One of Apple’s first original shows for its upcoming Apple TV Plus subscription service is rated TV-MA, despite the company promising family-friendly content.
Apple renewed its first original series, “For All Mankind,” for a second season before the first season even launched, according to Deadline.. The show is expected to hit streaming service on Nov. 1, per Deadline.
The alternate history show’s renewal is a part of a broader strategy from Apple “to get second seasons of most of its scripted series going ahead of lunch, which helps amortize costs and keep the Apple TV Plus pipeline of original content going, avoiding lengthy hiatuses,” according to Deadline.
“For All Mankind,” which will focus on what would happen if the space race never ended, will be rated TV-MA, according to the show’s official website. And while that’s not surprising given that streaming services have mature content. But this is quite a break from Apple’s original plans to bring family-friendly content to its Apple TV Plus service.
In 2017, reports suggest Apple didn’t want to add shows like “Game of Thrones” or “House of Cards.” Specifically, the company didn’t want to launch shows that included sex or nudity, as reported by the Deseret News at the time.
The company planned to invest $1 million into shows that were safe for children.
“Every show must be suitable for an Apple Store. Instead of the nudity, raw language and violence that have become staples of many TV shows on cable or streaming services, Apple wants comedies and emotional dramas with broad appeal,” according to Bloomberg.
Apple hoped to add shows that were similar to NBC’s “This Is Us” — a heartwarming and award-winning television show.
A year later, The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple sought to find the right tone for its content, specifically saying the company didn’t want shows with “gratuitous sex, profanity or violence.”
At the time, this didn’t seem surprising since Apple has often been “conservative and picky” with its content, according to The Verge.
“The company has long forbidden adult content from its App Store, rigorously removing apps that even display NSFW content, like Vine or 500px,” according to The Verge.