Ben Stiller (left) and Eddy Cue at SXSW
“Severance” executive producer Ben Stiller and Apple TV+’s Eddy Cue spoke at SXSW about making the show and just how much Apple plays a part in the series.
“Severance” is the most-watched show on Apple TV+ since the streaming service launched in 2019 and is such a talked-about series that it’s even been parodied on network TV. Apple’s senior vice president of Services, Eddy Cue, and “Severance” executive producer Ben Stiller have now interviewed each other at the SXSW festival.
“I can’t wait for every episode. Even though I have access to all of ’em, I tend to wait,” revealed Cue. “This reminds me of shows back in the days when television, you’d tune in on a particular night and everybody was so excited all week to get to the next episode.”
“It’s really incredible because, as you know, also in this day and age,” said Stiller, “it’s so hard to have something that breaks through and that you can actually get people to watch and to see ’cause there’s so much.”
From AppleInsider‘s contacts, we’ve been told that if a series is going well, then Apple tends to be hands-off and very willing to let the creators work without interference. Stiller says that’s the case with “Severance.”
“I’ve never once ever gotten any note or anything from Apple about anything we do,” he said. “I think we were lucky in that when we started out, you guys gave us a lot of creative freedom.”
Stiller did say that he worries for Apple, “if we go over budget a little,” and checked with Cue whether the company is okay. Cue assured him that Apple was getting by.
Cue also revealed that the “Severance” promo video with Apple CEO Tim Cook was not filmed on the show’s regular set.
“It was filmed in the Steve Jobs Theater on the Apple campus,” he said. “The back of [the theater] is all white, and I remember when the show came out and we were walking there, I’m like, ‘Oh, we’re inside Severance’.”
