If you’ve watched the creepy, dystopian masterpiece Severance on Apple TV+, then you know that the employees of the fictional Lumon corporation spend their time in what’s very much the definition of a toxic work environment. Ironically, it also sounds like the same could be said for the people making the show itself, Season 2 of which is reportedly facing a significant delay.
The 9-episode first season of Severance was a breakout success for Apple’s streamer, garnering five Emmy nominations and tons of critical buzz. What critics and viewers didn’t see was the offscreen chaos plaguing the show that’s now extended into the making of a second season — including showrunners who seem to despise each other, and scripts that have needed to be reworked, among other problems.
The result: More episodes won’t be coming to Apple TV+ anytime soon, per a new behind-the-scenes report from the well-sourced Puck News writer Matt Belloni. I’m particularly bummed by this news, because Severance has been one of my favorite Apple series to date — it’s inventive, memorable, and kept me glued to my screen from start to finish.
As for the problems, Ben Stiller (the show’s director and executive producer) is now basically scrambling to pull off a “salvage job.” The reasons include Stiller and Apple reportedly deciding to return to Dan Erickson, the creator and writer of the original pilot, who’d been paired with writer-producer Mark Friedman on the show.
Multiple sources said the two men “ended up hating each other,” and Erickson was going to move on after Season 1. Stiller and Apple, however, decided to go back to Friedman after Stiller interviewed potential replacements and didn’t find anyone new he wanted to bring in. All that did was apparently replicate the difficulties from Severance Season 1, and Belloni adds that “scripts were a problem.”
Apple — wisely, in my opinion — didn’t want to cut bait on the show, and has even discussed internally the prospect of a Season 3 and 4. Stiller brought in House of Cards creator Beau Willimon, most recently a writer for Disney+’s near-perfect Andor, who for a few months now has been not only crafting a story arc for Severance Season 3 but has been polishing at least some of the story for Season 2.
That’s more or less where things stand now, and I’m actually feeling at least cautiously optimistic about the new season of Severance (filming for which began late last year). While the delays and rewrites are reminiscent of the exact same set of circumstances that beset another Apple TV+ hit (Ted Lasso), the participation of Willimon is more than enough reason to convince me that the Severance story, at least, is in extremely capable hands. Time, of course, will tell.
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