PASADENA
When “The Morning Show,” the flagship series on Apple TV+, debuted back in November, it wasn’t exactly welcomed with critical raves.
In fact, many reviewers who only had early episodes to go on were pretty harsh. Among the barbs aimed its way were “a well-polished snore,” “a major disappointment” and a “panful bellyflop.”
All the negative buzz led executive producer Mimi Leder to lash out.
“When those reviews came in, I didn’t know what show they were watching. And I just kind of thought they were nuts,” she said in November at the Code Media conference. “I just felt there were a lot of Apple haters and wanting Apple to fail.”
The irony in that statement is that most journalists covering the industry rely on products from the Cupertino-based company. During the recently concluded Television Critics Association press tour, one could gaze out from the stage into a hotel ballroom overflowing with Apple laptops, iPhones and iPads and the glowing Apple emblem.
And so, during a panel session for “The Morning Show,” a reporter asked Leder: “Looking out at this sea of MacBooks, do you still think we’re a bunch of Apple haters who want to see Apple fail?”
After an outburst of laughter, Leder, who was accompanied by series stars Jennifer Anniston and Reese Witherspoon on the panel, replied:
“No, I don’t. No. I was … you know, I … I think we were a new show,” she said. “I think people didn’t know what to expect. There were a lot of expectations on the show. And I’m really glad and happy that people have responded to the show so powerfully and so kind of with great vigor. And so I’m — no.”
The negative reviews certainly didn’t hurt “The Morning Show.” It has a 94 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, and on Sunday night Jennifer Aniston won a SAG Award for her performance. It was the first major Hollywood honor for Apple TV+.
Leder later said the whole Apple-hating thing was “blown out of proportion,” and Witherspoon defended the critics’ right to render judgment.
“Look, we make product and then it is up to you guys,” she said. “You have to decide how you feel about — I mean, that’s how it works. I have no problem with hearing very real opinions about material. It actually helps us focus. It actually helps us make it better, work harder about parts that don’t make sense. … I welcome the criticism.”
Leder was was asked whether she — as someone producing a show about journalism — thought she had a greater responsibility to not cry “fake news” in response to the bad reviews.
“I think that journalists and obviously everyone has a right to their opinion,” she said. “And I think there was a lot of expectations for this series, for this Apple streaming service, from the beginning. We welcome all input and I think some people are rooting you on and some people are wanting you to fail. It’s just kind of the nature of the beast. But I don’t feel we had any backlash on our end.”