated kids and family films and television programs. A few months earlier, Apple acquired the global distribution rights to Skydance's films
Luck, released in August 2022, and
Spellbound, however the partnership between Skydance Animation and Apple was later canceled in October 2023, with Netflix acquiring the distribution rights to
Spellbound as part of a newly formed multi-year partnership between Netflix and the studio. In March 2021, Apple announced a multi-year programming partnership with
Nobel Peace Prize winner
Malala Yousafzai. Apple also signed a multi-year, first-look deal with
Imagine Entertainment's film division, in addition to extending its first-look deal with Imagine Documentaries. Additionally,
Natalie Portman and production partner Sophie Mas signed a multi-year first-look deal with Apple for television projects developed and produced under their new production company MountainA. March also brought an overall multi-year first-look deal with
Tracy Oliver, reportedly worth well into the "eight-figure range". In June 2021,
Sian Heder, the director of the Apple-acquired
Sundance hit
CODA, signed a multi-year overall deal to exclusively write and develop series for Apple, in addition to signing a first-look deal for any films written by Heder. In July 2021,
Misha Green, the creator and showrunner of
Lovecraft Country, signed a multi-year overall deal with Apple to exclusively create and develop new television series for Apple TV+. In July, Apple also signed a first-look deal with
Alexander Rodnyansky's production company, AR Content, for future Russian-language and multilingual television series. Additionally, Apple signed a multi-year, first-look deal with
Adam McKay's production company, Hyperobject Industries, for upcoming scripted feature films. In October 2021,
Sam Catlin signed an overall deal with Apple to develop scripted TV series for Apple TV+ under his Short Drive Entertainment. In November 2021,
John Skipper and
Dan Le Batard, under their content company
Meadowlark Media, signed a multi-year first-look deal with Apple to produce documentary films and unscripted series for Apple TV+. Meadowlark Media hired Deirdre Fenton as an executive director of unscripted programming to lead the relationship with Apple.
2022 In January 2022, Apple ordered to series a television continuation of the
MonsterVerse produced by
Legendary Entertainment. The series will see
Godzilla and other various creatures appear. The same month, producer
Kevin J. Walsh signed a multi-year deal to produce film and television for the streamer.
2023 In October 2023, the partnership between Skydance Animation and Apple ended, with Skydance continuing the live-action feature film partnership signed in 2022.
WondLa, an animated series based on the
book series by
Tony DiTerlizzi, would still debut on Apple TV+ while films such as
Spellbound would be moved to Netflix. On October 19, 2023, shortly before filming was set to start on season 3 of
The Problem with Jon Stewart, it was announced that the show was cancelled due to creative differences between Stewart and Apple. Stewart told
The New York Times that Apple pushed back on episodes about
China and
artificial intelligence. Apple TV+ released its first movie in theaters,
Killers of the Flower Moon. Apple said that its primary goal in releasing the film was to attract more subscribers, not to do well at the box office, but it brought in $145 million. Apple TV+ also released another movie,
Napoleon. Apple is seemingly pleased with its box-office returns, which reached $221 million and nearly made back its budget. It was apparent that Apple attempted to compete with movie production companies.
Professional sports In March 2022, Apple announced that it would air
Friday Night Baseball, a weekly doubleheader of
Major League Baseball (MLB) games with live pre- and postgame shows on Apple TV+ in the United States, Canada, Australia, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Korea, and the United Kingdom starting in the
2022 Major League Baseball season. In June 2022,
Major League Soccer (MLS) announced that Apple had acquired the global streaming rights to the league beginning in the
2023 season. All regular season and playoff matches are streamed on
MLS Season Pass, a subscription offering separate from the Apple TV subscription. Apple TV subscribers can watch select games at no additional charge, and receive a discount on the MLS Season Pass. Beginning in 2026, MLS Season Pass will be discontinued and all MLS content will be included in Apple TV. In October 2025, it was announced that Apple had acquired the U.S. rights to
Formula One beginning in the 2026 season under a five-year agreement. All Grands Prix will stream exclusively for Apple TV subscribers, with practice sessions and selected events streaming for free.
Acquisition of back catalog film and TV content In mid-2020, Apple began discussions with film and television studios to license their previously released content as part of an effort to build a back catalog of non-original films and television shows for the streaming service. The shift was designed to help the service better compete against the large content libraries competitors like
Netflix have. The shift was also an acknowledgement of poor growth, especially relative to competing services. In addition to being the exclusive home of the 1983–1987
Jim Henson Company series, Apple would develop a new, full-length, rebooted
Fraggle Rock series after the success of the
Fraggle Rock: Rock On! short-form series on Apple TV+. On October 19, 2020, Apple announced the exclusive transmission rights of the various animated productions of the
Peanuts franchise, withdrawing them from broadcast television after 55 years; as part of that agreement, Apple TV+ must make the major
Peanuts specials available for free in short windows. After an outcry from fans of the specials, Apple sublicensed
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving and
A Charlie Brown Christmas to
PBS for commercial-free airing. In 2021, ''
It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown'' also came to the PBS rotation. The PBS sublicensing arrangement ended before October 2022. In March 2024, Apple made 51 catalog films available under a "Great Movies special collection" banner. == Growth and impact ==