User reviews

The Morning Show is set in the ostensibly glamorous world of America's most popular (fictional) breakfast TV show, with Jennifer Aniston's character Alex at the center of the action as the anchor who has made the show a huge hit over 15 years.

But the real theme of this series is anything but glamorous: it is a dramatic exploration of the issues that underpinned the #MeToo movement from 2017 - workplace sexual harassment in the entertainment industry, and the culture that permits it; the cancel culture that followed it; and the reaction to that cancel culture.

That's not a spoiler. The series begins with the TMS crew in shock after Alex's much-loved co-anchor Mitch (Steve Carrell) is marched out of the building, accused of inappropriate sexual behaviour. How true those accusations are or aren't, and what that means to everybody associated with the show, is the main narrative thread that is slowly unravelled over the course of Season 1. And it's quite a ride.

Reese Witherspoon enters as Bradley Jackson, a maverick reporter for another - much smaller - show who accidentally becomes a viral sensatiom, then a studio guest on TMS, then part of the show. So far, so predictable - although even this Act 1, establishing the main characters and ideas over the first 3 or so episodes, is packed with highlights. By that point, we the audience have enjoyed the fireworks around Bradley, learned and accepted that Jennifer Aniston really can act (who knew?) and found ourselves liking and empathizing with Steve Carrell's Mitch, unsure whether it will turn out that he is the (not entirely blameless) victim of cancel culture, or whether he's in fact more of a creep than he seems.

Such drama and ambiguity is possible thanks to some of the best dialogue writing and best acting I've seen since shows like the West Wing or early seasons of Billions. Seriously, it's a terrific job by everybody involved - no exceptions. Aniston and Carrell are both revelations in serious roles, actors like Jack Davenport and Mark Duplass are very well-cast, and Billy Krudrup kinda streals the show as the enigmatically brilliant Corey. Reese Witherspoon we've seen be excellent before - so it's no surprise that she's excellent here. Interestingly, she begins as the mian focus, but increasingly creates space for others to take centre stage as the story progresses.

It's near-perfect drama - brilliantly delivered and tackling a major theme of our time with deft integrity and plenty of intrigue.

Even if you have the self-discipline required to have avoided binge-watching the whole first Season in a single sitting, don't even think sbout starting the season finale unless you have time to finish it and absorb it. You have been warned.

Obviously, the following Seasons won't be as good. We know that, right? So this review is for Season 1. If you want to keep watching thereafter, that's up to you, but perhaps be realistic in your expectations.

The Morning Show is a solid drama led by such an amazing cast. It takes you behind the scenes of a morning show and gives you a candid look at what makes the show go and the lives of the people involved in it. It may start a little slow for some but stick with it because it gets better as the show goes on. It seems like the entire cast has been nominated for an Emmy for their jobs on this show (Steve Carrel, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Billy Crudup, Mark Duplass, Jon Hamm, Holland Taylor, etc, etc.) and for good reason...they were all terrific! It's obviously a star studded cast but it's not only the stars that make this show so good, the writing is fantastic as well. Like most shows the first season is the best but even though the other seasons may not be quite as good as the first, they're still pretty darn good.

The show is amazing, but wow, what a remarkable performance by Billy Crudup. He totally kills it! I love his character, so funny. We need more of him! Great work! Of course, the rest of the cast is also amazing! Great job everyone!

Apple TV+'s The Morning Show is a bold and intense drama that dives deep into the high-stakes world of morning television while tackling issues of power, media, and morality. With a powerhouse cast led by Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and Billy Crudup, the series delivers compelling performances, sharp writing, and thought-provoking themes.

Positives

✔ Outstanding Performances: Jennifer Aniston shines as Alex Levy, delivering one of her most nuanced performances. Reese Witherspoon brings fierce energy as Bradley Jackson, and Billy Crudup steals scenes as the charismatic network executive Cory Ellison.

✔ Relevant and Thought-Provoking Themes: The series doesn't shy away from complex topics like the #MeToo movement, workplace politics, and journalistic integrity, making it more than just a show about television.

✔ High Production Value: From sleek newsroom sets to cinematic visuals, The Morning Show looks and feels like prestige television.

✔ Engaging and Fast-Paced Storytelling: The narrative is gripping, full of twists, personal conflicts, and moral dilemmas that keep audiences invested.

✔ Sharp Dialogue: The show's writing is smart and layered, balancing drama with moments of dark humor.

Negatives

• Occasionally Overdramatic: Some storylines lean into melodrama, which may feel excessive or unrealistic at times.

• Uneven Pacing in Later Seasons: While the first season is tightly plotted, later seasons have moments where the focus shifts too much between subplots, occasionally losing momentum.

• Not Always Subtle: The show sometimes spells out its messages too explicitly rather than letting them unfold naturally.

Conclusion

The Morning Show is a compelling, high-quality drama with top-tier performances and a willingness to tackle timely issues head-on. While it occasionally veers into melodrama, its strong writing, gripping conflicts, and standout cast make it a must-watch for fans of intense workplace dramas.

My girlfriend and I were discussing this and we've come to this conclusion. Overall, there were a couple episodes that were top-tier, would rate them in the high 9s. They were thought-provoking (mainly season 1), great cinematography, great acting, great score (esp season 3). But the other episodes would fall around a six or seven which is pretty solid. However the hour long run-time on those meh episodes just made it feel like it was dragging on for the majority of the episode just to reveal some big cliffhanger at the end (this is my gf's opinion not mine, i thought it built suspense nicely). So rounds out at a weak eight overall. Season one was the best, then three, then two.

This is an amazing show, with a really good cast and surprising stories.

This is NOT a show, where you can expect the leading roles to behave "well" and be heroes. I know, everyone expects that with those two female leads and the starting theme being metoo.

Instead, the show presents the main characters as people with ambition, own agendas, lust and fears. There is a lot of nuance with every interaction and storyline, and in each character's story arc. This is also the reason behind most of the lower ratings here: people expected a simple metoo "smash the man and get revenge!" story. This show will not give you that. And in the case of metoo, that's because the perpetrators like Weinstein could only keep it going by having a lot of other people stay silent - including the women. This show recognises that fact.

It took me about two episodes to really, really get into this, but then I was 100% hooked. Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and the other are doing a great job, the script is intelligent and surprising, the dialogues sharp. It does well at making different layers of mysoginy visible while not oversimplifying the discussion of that topic or making it flat.

In my opinion this is Anistons best performance as an actress yet (and I am a big fan of Friends, so that is saying something).

I am not generally interested in the media world, but this reeled me in. If you like The Good Wife, you will love this, too.

I was never a big fan of either Anniston or Witherspoon but they are really, really good in these roles. Production values are excellent (product placement aside) and kudos to the writers for the nuanced approach to delicate social issues... and Billy Crudup has the best lines!

A wonderful series (the first season). I watched it out of academic interest. I don't feel any sympathy for the MeToo movement, just so you know.

However, the series presents harassment from a slightly different angle than I had imagined, which led to a bit more understanding. The point is that the bosses in this series don't see this as a problem at all. It's like: 'You're a fool, grace has descended upon you, and you're sulking here.' For them, everything seems perfectly normal. There's no theme here of 'if you don't like it, just leave,' as many people say online.

I especially want to point out how people get fired in this series. They are not in the lowest positions, so they are earning more than average. When you consider that they might have loans, mortgages... it adds much more depth to the plot than meets the eye at first glance.

In summary: the series digs deep and presents it well.

Season one really hit all the right notes. Season two tripped and fell. Alex needs a good whack upside the head. And what happened to Bradley? She's a totally different person. Cory has become inept window dressing. And Chip needs better lines than uh I'm sorry um. The little Asian girl is obnoxious. One of the best characters is the Italian reporter! I have grown tired and weary of the bickering and backstabbing and who is going to blame who. Basically the show just needs to grow up.

After a pretty decent first season, viewers are now into episode seven of the second season and many must be thinking (like me): "Wait, did they forget to actually write a screenplay for season 2?".

There is really nothing intriguing about this show during this season. Storylines, dialogue and character development; it's all really "mèèèh" at best this time around and mostly really just boring and uninteresting.

Dialogues just seem never-ending and are not compelling in the slightest.

Of course I noticed on various other Apple shows as well that screenwriting is apparently not in the list of requirements set by Apple.

But they could have at least tried, right? Talented actors and most likely tons of money to spend.

What a complete waste of budget and talent this show has become... just a pile of garbage to be really honest.

5 out of 10 (and that's only due to an above average season 1).

Rarely it happens when a new streaming service comes out, and it has a show that is so good and binding, I can't help but give 10 stars !

It's real, it's dramatic and it's creative. The photography is amazing and the characters are interesting and relatable.

First of all The Morning Show has one of the best overall casts of any show on tv. Just to name some of the actors in this are Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Steve Carell, Billy Crudup, Mark Duplass, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, etc. With a cast like that you just know the show is worth watching. The first season is the best but the second is still pretty good. It's one of the rare shows where each episode gets better and leaves you wanting more. It's a fast paced show that you'll want to binge watch as quickly as you can. Season three is coming out later this year and I'm looking forward to watching it.

I was skeptical and this show wasn't even on my radar, but after watching the first episode, I was hooked. I binged the next 4 in 2 days. Great show! The acting is superb. The story is interesting. It touches on issues of the day with finesse and doesn't preach. Which is hard to find these days. The casting is pretty perfect. Billy Crudup steals the show. Awesome work, Apple!

I am still in awe by the season final! This is outstanding.. you moved me. I feel so empowered

I loved season 1, which was cast perfectly and well-written. The story lines tied together nicely and I really felt like this could be what morning television productions are like. With all the A-list actors that I love, I was pleasantly surprised that Billy Crudup stole the show for me. I couldn't wait for season 2 to come out given the season 1 cliff-hangers.....Then season 2 happened. -sigh- What a mess. A few characters whom I won't name, are clearly out of their acting league. Story lines that expanded from season 1 have become uninteresting and distracting. The drama is amped up to the point of becoming annoying. The mood swings of main characters shred empathy and credibility. I never thought I could be annoyed with a Jennifer Aniston character, but here you go.

I suppose many second seasons struggle with expanding story lines introduced in first seasons. That's expected to a degree. But this feels like it is written by separate teams of writers. No cohesion. Every character has become insufferable. I'll struggle through the rest of the season, with the hope season 3 can recapture the magic. I'm not overly optimistic.

Complex emotions on all sides. Appealing to human nature. Not overly preachy. Makes you think about cause and effect.

The acting is just over the top amazing. The performances by every single actor was A+.

Season 1 had a good, interesting, story line, that grabbed you from the beginning. Kept you watching esp in anticipation on what will happen in the rivalry between the 2 female leads. But they suddenly coming together in end in that show of woman solidarity was more depressing cop out, enough to drop the season from a 9 to an 8.

Unfortunately, it seems they had no idea of what follow up story to tell in season 2, other than just showing a bunch of rich media people being ambitious, competitive, nasty, and neurotic. The Witherspoon character's particularly irritating, and she's spent half the season shouting at people. Crudup is best, he's held the series together. And the Carrel character's an interesting watch. As the guy who's fell off the mountain top...and, alas, has to console himself with the millions he's made. (And Carrel even has a resemblance to Matt Lauer)

What a fantastic return to form for Jennifer Aniston! Her ability to encapsulate a character right from the first episode with such depth, with an incredible supporting cast including a role that could only be played by an actor like Steve Carrol, the complexities of such an intensely debated topic as the MeToo movement, which has been so integral in allowing society to take that important step forward, while allowing narratives to take place that under different acting ability could very easily lost. Reese is exceptional in a role that feels formed to her.

I'm looking forward to seeing where this program about a program can take us!

I would rate season 1 an 8. It tackles a lot of social issues while still remaining entertaining and still doesn't get too preachy.

I would rate season 2 a 5 at best. It is boring and attempts to include so many issues that it becomes a woke nightmare. Stop after season 1 if you aren't on board the woke train.

Billy Crudup in the Morning Show series is the most consistent, compelling and nuanced actor I have seen in ages. I have not seen him in other movies or if I have I don't remember his performance, but he is a revelation in this role and I found that I wanted to see him in scene after scene. His acting was nuanced, yet bold and brash and completely absorbing. I hope there is a season 4 and that he returns for every episodes and that he continues to find a way to outsmart and control the network as he set out to do and that he finds some reward for the unfulfilled depth of the emotion that you can see in his performance.