'Foundation' Showrunner Hopes for Unparalleled 80 Episodes on Apple TV+

"Foundation" writer and showrunner David Goyer is ambitiously hoping to tell Isaac Asimov's science-fiction story over the course of eighty hours, which is as yet unheard of on Apple TV+.

foundation trailer

Foundation tells the story of "a band of exiles on their monumental journey to save humanity and rebuild civilization amid the fall of the Galactic Empire," and is based on Isaac Asimov's science-fiction novels of the same name.

In a new interview for Lovin Malta, Goyer discussed why much of the show is being shot in Malta and revealed that he is hoping that the show will run for 80 hours, comparing it to the eight-season run of "Game of Thrones."

The audience is changing. The way that we're consuming stories is changing. Game of Thrones was really the first of these big, giant novelistic shows, and now with Foundation we can tell the story hopefully over the course of 80 episodes, 80 hours, as opposed to trying to condense it all into two or three hours for a single film.

He added that he hopes future seasons will continue to be mostly shot in Malta. Malta was selected for much of Foundation's shooting schedule for its "copious water tanks," being appropriate for Foundation's water planet setting, and due to being suitably versatile for shooting a range of environments during a time in which global travel has been limited. Malta's Film Commissioner, Johann Grech, highlighted that Foundation is the first ‌Apple TV‌+ show to be produced in Malta.

This is the first time that a senior crew member has spoken publicly about an ‌Apple TV‌+ show running for such a long period of time, and seems surprisingly confident given that the first season of Foundation has yet to even finish shooting.

"Dickinson" and "Servant" are the only ‌Apple TV‌+ shows to have premiered a second season so far, with the second season of "For All Mankind" set to arrive on Friday, February 19. ‌Apple TV‌+ show "Ted Lasso" is highly likely to end at three seasons despite its success with critics and audiences. The show was renewed for a second and a third season not long after the first season was released. Servant has also been renewed for a third season.

Given that only two ‌Apple TV‌+ shows have premiered second seasons and been renewed for third seasons, it is far too early to speculate on whether Foundation will reach as many as eight seasons. Nevertheless, discussion of a considerably longer, overarching narrative than has otherwise been seen on ‌Apple TV‌+ so far, and comparison to the highly successful Game of Thrones may indicate that Apple has very ambitious plans for Foundation.

The first, ten-episode season of Foundation is expected to debut on ‌Apple TV‌+ in the fall of 2021.

Popular Stories

Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Feature

Apple Working on All-New Operating System

Thursday September 25, 2025 1:11 pm PDT by
Apple is developing an all-new operating system codenamed "Charismatic," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple smart home hub concept based on rumors This is likely Apple's long-rumored "homeOS" operating system. In a report last month, Gurman said both Apple's rumored smart home hub in 2026 and tabletop robot in 2027 will run the new operating system. He said the software platform ...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Event in October? Here's What to Expect

Monday September 29, 2025 9:31 am PDT by
Apple's annual iPhone event is in the rearview mirror, but rumors suggest the company plans to release a handful of additional products before the year ends. Will there be another Apple event this October? We discuss the possibility below. Apple in October Apple's most recent October events were in 2021 and 2023. In 2022 and 2024, Apple did not host an October event. Instead, it...
iOS 26

Apple Continues to Prepare iOS 26.0.1 With Multiple Bug Fixes Expected

Sunday September 28, 2025 1:30 pm PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. The account initially said iOS 26.0.1 would have a build number of 23A350, but they now expect the update to have a build number of 23A355. This suggests that the software update will include more bug fixes or changes than initially...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pro Nears Mass Production, But Four Bigger Upgrades Expected Next Year

Sunday September 28, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next MacBook Pro models will enter mass production soon, according to the latest information shared by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said he continues to believe the new MacBook Pro models will be released at some point between late 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, meaning they should be available to order by March at the latest. Apple often...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iPhone 16 Pro Max 80% Charge Limit: One Year Later, Was It Worth It?

Wednesday September 24, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
With the iPhone 15 series, I did an experiment and kept my iPhone's Charge Limit set at 80 percent for an entire year. It provided an interesting look at the impact of charge limits on battery longevity, so I decided to repeat it for the iPhone 16 line. Since September 2024, my iPhone 16 Pro Max has been limited to an 80 percent charge, with no cheating. As of today, my battery's maximum...
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.0.1 With Fixes for Wi-Fi, Cellular, and Camera Issues on iPhone 17 Models

Monday September 29, 2025 10:12 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 26.0.1 and iPadOS 26.0.1, the first updates to the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 operating systems that came out earlier this week. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release notes for the update, iOS 26.0.1 addresses a bug that could cause aberrations in...
iphone 17 ceramic shield

Regular iPhone 17's USB-C Charging Speeds Tested With Apple Chargers

Friday September 26, 2025 9:01 am PDT by
The website ChargerLAB has tested the standard iPhone 17 model's USB-C charging speeds with a variety of Apple's chargers, from 18W to 140W. The device reached a peak charging speed of around 27W to 28W with these Apple chargers:29W USB-C Power Adapter 30W USB-C Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Compact Power Adapter 40W Dynamic Power Adapter with 60W Max...
AirPods Pro 3 Newsroom

Apple's 'Back to School' Offer Ends Soon, Now Applies to AirPods Pro 3

Wednesday September 24, 2025 7:20 am PDT by
Apple's annual "Back to School" promotion for students ends soon, so act fast if you want to score free AirPods with the purchase of an eligible new Mac or iPad. Until Tuesday, September 30, college students and qualifying educational staff in the U.S. can receive free AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. This is a $179 value. ...
LG UltraFine 6K Display TB5

LG UltraFine 6K (32U990A) TB5 Display: Pre-Orders Open September 30

Monday September 29, 2025 6:21 am PDT by
Pre-orders for LG's new UltraFine evo 6K display (model 32U990A) with Thunderbolt 5 support will begin on September 30, according to a major U.S. retailer listing. LG first revealed the 32-inch display at CES 2025 in January, teasing its status as the first monitor to support Thunderbolt 5. At the time, LG only provided high-level specs, but left pricing, availability, and full technical...

Top Rated Comments

Serban55 Avatar
61 months ago
I love the books...up there with Dune....hope they will do the story for all Foundation, Prelude to Foundation , forward the foundation and at least foundation and empire

This is the beginning from where all star wars, dune etc started Foundation is the FATHER
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
svanstrom Avatar
61 months ago

I love the books...up there with Dune....hope they will do the story for all Foundation, Prelude to Foundation , forward the foundation and at least foundation and empire

This is the beginning from where all star wars, dune etc started Foundation is the FATHER
For a true fan it will never be good enough; but it looks like a very serious attempt, so it might just be a good watch anyways. I'm very excited about it.

Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
McKodiak Avatar
61 months ago
If the show is as great as it looks and should be, this could be Apple's Game of Thrones. 10 episodes a year for 8 years, released weekly. Should raise subscription totals.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
VforVelveta Avatar
61 months ago

Malta was selected for much of Foundation's shooting schedule for its "copious water tanks," being appropriate for Foundation's water planet setting...
I'm not one to get upset for shows not following books to a T, but how much are they changing that requires a water planet? That seems like an unnecessary constraint considering none of the story has anything to do with water planets.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
VforVelveta Avatar
61 months ago

I love the books...up there with Dune....hope they will do the story for all Foundation, Prelude to Foundation , forward the foundation and at least foundation and empire

This is the beginning from where all star wars, dune etc started Foundation is the FATHER
Honestly, I'd rather they just stick with the original 3. Maybe do some occasional flashback type stuff to get some of the info from the prequels about how Seldon got started, but that's it. The prequels/sequels got too "Asimov Universe" for my taste and I wouldn't want to dilute the shows from really telling the story of the original trilogy.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmaier Avatar
61 months ago

I'd love to see a Robots TV series...
That will smith cinematic abomination didn’t do it for you? :-)
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)