In “The Studio,” Seth Rogen stars as Matt Remick, the newly appointed head of embattled Continental Studios. As movies struggle to stay alive and relevant, Matt and his core team of infighting executives battle their insecurities as they wrangle narcissistic artists and craven corporate overlords in the ever-elusive pursuit of making great films. With their power suits masking their never-ending sense of panic, every party, set visit, casting decision, marketing meeting and award show presents them with an opportunity for glittering success or career-ending catastrophe. As someone who eats, sleeps and breathes movies, it’s the job Matt’s been pursuing his whole life, and it may very well destroy him.
Adrian Hennigan for Haaretz:
Why is nobody watching the Apple TV+ comedy “The Studio”?
I initially assumed it was because, well, nobody watches any Apple TV+ shows – but that’s not quite true. After all, “Ted Lasso,” “Slow Horses” and “Severance” have become hits… But even among those who do tune in to Apple TV+, no one appears to be watching the new Seth Rogen comedy.
I wonder if perhaps… most viewers just don’t care for the machinations of moviemaking and what takes place on a film set. In fact, they actively dislike the subject…
I absolutely loved “The Studio.” Indeed, if you’re any kind of film fan, I defy you not to delight in this comedy about the fictitious Continental Studios.
MacDailyNews Take: Why is nobody watching the Apple TV+ comedy The Studio?
Answers: It’s too predictable as most viewers can easily divine what’s going to happen in many of the episodes and it’s too “Curb Your Enthusisam-y,” as in angsty. Viewers know that, like Larry David in “Curb,” Rogen’s Matt Remick will screw something up, then the scramble is on to try to fix it, so each episode of “The Studio” is a looming stress-fest.
Perhaps more people watch TV to take a break from stress, than to add more?
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The Studio is one of the very best things on Apple TV.
To say you know what’s going to happen doesn’t matter and isn’t necessarily true.
For example, In Slow Horses, every season will be this (spoiler alert):
agents in Slow Horses who are treated like fuck-ups will eventually solve the crime that stumps everyone else. The old guy will fart and belch and appear incompetent but ultimately emerge as Yoda/House, figuring out the answers better than everyone else.
To say it’s one of the “best things on Apple TV” is telling.
Seth Rogan, same schtick. Yawn. Next please.
It played out years ago.
I’m not a big fan of Seth what’s his name. And then their “one cut” process and strong arming content into the finished product was underhanded.
I find my self laughing out loud so often watching it. It is such a wonderful take on the LA entertainment industry. The point of the show is satire which has zero to do with predictability. It’s maybe over the heads of a lot of people who don’t know anything about Hollywood studios or the behind the scenes movie industry. That happens sometimes. A show can be so good but it’s too sophisticated for the average viewer who just wants to be“entertained”.
I’m not sure no one is watching it, btw. It still show up in list of top shows on ATV. #6 with newer shows like Stick higher. Dunno but this post seems distorted, at best.
Rogan really, really knows how to appeal to eighth graders.
Most Apple+ peeps aren’t into watching eighth graders do their thing.
Or maybe not as many Apple+ viewers are potheads as they thought…
When it comes to the rejects of society that found there way to their Mecca aka Hollywood.
Why I’m not watching @The Studio” can be summed up in two words, Seth Rogen.
Only watches two eps so far. It seems rather juvenile. It’s that’s Hollywood, no wonder they’re all f*cked.
I gave it a shot, but here are the bullet points:
It’s an inside the industry show. And while it can be funny, it’s probably much more so for those inside this industry. A parody written for those in Hollywood. Not hugely grabbing for many, including me, I’m guessing.
The language is deplorable like so many shows now-a-days. If this is what Hollywood is like behind the scenes, then yah, I could care less. Degenerates. I live in a professional grown up world of engineering and work and professionalism. This is anything but.
I gave Seth Rogan a shot. I’ve never cared for him much, and he still seems a vindictive, smarmy, person. Not all that enjoyable to watch.
A show about degenerate Hollywood folks, stumbling about in the world of power, sex, money and make it funny. Meh, gave it two episodes and just seemed I was wasting my time.
Do better Apple. Oh, and they have, and still are, which is good sign.
Great take Bobby 👍
We watched maybe half the series and just couldn’t bring ourselves to watch more. It’s too much Seth Rogan being Seth Rogan. He’s whiney, entitled, totally not self-aware, and pretty much any character he plays is the same.
It had promise, we laughed a lot during the first two episodes, but it quickly got boring.
And yes, it’s playing a bit towards industry insiders, but that’s not always a bad thing, pulling back the curtain for the rest of us. “Silicon Valley” worked best for people in the tech industry, but it had MUCH broader appeal because it was better-written with more varied characters.
You said it best — it’s a celebration for insiders from a fading corner of the entertainment industry. Hyper-repetitive, culturally insulated, and as you put it, ultimately boring.
Meanwhile, Google Gemini is blowing minds. For the first time since the original iPhone, I’m seriously considering switching platforms. I’ve tried to resist Google, but tools like Flow and Veo 3 are just next-level. Apple simply isn’t even in the conversation anymore when it comes to AI — and that’s entirely on leadership.
Tim Cook’s next move might should be to retire from Apple. Then, with all the free time and money from his Apple stock, he can fully indulge his passion for movies and storytelling. He can launch his own streaming platform, fund all the prestige projects he wants, and leave Apple out of it.
Because let’s be honest — Tim Cook isn’t Steve Jobs. He has no clear vision for what’s next in tech. But he does enjoy watching movies in his spare time… and now we’re all stuck with Tim Cook–approved content instead of true innovation.
I worked in the film and television production studio business for almost 30 years. Not sure why anyone outside of the entertainment bubble would care about any of these people or this series. Rogan does wear thin and the “novelty” of every scene being down in one take with no coverage is BS. That said, the last five episodes of the first season were pretty high level funny…like Bryan Cranston’s mushroom trip in episodes 7&8 is one for the ages when it comes to physical comedy. Hope it continues to grow in its second season and we learn a lot more about these characters. Having been there a lot of stuff in this serious is pretty accurate. Lots of crazy eccentric people in show biz.
I like several AppleTV series, but the studio is just boring for me.
Let’s be honest: Apple TV+ may be the biggest strategic misstep of Tim Cook’s tenure. Despite Apple’s vast resources, the service ranks near the bottom in user adoption, engagement, and market share — trailing behind virtually every major streaming competitor.
Worse, it’s bleeding money. The content catalog, while high in production value, often leans heavily into niche, ideologically driven storytelling with limited mainstream appeal. Many shows start strong but quickly fade into obscurity.
But the real failure isn’t just in the content — it’s in strategy and execution. By trying to make Apple TV both a content platform (like Netflix) and a distribution hub for other services (like Roku or Amazon), Apple created a confusing, poorly integrated Frankenstein app that frustrates users. In doing so, they alienated potential allies: major streaming companies now see Apple not as a neutral partner, but as a direct competitor — one that offers no compelling reason to support Apple’s broader ecosystem. That’s exactly why you don’t see dedicated streaming apps for Apple Vision Pro.
Tim Cook “pooped where he sleeps.” Instead of building on Apple’s hardware strength and ecosystem dominance, he diverted resources into Hollywood — propping up a legacy industry in decline, chasing cultural relevance instead of technological leadership.
And while all this was unfolding? AI exploded. The greatest tech shift in decades passed Apple by. While competitors like Microsoft, Google, and OpenAI raced ahead, Apple was stuck funding prestige dramas no one watches.
This wasn’t just a bad bet — it was a historic missed opportunity. Apple could have led the AI revolution. Instead, it got sidetracked by Tim Cook’s impulse to “tell stories.” If he was determined to enter the streaming wars, he should’ve launched a separate company — not dragged Apple into a brutal, low-margin content business.
In the end, Tim Cook may leave a legacy — just not the one he envisioned. Under his leadership, Apple drifted from being a cutting-edge tech innovator to a forgettable player in the streaming wars.
Take WWDC, for example: instead of doubling down on AI or platform leadership, Apple spent valuable stage time promoting F1: The Movie. Sure, it’ll get polite applause from Hollywood insiders and lukewarm ratings from general audiences. But like much of Apple’s original content, it will quickly fade — another overly curated, sanitized story designed more to avoid offense than to spark imagination.
That’s the core problem: Apple, as it currently operates, is too politically and socially cautious to produce truly compelling content. And while chasing cultural relevance and prestige cinema, it has sacrificed the very relationships and focus that once made it a tech powerhouse.
In trying to be everything, Apple has ended up being neither: not a leader in innovation, nor a force in entertainment. Just another bloated player in an unprofitable, overcrowded industry — slowly losing what made it great.
Now more relevant than ever “what about streaming service” “what about it”
I found it flat out boring. Not worth the film wasted to catch it. And there are SO many other things to watch. It’s for the 75 and up age group, and there aren’t that many of them out there.