Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg, the writers, directors, and executive producers of the new series “The Studio,” now streaming on Apple+, have cultivated their long tenure within the Hollywood system to create a comedic gem of a show where every episode seems wildly outlandish yet is more than likely based on truth.
Making a show in Hollywood about Hollywood is a delicate balance. On the one hand, it needs to be relatable to an audience who likely doesn’t know, understand, or potentially even care about the cut-throat, backstabbing, compromising world of deal-making in the backlots and offices of movie studios. On the other hand, it has to be real enough to convince an audience that, yes, this shit happens, and that is quite possibly why so many movies suck. Robert Altman’s “The Player” comes to mind as the Hollywood satire that nailed it, and that 1992 film classic is a clear inspiration here in “The Studio,” yet it is not the only Altman film this series pays homage to.
From its opening scene, “The Studio” tells you that film history will guide the storytelling. The show’s characters are either varying levels of studio executives or the creatives behind the movies that get made, and they all seemingly have one thing in common: they love movies. They say they love movies, which is why they are all doing this, but some of them like the money aspect a bit more. And that Faustian bargain each character makes to be a part of the Hollywood razzle-dazzle makes “The Studio” work so well and hilarious.
In a show about movies, it is fitting that the choice of medium for “The Studio” is film. It gives the show a decisively cinematic look and features some of the best cinematography and camera work I’ve seen deployed on a television show. The cinematographer is Adam Newport-Berra, whose work is astounding on this show. I mentioned “The Player,” and that film’s famous one-take opening shot sets the template for how “The Studio” will operate. The first episode mimics the long-take opening of “The Player,” but then it never lets go of that aesthetic. Every episode features long takes with intricate camera moves, including Episode 2, which spoofs the concept of the one-take shot by pulling off one of the most elaborate one-take television episodes in history.
Seth Rogen stars as Matt Remick, a studio executive at the fictional Continental Studios, who lands his dream job as head of the studio in the first episode after Catherine O’Hara is fired. By that episode’s end, he’s rehiring O’Hara for a sweet studio deal to produce to solve a mess created by Rogen’s desires to please all and everyone in his new head role.
Rogen’s weekly episode battle is the desire to please, be liked, and make movies that generate revenue for the higher-ups. The humor comes from Rogen’s insecurities and the insecurities of everyone surrounding him in this viper’s nest of studio executives and creatives all trying to reach the top, which would mean Rogen’s job.
Episode 4, “the Missing Reel,” is a hilarious spoof on the Hollywood detective film, as ego-fueled director Olivia Wilde tries to complete her modern-day rip-off of “Chinatown.” Rogen, Goldberg, and their writing team’s deep knowledge and love of cinema go ‘deep-cut’ here, with musical nods to Altman’s “The Long Goodbye” and “Chinatown.”
Surrounding Rogen is a standout, Ike Barinholtz, who plays Rogen’s best friend, No. 2, and rival. Barinholtz would love Rogen’s job and would backstab him whenever the opportunity allowed, but that’s when he’s not fending off creative executive Chase Sui Wonders, who is gunning for his job. Everyone in this show is out for themselves, and the comedy comes from Rogen and Goldberg’s writing, which draws from experience. They spent years walking into these studios, pitching scripts and getting pitched zany ideas. While the thought of a tentpole franchise starter movie based on Kool-Aid and potentially directed by Martin Scorsese sounds beyond ridiculous, in the world of “The Studio,” it sounds like maybe only the fifth worst idea pitched during an afternoon in Los Angeles.
Rounding out the regular cast is the always excellent Kathryn Hahn as Continental Studios head of marketing. All she cares about is, if the film is a product she can sell. Things get dicey in Episode 3 when Ron Howard’s sure-fire box office winner goes off the rails in an extended 45-minute final act that destroys Hahn’s ability to sell it.
Every episode features an all-star cameo lineup of stars playing themselves. Still, star Rogen ties it all together, and his insecure studio head is his best performance to date. So far, six episodes have been released out of eight. Here’s hoping Apple+ renews this show on the quick. It’s easily one of the best, and certainly the funniest, shows of 2025.
James Kent is the arts editor at the Mountain Times.
