Apple’s First Scripted Series from Dr. Dre
Our Take:
The scripted world is about to get bigger. Now it’s Apple’s turn. The tech giant’s first scripted TV show will be from rapper Dr. Dre, reports The Hollywood Reporter. He will be starring and executive producing a six-episode series dubbed “Vital Signs” that will be funded by Apple, which bought Dre’s company Beats Electronic in 2014. In terms of distribution, the article reports that it’s likely to be available through Apple Music–not necessarily on Apple TV, iTunes or other platforms. Reports indicate that the dark drama is semi-autobiographical and will star actors Sam Rockwell and Mo McCrae; Empire co-executive producer and writer Robert Munic is the writer and executive producer for all episodes. Another important element: episodes will be delivered all once and therefore binge-able.
Does this mean we’ll see a lot more originals from Apple? Possibly not so fast. The company is said to be working on partnerships with other artists who already have a relationship with the company before creating an originals department.
Apple is making its first original television show. The Hollywood Reporter has learned that the technology giant is backing a top-secret scripted series starring one of its own executives, Beats co-founder and rap legend Dr. Dre. Multiple sources say the 50-year-old mogul is starring in and executive producing his own six-episode vehicle, dubbed Vital Signs, and the production is being bankrolled by Apple.
