Apple Working on 'Are You Sleeping' TV Show Starring Octavia Spencer

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Apple has yet another new original television show in the works, which will star Octavia Spencer, known for her work in movies like "Hidden Figures," "The Help," "Gifted," and "The Shape of Water."

According to Variety, the upcoming series is a drama called "Are You Sleeping," which is based on a novel by Kathleen Barber.

octaviabutler

Image of Octavia Spencer via Variety

Described as a psychological thriller, the book focuses on a podcast that reopens a murder case, similar to the popular "Serial" podcast. The novel explores how the reopening of the murder case impacts the victim's daughter and disrupts her life. Sarah Koenig, who created and produced the "Serial" podcast, will consult on the series.

"Are You Sleeping" was written by Nichelle Tramble Spellman, and the series will be produced by Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine and Chernin Entertainment/Endeavor Content.

Apple is also working with Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine on an as of yet untitled "morning show drama" that will take a look into the "cutthroat world" of morning TV.

Along with these two TV shows, Apple has picked up two additional shows, including a revival of 1985 Steven Spielberg sci-fi series "Amazing Stories" and an untitled space drama developed by Ronald D. Moore, known for "Battlestar Galactica."

Apple has been heavily pursuing original content since June of 2017, which is when it hired former Sony executives Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht to form a new video unit. Van Amburg and Erlicht, who produced shows like "Breaking Bad," "The Crown," and "Better Call Saul," are running Apple's video programming efforts on a worldwide scale under iTunes chief Eddy Cue. Since June, Apple has made multiple high-profile TV-related hires and has opened an office at The Culver Studios in Los Angeles.

It's not yet clear when the first of Apple's original TV shows will premiere, but it's possible at least one of these will be ready in time for a 2018 debut.

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Related Forum: Apple TV and Home Theater

Top Rated Comments

Asarien Avatar
Asarien
82 months ago
Apple is such a lame company these days.
Score: 23 Votes (Like | Disagree)
miniyou64 Avatar
miniyou64
82 months ago
I remember when Steve Jobs talked about having such a small number of products in their lineup so they could be laser focused on quality. Cook’s Apple just wants to dilute itself to be like every other company. Ugh.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sevvere Avatar
sevvere
82 months ago
Apple is no longer a technology company, it is a fashion company wanting to be a movie studio.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sully54 Avatar
sully54
82 months ago
Apple’s services business, as profitable as it may be, is a huge mess. People are paying for separate subscription for iCloud and Apple Music. Add a TV component and that’s now 3 different subscriptions.

They should take a page from amazon and put all of their subscription services under one sunscription and have different tiers depending on what services are important to each customer.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
5105973 Avatar
5105973
82 months ago
I loved Octavia Spencer in Hidden Figures. I don’t watch tv shows anymore, but this sounds interesting and miles above something like Planet of the Apps.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
snowboarder Avatar
snowboarder
82 months ago
A fresh good show requires a couple of guys with a fresh idea.
Apple is an opposite of this, a corporation hiring an army of writers to over-digest any idea and make it boring
and completely unwatchable.
That's what they did to their advertising effort, organizing an in-house "agency" of 1000
unable to create any fresh advertising. Good luck :(
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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