A perfectly-timed send-up that is already driving more water cooler talk than the blockbuster movie machines it satirizes, Apple’s star-studded new comedy The Studio just dropped its first two episodes, and the series is sure to be watched and discussed all the way to September’s Emmy awards.
Created by one of the most prolific producing teams in Hollywood, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, The Studio jumps headfirst into all the hot topics roiling the industry, from the constant “ankling” of executives to the streaming disruption of old guard legacy studios to DEI questions, franchise obsession, and bottom-line bean counting.
Rogen and Goldberg were the right team for the job, having co-written and co-produced everything from Knocked Up, Superbad, and Neighbors to recent breakout hits The Boys and Pam & Tommy. They’ve worked with just about every studio and streamer in the industry. But the duo took the added step of interviewing executives across Hollywood to step into their shoes, as they’re usually sitting across the table – getting simultaneously wooed and critiqued by all the “suits,” often without realizing the vise-grip that’s closing in on the other side.
In spite of all the topical angst captured across its 10 episodes, the show brings to life all of the absurdity, hilarity and cringe comedy of the behind-the-scenes drama in ways that are both broad and specific, enough for insiders and fans to speculate about the people and the events that inspired the story arcs (see our starter list below).
The Set Up
After canning his legendary studio head, the CEO of a century-old movie studio (Bryan Cranston) turns to Matt Remick (Seth Rogen) to step into the top job, then gives him his first task: turning the Kool-Aid Man into a Barbie-style blockbuster. Matt offers the directing job to his idol, Martin Scorsese (playing himself), who embraces the assignment by pitching a three hour+ horror movie about the Jonestown suicide cult that drank poisoned Kool-Aid.
That’s just the first episode.
The A-List Cameos
The Studio could replace Hacks as this year’s Emmy darling just based on its lead characters. But it’s the big-name cameos playing themselves that will keep the buzz going over the next eight Wednesdays, from Zac Efron to Zack Snyder, Ron Howard to Olivia Wilde, Charlize Theron to Anthonie Mackie to Steve Buscemi – to name a few. And look for Apple’s chief rival, Netflix studio head Ted Sarandos, to show up as himself.
The Main Characters
There are six players you’ll need to keep track of, including one named after the key character in the 1992 Robert Altman movie The Player.
Griffin Mill (Bryan Cranston) – The money-obsessed CEO of Continental Studios insists that they do not make films, they make movies. He needs a studio head who will stop wanting actors and writers to like them and start being “obsessed with making this studio as much money as possible!“
Matt Remick (Seth Rogen) – Giffin Mill’s newly promoted studio chief Matt Remick, a 22-year studio veteran whose liability isn’t that he wears his fear all over his face. It’s that he says “Film is my life.” And that’s “artsy-farsty filmmaking bullshit” in the eyes of Griffin.
Patty (Catherine O’Hara) – An industry legend who broke some glass ceilings to become studio chieftain, she’s also been Matt’s mentor, at least until he replaces her.
Maya (Kathryn Hahn) – The straight-shooting, foul-mouthed marketing chief who has no problem delivering all the bad news to her boss. “It’s very imperative to her to stay hip, stay young, and keep her finger on the pulse of pop culture, and her business is knowing exactly which audiences are gonna show up,” Hahn has shared about her character.
Sal (Ike Barinholtz) – Matt’s best buddy and top creative executive is caught in the middle of everything. You might recognize Barinholtz from The Afterparty, Suicide Squad, and Rogen’s Neighbors.
Quinn (Chase Sui Wonders) – Matt’s former assistant who’s been promoted to a producer, Quinn represents all the big dreams and big plans of the younger generation. You might know Wonders from HBO’s Generation.
The Real-Life Inspirations
Griffin Mill (Bryan Cranston’s character) is also the name of the murderous studio exec played by Tim Robbins in Altman’s now-classic Hollywood satire The Player.
Rogen got his inspiration for the CEO from Warner Bros. Discovery’s chief executive, a brave admission that he shares with Entertainment Weekly. “It’s funny, because I’ve met David Zaslav, for example … He’s much more like Bryan in this. He’s kinda like a mover and a shaker, and he’s like a fun guy, and he knows his reputation, so he wants to present himself as kind of cool and loose. But the things he’s saying are anything but!” In a brazen quote that could only be uttered by someone who is secure in his place in an increasingly precarious Hollywood pecking order, Rogen adds: “But at the end of the day, they will f—ing destroy you to make one dollar more than they would if they could.” You better believe that’s working a certain studio’s machinery into overdrive.
As for the making of a blockbuster, Rogen used his own experience starring in the 2011 film version of Green Hornet, a commercial failure for Sony that killed plans for a sequel. Stick around for the whole series, and we may get to the heart of why that movie, and so many others, have been considered failures.
There’s also a fictional awards ceremony based on the Golden Globes which draws on Rogen’s own experience of leaving out a thank you to a key executive. Zoë Kravitz stands in for Rogen in the series when his character begs her to thank him in her acceptance speech. You’ll have to wait for that episode to see the fallout.
And then there’s Ron Howard’s send up of himself, which promises to flip the script on his reputation as the Nicest Guy in Hollywood. “He really went dark really fast,” Kathryn Hahn shared. For anyone who remembers him from Happy Days or the Andie Griffith Show, his F-bomb-hurling tirade should be worth the price of the Apple TV+ subscription alone.
The Irony
The tensions between the creative and financial demands of the entertainment industry was underscored this week by The Information’s report this week that Apple is losing nearly $1 billion a year on its streaming service, which is partly as a result of its deals with many of the top-shelf actors, writers, and directors in Hollywood.
How to follow the Hollywood lexicology
Try this CNN guide to the series’ “comically passive-aggressive Hollywood speak.”
Where to find The Studio
What to watch as you await the next episodes
The Player. Streaming on Hulu (included in the $9.99 subscription) and Fandango at Home (for $2.99).
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