Apple News
Apple TV debuts trailer for the final installment of ‘WondLa’
Apple TV on Tuesday unveiled the epic trailer for the third and final chapter of the beloved animated adventure trilogy “WondLa,” set to debut globally on November 26, 2025. Hailing from Skydance Animation and based on Tony DiTerlizzi’s New York Times bestselling book series “The Search for WondLa,” the series is showrun and executive produced by Bobs Gannaway.
This third and final installment features a star-studded voice cast, including Jeanine Mason (“Roswell, New Mexico”) as Eva, Emmy Award winner Brad Garrett (“Everybody Loves Raymond”) as Otto, Gary Anthony Williams (“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows”) as Rovender, Alan Tudyk (“Resident Alien”) as Cadmus Pryde, John Ratzenberger (“Toy Story”) as Caruncle, John Harlan Kim (“The Librarians”) as Hailey, Ana Villafañe (“Castro’s Daughter”) as Eva 8, Peter Gallagher (“The O.C.”) as Antiquus, and many more. New cast members include Emmy Award winner and Academy Award nominee Shohreh Aghdashloo (“House of Sand and Fog”) as Darius and Arius, and Maz Jobrani (“The Axis of Evil Comedy Tour”) as Zin.
In the epic final season of “WondLa,” war erupts between humans and aliens. With Orbona’s fate hanging in the balance, Eva must embark on her most dangerous mission yet: recapturing the stolen Heart of the Forest. Along the way, she gathers old friends and unlikely allies for one last stand. But to save Orbona, Eva must do more than find the Heart — she must bridge two divided worlds and prove the ultimate truth: “There is no ‘them.’ There is only us.”
The trilogy’s final season continues with six thrilling half-hour episodes executive produced by DiTerlizzi and Gannaway alongside Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Jeremy Bell, Julie Kane-Ritsch, and Skydance Animation’s John Lasseter, David Ellison, and Dana Goldberg. The series is also produced by Tony Cosanella. Andrew L. Schmidt serves as supervising director.
Apple TV and Skydance Animation previously partnered to release the Apple Original Films animated feature film “Luck.” The award-winning slate of original series and films for kids and families on Apple TV also includes the Emmy Award-winning live-action animated hybrid special, “The Velveteen Rabbit”; the Academy Award and BAFTA Award-winning animated short film “The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse”; and BAFTA Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated animated film “Wolfwalkers.”
The exciting slate of recent offerings for kids and families on Apple TV features the recently released “The Sisters Grimm,” based on the New York Times bestselling book series by Michael Buckley; the music-driven animated comedy series “BE@RBRICK” from DreamWorks Animation; “Goldie,” inspired by Emily Brundige’s award-winning 2019 short film of the same name; Peanuts series “Camp Snoopy”; the second season of beloved animated series “Frog and Toad,” based on the Caldecott and Newbery Honor-winning books; celebrated kids and family series “Yo Gabba GabbaLand!,” inspired by the hit, Emmy Award-nominated cultural phenomenon “Yo Gabba Gabba!”; “Me,” an elevated cinematic coming-of-age story from Barry L. Levy; and “Wonder Pets: In the City,” from Jennifer Oxley.
Award-winning all-ages offerings now streaming globally on Apple TV also include the BAFTA Award and Humanitas Prize-winning “El Deafo,” BAFTA Award-winning “Lovely Little Farm,” “Duck & Goose,” “Get Rolling With Otis,” Spin Master Entertainment’s “Sago Mini Friends,” GLAAD Media Award-nominated “Pinecone & Pony,” The Jim Henson Company’s Emmy Award-winning “Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock,” “Harriet the Spy” and “Slumberkins,” Sesame Workshop’s “Helpsters,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt, HITRECORD and Bento Box Entertainment’s “Wolfboy and the Everything Factory,” Jack McBrayer and Angela C. Santomero’s Emmy Award-nominated “Hello, Jack! The Kindness Show,” Peanuts and WildBrain’s Emmy Award-nominated “Snoopy in Space,” “The Snoopy Show,” and Peabody and Emmy Award-winning series “Stillwater.” Live-action offerings include Bonnie Hunt’s DGA and WGA Award-nominated “Amber Brown,” DGA Award-winning “Best Foot Forward,” “Surfside Girls,” WGA Award-winning “Life By Ella,” Sesame Workshop and Sinking Ship’s Emmy Award-winning “Ghostwriter,” Emmy Award and Environmental Media Association Award winning “Jane,” and Scholastic’s “Puppy Place.”
Also featured are “Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth,” the Emmy Award-winning television event based on the New York Times bestselling book and TIME Best Book of the Year by Oliver Jeffers, and specials from Peanuts and WildBrain including Emmy Award-nominated “Snoopy Presents: It’s the Small Things, Charlie Brown,” “Snoopy Presents: Lucy’s School,” Humanitas and Emmy Award-nominated “Snoopy Presents: To Mom (and Dad), With Love,” “Snoopy Presents: One-of-a-Kind Marcie,” “Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin,” Emmy Award-winning “Snoopy Presents: Who Are You, Charlie Brown?” and “Snoopy Presents: For Auld Lang Syne.”
Apple TV offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries, and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all of a user’s favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have earned 640 wins and 2,872 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning, historic comedies “The Studio” and “Ted Lasso” and Oscar Best Picture winner “CODA.”
MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $12.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.
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‘SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit 2’ launches December 4th on Apple Arcade
Who lives in a pineapple and is back for another exciting adventure? SpongeBob SquarePants! Next month, the world’s most beloved sponge is joining up with Plankton in an all-new sequel to the highly rated game SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit. The unlikely duo will set out on a journey full of twists and turns to save Bikini Bottom in SpongeBob: Patty Pursuit 2, launching December 4 exclusively on Apple Arcade.
In this Krabby Patty caper, SpongeBob and Plankton must put aside their differences and work together. Their mission: Recover the Krusty Krab’s missing fry cook station, locate Plankton’s mysteriously vanished inventions, and save Bikini Bottom from a devious mastermind whose identity remains just out of reach.
Players can double the fun by playing as both SpongeBob and Plankton, and by teaming up with family or friends in local co-op mode. From the streets of Bikini Bottom, to the dusty trails of Dead Eye Gulch, and the sandy shores of Goo Lagoon, SpongeBob and Plankton will explore vibrant locations true to the hit animated show, solving unique puzzles and battling bizarre bosses along the way.
Apple Arcade is also adding five additional new games in the coming weeks. Real-time multiplayer action-strategy battler Glassbreakers: Champions of Moss for Apple Vision Pro is out tomorrow, November 13. Launching December 4 are the deeply relaxing and satisfying PowerWash Simulator; award-winning roguelite Cult of the Lamb Arcade Edition; Subway Surfers+, which brings the world’s most downloaded mobile game — with completely uninterrupted gameplay — to the service; and NARUTO: Ultimate Ninja STORM+, a 3D fighting game based on the massively popular manga and anime series.
PowerWash Simulator brings the satisfying experience of blasting away dirt and grime to mobile, exclusively through Apple Arcade. Optimized with touch controls and gyroscope support, players can wash away their worries with the soothing sounds of high-pressure water. Arcade players will also have access to popular packs and jobs at launch, including the SpongeBob SquarePants special pack and bonus jobs, with even more special packs coming post-launch at no additional cost.
Another fan-favorite hit coming to mobile for the very first time is Cult of the Lamb Arcade Edition, available only on Apple Arcade. This version includes exclusive content, including new follower forms, decorations, and outfits, along with all existing content updates and paid packs.
The fun never stops on Apple Arcade. Alongside awesome new releases, players can also keep an eye out for exciting updates in their favorite games. Sneaky Sasquatch, a top-played game on the service since its debut, recently launched a massive farming town in the game where players can head east to Grandma’s farm, hop on a tractor, and start planting. They’ll be able to grow nine different types of crops for fun and profit – because even sasquatches need to make a living.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple Arcade is available for $6.99 per month with a one-month free trial. Customers who purchase a new iPhone, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV receive three months of Apple Arcade for free. Apple Arcade is part of Apple One’s Individual ($19.95), Family ($25.95), and Premier ($37.95) monthly plans, with a one-month free trial. Arcade Originals are playable across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Vision Pro. App Store Greats are available on iPhone, iPad, and Apple Vision Pro. An Apple Arcade subscription gives a family of up to six unlimited access to all the games in its catalog. Availability for the 200+ games across devices varies based on hardware and software compatibility. Some content may not be available in all areas.
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Paramount+ announces across-the-board price increases
Paramount+ prices are rising early next year. During the company’s latest quarterly earnings call, Paramount announced the increases will take effect on January 15, 2026.
Caitlin Huston for The Hollywood Reporter:
“Our ongoing investments in Paramount+ are enhancing the value we deliver to consumers. To support this continued investment, we plan to implement price increases in the US early in the first quarter of 2026, and we recently announced upcoming price adjustments in Canada and Australia. These changes will fuel continued reinvestment in the user experience and deliver an even stronger slate of programming for our customers in the year ahead and beyond,” [CEO David] Ellison said in the shareholder letter.
The company later said that starting Jan. 15, 2026, the Essential (ad-supported) plan will increase by $1 to $8.99 per month, and the Premium (ad-free) plan will rise by $1 to $13.99 per month. Annual plans will also increase, with the Essential plan moving to $89.99 per year and the Premium plan to $139.99 per year…
In the quarter, Paramount+ added 1.4 million new subscribers for a total of 79 million, up from 77.7 million in the second quarter and 79 million reported in the first quarter… The company reported direct-to-consumer revenue of $2.1 billion, up 17 percent year-over-year, driven by a 24% increase in Paramount+ revenue. In the letter, Ellison said he expects the direct-to-consumer segment to be profitable in 2026 and grow that profitability over the year.
MacDailyNews Take: Streaming costs continue their inexorable upwards creep. It took quite a while, but we’re starting to miss cable.
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Apple TV’s ‘Pluribus’ exposes the nightmarish core of socialism
By SteveJack
In an era where dystopian tales flood our screens — zombies shambling through The Walking Dead, surveillance states choking Black Mirror — Vince Gilligan’s Pluribus arrives like a sly whisper in the dark. Premiering on Apple TV just days ago, this sci-fi psychological thriller, starring Rhea Seehorn as the perpetually scowling Carol Sturka, doesn’t bombard us with overt horrors. Instead, it lures us into a world of enforced happiness, where a mysterious extraterrestrial RNA formula, transmitted from deep space, infects humanity through water supplies and petri dishes, transforming billions into a monolithic hive of unrelenting cheer. Carol, one of a handful of those immune — a grieving, cynical writer in sun-baked Albuquerque — becomes the reluctant rebel, navigating this “utopia” like a ghost in a candy-colored nightmare.
At first glance, Pluribus reads as a clever riff on pandemic-era anxieties, echoing The Leftovers or Invasion of the Body Snatchers with its pod-people conformity and eerie normalcy. But peel back the glossy veneer of Gilligan’s Albuquerque (a far cry from the meth labs of Breaking Bad), and you’ll find a razor-sharp allegory for the perils of socialism. Not the straw-man version peddled in soundbites, but the seductive promise of collective bliss that erodes individuality, innovation, and truth under the guise of equity and harmony. In Pluribus, bliss isn’t a gift — it’s a virus, and its spread mirrors how socialist ideologies can metastasize, promising paradise while devouring the soul.
Consider the setup: Humanity receives this cosmic “gift” — a formula for universal optimism, distributed en masse by brainwashed factory workers into the very infrastructure that sustains us. Sound familiar? It’s a chilling parallel to socialist central planning, where a benevolent (or not-so-benevolent) authority engineers societal “improvement” from the top down. Think of the Bolsheviks’ Five-Year Plans or Mao’s Great Leap Forward, reimagined as a feel-good directive from the stars. In Pluribus, the infected don’t march in lockstep to gulags; they skip hand-in-hand to communal sing-alongs, their personalities homogenized into a singular, grinning “We Is Us.” The title itself, a Latin nod to “e pluribus unum” (out of many, one), twists America’s founding motto into a warning: Unity at the expense of diversity isn’t strength — it’s stagnation.
Carol Sturka embodies the endangered individualist spirit that socialism so often crushes. As the “most miserable person on Earth,” she’s a stand-in for the dissident, the entrepreneur, the free thinker who refuses the collective script. Her cynicism isn’t a flaw; it’s her superpower. It allows her to question the narrative, to see the rot beneath the rainbow. This is socialism’s fatal blind spot: By prioritizing the group’s emotional equilibrium over personal liberty, it silences the very voices that drive progress. Who innovates when conformity is contagious?
Apple TV is the perfect home for Pluribus — after all, the company’s slogan is Think different.
The show’s satire bites deepest in its portrayal of this forced felicity as a counterfeit equality. The infected aren’t just happy — they’re uniform, their quirks sanded down to a uniform sheen of positivity. No more artists raging against the machine, no more Jobsian inventors tinkering in garages, no more messy human debates that birth real solutions. It’s a world where conflict is eradicated not through justice, but through infection: Lick a donut, share a water bottle, and poof—your revolutionary fire is doused in dopamine. Gilligan, ever the moral cartographer, maps this onto real-world collectivism’s track record. Soviet Russia’s suppression of kulaks (independent farmers) to enforce communal agriculture didn’t yield abundance; it starved millions. Venezuela’s oil wealth redistribution under Chávez and Maduro promised shared prosperity but delivered empty shelves and silenced critics. Pluribus asks: What if the “workers’ paradise” succeeded in making everyone equally content? The answer, delivered in Seehorn’s haunted eyes and the infected’s vacant smiles, is a resounding no thanks.
Critics have already hailed Pluribus for its audacity — The Guardian marvels at Gilligan’s chutzpah in imagining a world where “everybody just… got along?” — but they miss the deeper indictment. This isn’t mere anti-utopianism; it’s a cautionary tale. As debates rage over universal basic income, wealth taxes, and “equity” mandates, Pluribus reminds us that the road to hell is paved with good intentions — and in this case, with viral vectors of virtue-signaling. The RNA formula, after all, arrives unbidden, a deus ex machina from the cosmos that humanity eagerly adopts without a vote or a trial run. It’s the allure of the nanny state on steroids: Why struggle with markets’ chaos when an algorithm (or a starman) can optimize joy for all?
Yet Gilligan doesn’t leave us in despair. Carol’s immunity isn’t luck; it’s a testament to resilience, to the grit that socialism’s cheerleaders often dismiss as “greed” or “selfishness.” Carol’s existence a subtle nod to capitalism’s unsung heroes — the outliers who bootstrap solutions, from Steve Jobs’ garage to Elon Musk’s reusable rockets. In Pluribus‘ world, the real threat isn’t scarcity; it’s sameness, the socialist fever dream where innovation flatlines because “fairness” demands we all hum the same tune.
Of course, Pluribus is too nuanced for pat labels, blending off-kilter Twilight Zone unease with Severance-style corporate confornist dread. But, in a time when some politicians romanticize centralized, one-size-fits-all control, Gilligan’s series is a wake-up call: True freedom isn’t found in orchestrated hive-mind bliss, but in the right to be gloriously unique, unpredictable, and inventive.
Stream Pluribus on Apple TV and let it infect you — not with viral bliss, but with provocative questions. In Carol Sturka’s fight, we see our own: Against the tide of tidy tyrannies, holding fast to the messy miracle of the individual. Because true bliss only really exists when it’s chosen freely.
SteveJack is a long-time Macintosh user, web designer, multimedia producer and a semi-regular contributor to the MacDailyNews Opinion section.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $12.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.
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[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]
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Apple Original Films acquires ‘Fallen Astronaut’ manuscript
Deadline reports that Apple Original Films has preemptively acquired the manuscript for “Fallen Astronaut” by J.S. Mayank and David Carlyle, which began circulating among publishers just last week.
Anthony D’Alessandro for Deadline:
We hear that Apple paid in the high six figures to take the book off the table… Mayank & Carlyle will be Executive Producers on the film.
We hear that the manuscript has a tech-forward concept including a crucial sequence with VR, which makes it a ripe project for Apple.
Scott Glassgold and his 1201 Films are set to produce the movie for Apple which is billed as Gravity crossed with A Few Good Men.
MacDailyNews Take: “You can’t handle the suit!”
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[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]
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Some analysts see upside in Apple missing GenAI
Wall Street hammered Apple for missing the initial GenAI wave and skimping on spending compared to rivals. Now, that’s being reevaluated. Investors are souring on the massive AI bets from OpenAI, Meta, and Microsoft — fueling wild swings in 2025’s hottest stocks. Suddenly, Apple’s whiff on GenAI has a silver lining.
Ryan Vlastelica and Carmen Reinicke:
While it’s still considered a potential AI winner, it doesn’t carry the risk of heavy capital expenditures and it does have ample cash on its books. That makes Apple shares a potential haven within the technology industry if the AI trade unwinds further.
“The hedge is it’s still a technology company, but not an AI company,” Brian Mulberry, client portfolio manager at Zacks Investment Management, said. “There is this positive feel for Apple that they don’t have to answer the big question that everybody else does, which is: What is the return on your invested capital in all of these other areas?”
The thesis is simple. Apple will benefit as it taps other companies’ models to deliver AI features to its millions of customers while avoiding much of the heavy spending required to develop its own capabilities, which is what many of its megacap peers are doing.
“Apple has the least exposure of the Mag 7 to AI in terms of where it is spending money and how leveraged it is,” said Brian Pollak, portfolio manager and head of the investment policy committee at Evercore. “It is absolutely true that it is a potential beneficiary of AI without having to spend all the capital that its cohorts are.”
“It has such a strong balance sheet, such strong cash flow, such a large moat in its business,” Pollak said. “All that makes it more defensive than the companies that have spent so much more on AI and are more leveraged to it.”
MacDailyNews Take: When life gives you lemons…
The obstacle is the way. – Marcus Aurelius
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Apple TV execs: No plans for ad-supported tier or to buy Warner Bros. Discovery
Apple TV executives have “no plans” to introduce ads to the streaming service, resisting—for now—a strategy that has fueled growth for competitors. This comes from Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Services, in an interview with Screen International.
Another path to expansion is increasing subscribers. Amid reports that Warner Bros. Discovery may explore a sale, speculation arises about whether Apple could pursue growth via acquisition. However, the executives interviewed by Screen International appear focused on expanding Apple TV+ through original content.
Nothing at this time. … I don’t want to say no forever, but there are no plans. If we can stay aggressive with our pricing, it’s better for consumers not to get interrupted with ads. – Apple SVP Eddy Cue
Scharon Harding for Ars Technica:
The comments follow reports over the years suggesting that Apple has been seeking knowledge on how to build a streaming ads business. Most recently, The Telegraph reported that Apple TV executives met with the United Kingdom’s ratings body, Barb, to discuss what tracking ads on Apple TV would look like. In 2023, Apple hired advertising exec Lauren Fry as head of video and Apple News ad sales.
For Apple, “aggressive” pricing has meant three price hikes since Apple TV’s 2019 launch and a current monthly subscription fee of $13. For comparison, Netflix starts at $18 per month without ads, and Disney+ is $19/month without ads.
Cue and the other Apple executives interviewed for Screen International’s article didn’t discuss revenue or profits or specify how many subscribers Apple TV has (Cue did say that Apple TV is “growing faster” and has more viewers with “more viewing hours in this past year than” ever before). In March, The Information, citing two anonymous people “with direct knowledge of the matter,” reported that Apple TV costs Apple $1 billion per year. The publication’s sources claimed the service had about 45 million subscribers…
[As for Warner Bros. Discovery considering a sale], “We’re building an all-original services; we’re not building on the back of pre-existing IP or library,” Jamie Erlicht, one of Apple’s heads of worldwide video, said.
More directly, when asked if Apple might buy Warner Bros., A24, or Disney, Cue pointed out that Apple hasn’t historically done “a lot of major acquisitions.”
“We do very small acquisitions in general, not related to Apple TV, so I don’t see that happening because we like what we’re doing,” Cue said.
MacDailyNews Take: As we wrote in March:
Apple TV+ is working. It’s just working slowly. Its quality over quantity strategy is sound and its library of high-value original content is becoming more substantial every day.
Breakouts hits that permeate the zeitgeist like “Ted Lasso” and “Severance” are doing most of the heavy lifting for getting the word out. Apple could certainly do a better job of promoting the service.
Apple TV+ could lose $1 billion annually until the first Tuesday after Infinity and Apple would be perfectly fine; it wouldn’t even notice.
Last year, Apple Inc. generated average revenue of $1.07 billion per day.
As for Warner Bros. Discovery:
The chance of Apple doing a deal like this is roughly 0%. – MacDailyNews, October 23, 2025
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Apple reportedly delays next-gen ‘iPhone Air 2’ indefinitely
Apple has reportedly delayed the launch of the iPhone Air 2. According to The Information, Apple recently “notified engineers and suppliers that they were taking the next iPhone Air off the schedule without providing a new release date.” The report cites “three people involved in the project.”
The second-generation iPhone Air was originally scheduled to launch next fall alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Fold. The Information reports that the device was planned to be even lighter than the current iPhone Air and feature a larger battery capacity.
Apple was also working on bringing the vapor chamber cooling system that first debuted on the iPhone 17 Pro to the iPhone Air 2. A separate supply chain rumor last week said the iPhone Air 2 may have also had two cameras.
The report says that Apple has “stopped short of canceling the next iPhone Air.” In fact, some Apple engineers and manufacturers are “still working on it.”
That said, however, there’s no release date on the books and this decision to remove the iPhone Air 2 from the schedule is “rare if not unprecedented.”
The Information attributes this decision to lower-than-expected sales of the iPhone Air so far. The report says Foxconn has “dismantled all but one and a half of its production lines for the first version and expects to halt all production by the end of the month.”
MacDailyNews Note: The full report via The Information also states, “It’s possible the product is undergoing a significant redesign, and one person said Apple could still release the second-generation iPhone Air as soon as spring 2027 alongside the standard iPhone 18 and budget-friendly 18e.”
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‘Breaking Bad’ stars unite in new Apple TV ‘Pluribus’ promo – Drew Barrymore and Carol Burnett, too
In a move that’s got “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul” devotees buzzing, Apple TV has dropped an inventive 100-second teaser ad for Vince Gilligan’s latest dystopian gem, “Pluribus.” The promo doesn’t just hype the new series—it’s a full-on reunion extravaganza, featuring Bryan Cranston, Bob Odenkirk, Aaron Paul, and a slew of familiar faces from the meth-fueled, lawyerly universes they’ve called home. And at the center of this affectionate chaos? Rhea Seehorn, stepping out of her Better Call Saul heels and into the role of a lifetime as the world’s grumpiest savior.
For the uninitiated, Pluribus — which premiered on November 7th with its first two episodes and snagged a speedy Season 2 renewal — trades Albuquerque’s blue skies for a nightmare of enforced cheer. Seehorn plays Carol Sturka, a woman dubbed “the most miserable person on Earth,” who’s thrust into a global catastrophe that turns nearly everyone into a saccharine hive mind. Overnight, humanity swaps sharp elbows for group hugs, and the survivors who resist the bliss are hunted down. Carol’s mission? Protect her precious misery and, somehow, save the world from happiness. It’s classic Gilligan — dark, witty, and laced with that signature moral ambiguity — but with a fresh coat of existential absurdity.
The ad cleverly recreates a pivotal scene from Pluribus‘s debut episode, where Carol flips on her TV amid the unfolding apocalypse, only to be bombarded by a parade of “friendly” faces urging her to join the party. Enter the Breaking Bad brigade: It kicks off with Cranston’s Walter White staring down the barrel of the camera, his chyron flashing “JOIN US” like a command from the principal’s office. From there, it’s a montage of hundreds of beaming visages, but the real stars steal the show in their quick-hit cameos.
Odenkirk reprises his slick Saul Goodman (or is it Jimmy McGill?), teaming up with Patrick Fabian’s ever-smarmy Howard Hamlin to coo, “We just want to make you happy.” Giancarlo Esposito’s ice-cold Gus Fring softens just enough to murmur, “We’re sorry we upset you,” while Jonathan Banks’ Mike Ehrmantraut offers a stoic nod from the shadows. Aaron Paul pops up as Jesse Pinkman, looking equal parts bewildered and earnest against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower — because why not globe-trot in the end times? Even Carol Burnett, who lit up Better Call Saul‘s final season, chimes in with a grandmotherly, “Carol, if you need us, we’re here for you.” And for that extra meta twist, Drew Barrymore crashes the feed straight from her talk show set, gazing soulfully at the lens: “We love you, Carol, and we just want to be happy.”
It’s peak fan service: a “sort of” crossover that nods to the interconnected web of Gilligan’s empire without muddying Pluribus‘ standalone waters. After all, while Better Call Saul blurred lines with surprise returns from Cranston and Paul in its swan-song season, this new series charts entirely new territory. No Heisenberg empire here — just a hive-mind horror show that skewers our obsession with positivity in the social media age. Gilligan, ever the provocateur, has teased in interviews that he envisions Pluribus running well beyond its confirmed second season, promising more twists on the theme of individuality in a world gone collectively nuts.
Seehorn, fresh off her Emmy-nominated run as the steely Kim Wexler, seems tailor-made for Carol’s prickly heroism. In the ad, her deadpan reactions to the onslaught of well-wishers are comedy gold — eyes rolling harder than a Saul courtroom plea. It’s a testament to her range, bridging the moral tightrope of Better Call Saul with this new breed of reluctant anti-hero. Seeing her Saul co-stars rally around her feels like a heartfelt pat on the back from the family she helped build.
Apple TV+ knows how to play the nostalgia card, and this promo is a masterstroke — playful enough to hook casual viewers, insider-y enough to reward die-hards. As Breaking Bad celebrates its 17th anniversary and Better Call Saul wraps its legacy, Pluribus arrives like a breath of fresh (if slightly rancid) air. It’s a reminder that Gilligan’s touch—equal parts tension, humor, and humanism—remains as potent as ever.
MacDailyNews Note: Apple TV is available on the Apple TV app in over 100 countries and regions, on over 1 billion screens, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV 4K, Apple Vision Pro, Mac, popular smart TVs from Samsung, LG, Sony, VIZIO, TCL and others, Roku and Amazon Fire TV devices, Chromecast with Google TV, PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles, and at tv.apple.com, for $12.99 per month with a seven-day free trial for new subscribers. For a limited time, customers who purchase and activate a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV or Mac can enjoy three months of Apple TV for free.
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MacSurfer is back! Beloved Apple news aggregator revived under passionate new ownership
In an era where digital landscapes shift like sand dunes — swallowing beloved sites whole and spitting out algorithm-driven clones — one corner of the Apple ecosystem has reemerged. MacSurfer.com, the venerable daily roundup of Apple news that once served as a morning ritual for Apple Macintosh enthusiasts, is officially back online.
After years of dormancy, the site has been resurrected by Ken Turner, a former Apple software engineer whose personal connection to the platform runs as deep as its archives.
Launched in the pre-social media wilds of the web, MacSurfer earned its status as an “institution” by curating headlines from across the Apple world with a no-frills efficiency that cut through the noise. It vanished several years ago, leaving a void that echoed through forums and feeds alike. Now, with Turner at the helm, it’s not just a reboot — it’s a deliberate nod to its roots, laced with modern tweaks to ensure it thrives in 2025’s hyper-connected reality.
Turner, who joined Apple in 1997 and contributed to low-level software that powered countless Macs, discovered MacSurfer early in his career. “I joined Apple as a software engineer in 1997 and my manager told me about MacSurfer in one of our first meetings (really!) I became an almost daily visitor ever since,” he shared in an interview with SchwartzTech. “When it went dormant several years ago, I missed a daily news roundup of everything happening in the Apple world. My hope, partially selfish, is to bring it back to fill that need again.”
What began as quiet nostalgia quickly turned into action. Turner, now a veteran of startups and major e-commerce ventures outside the Apple bubble, couldn’t shake the habit of checking the dormant domain. “I kept checking the old site regularly to see if there was going to come back, which we know didn’t happen. Then one day I thought ‘I can do this myself’ and I reached out to the owner to see if he was willing to sell,” he explained. “I’m grateful that he was. Life got in the way and it took me some time, but I’m happy I was able to get it relaunched.”
This acquisition isn’t mere opportunism; it’s a bulwark against the web’s creeping commercialization. As Turner sees it, too many “institutions” like MacSurfer get scrapped for domains or intellectual property scraps when their creators move on. “You bring up a sad-but-true commentary on how the web overall is so commercialized today and few sites have goals beyond milking the users for whatever they can get,” he told SchwartzTech. To honor the original, he’s faithfully recreated its iconic look and feel, logo included. “Of course, I could have built a site similar to MacSurfer, but with a different domain etc, but I knew many others missed [it] like I did. I am intentionally trying to call back to the original look and feel… and intend to always maintain that. I will add some additional features and information along the way but don’t want to stray from the original vision.”
The site now updates more frequently than its predecessor, complete with smart article grouping and a budding calendar of Apple events — while leaning on Turner’s engineering chops for sustainable automation.
Looking ahead, Turner’s vision balances reverence with evolution. Reliability remains paramount: “It is important to me that MacSurfer resumes as a reliable daily source of Apple news headlines.”
He’s eyeing expansions like highlighting top-clicked stories, broader ecosystem coverage (think third-party apps and accessories), and spotlighting genuine reviews amid the affiliate noise. User features, such as upvotes, are on the table, too. And while ads might return discreetly, this is no profit play. “[O]verall, this is not a cash-cow site, it’s meant to be more of a passion project.”
\Turner invites feedback, promising to revive missed elements from the old days. “I understand and feel the passion people had for MacSurfer in the past, and hope it is valuable going forward. I am also willing to take it in a direction that users want. If there are other features people miss from the old site, I’d be happy to take a look to bring them back.”
Apple news die-hards, head over to MacSurfer.com. In Turner’s words, it’s back to fill a need that’s never truly gone away.
MacDailyNews Take: We periodically check old, defunct Apple news sites to see if there’s any movement. We were SO HAPPY to randomly visit MacSurfer over the weekend and find It’s Alive! MacSurfer is a site that we visited every day, multiple times per day for decades, and we are very happy to have it back!
We’re not kidding – when we realized that the articles on MacSurfer were current, shouts of joy echoed throughout the palatial halls of the MDN headquarters!
Note to Ken: Thank you! And, one thing we’d like to see return is the daily list of most popular articles.
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Big Tech may benefit as EU considers easing AI regulations
Apple, Meta Platforms, and other tech giants could gain a reprieve from the EU’s AI regulations, as the European Commission considers easing parts of the legislation to streamline a wave of rules enacted over the past two years.
The initiative follows heavy lobbying from major tech firms and U.S. government criticism of last year’s AI Act, which imposes risk-based requirements on artificial intelligence.
Reuters:
“The Commission is proposing targeted simplification measures aimed at ensuring timely, smooth and proportionate implementation,” the draft Digital Omnibus document seen by Reuters said.
The changes include exempting companies from registering their AI systems in an EU database for high-risk systems if these are only used for narrow or procedural tasks, and the introduction of a one-year grace period where authorities can only levy penalties from August 2, 2027.
MacDailyNews Take: Our position remains unchanged nearly two decades on:
[W]e usually prefer the government to be hands-off wherever possible, Laissez-faire… Regulations are static and the marketplace is fluid, so extensive regulations can have unintended, unforeseen results down the road. – MacDailyNews, June 9, 2006
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Apple’s 20th Anniversary iPhone to feature front-facing camera hidden under display
A Chinese leaker claimed today that Apple will hide the front-facing camera under the display in its 2027 iPhone, supporting reports that the 20th anniversary model will feature a display with no visible cutouts.
Weibo-based account Digital Chat Station said Apple’s development of under-screen camera technology was progressing as planned for adoption in 2027, one year after it will reportedly debut under-screen Face ID technology on iPhone 18 Pro models.
Regardless, JP Morgan recently reported that Apple’s first foldable will have an industry-first 24-megapixel camera under the inner display. Under-screen cameras typically use 4 or 8 megapixels, suggesting Apple has achieved a breakthrough in greatly improving light transmittance and image quality compared to previous designs.
Apple is reportedly working on a radical redesign for the 20th anniversary iPhone that could feature a completely bezel-less display that curves around all four edges of the device. There is a strong expectation that Apple will skip “iPhone 19” nomenclature.
MacDailyNews Take: iPhone 20 (there will be no “iPhone 19,” just as there was no “iPhone 9”) in 2027 will be a revelation in terms of technology and in sales!
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Apple preps major new satellite connectivity features for iPhones and Apple Watches
Apple introduced Emergency SOS via Satellite with the iPhone 14 in 2022, enabling users without cellular coverage to reach emergency responders through satellite — but it was only the first step.
MarkGurman for Bloomberg News:
Since then, Apple has steadily expanded its satellite offerings. In 2023, it added roadside assistance via AAA for stranded drivers, and more recently, it enabled users to send and receive text messages — not just for emergencies — when off the grid.
The service links compatible iPhones — and now the Apple Watch Ultra 3 — to a satellite network run by Globalstar… But the competitive landscape is shifting. Elon Musk’s Space Exploration Technologies Corp., owner of Starlink, has become a major force in satellite communications and forged a wide-ranging partnership with T-Mobile US Inc.
A fast-changing industry could ultimately force Apple to change its approach. For one, Globalstar is exploring a potential sale. And Musk’s SpaceX is seen as a possible acquirer.
If SpaceX ultimately acquires Globalstar, those enhancements could roll out more quickly than otherwise possible. But such a deal would also force Apple to rethink its business model and long-term strategy for satellite services.
Apple’s approach has been to own a core set of features and offer them at no cost — from Emergency SOS to the upcoming enhancements — as a way to drive iPhone sales, encourage upgrades and keep users within its ecosystem. For more advanced capabilities, Apple plans to let customers pay carriers, SpaceX or other satellite providers directly.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple would do well to think apolitically and ink deals to use both SpaceX’s superior Starlink satellite connectivity and xAI’s outstanding Grok in Apple Intelligence.
iPhone users, including non-T-Mobile subscribers, can add T-Satellite with Starlink by calling 1-844-638-8913 or visiting a T-Mobile retail store. More info here.
Note: On February 28, 2023, Apple lent Globalstar $252 million to help cover upfront costs for replenishing its low Earth orbit (LEO) constellation to support Apple’s “Emergency SOS via satellite.”
See also:
• As Elon Musk’s SpaceX delivers real satellite connectivity to smartphones, Apple might be having second thoughts about propping up Globalstar – October 6, 2025
• Apple to invest up to $1.5 billion more in Globalstar for satellite coverage expansion – November 1, 2024
• As Elon Musk’s SpaceX delivers real satellite connectivity to smartphones, Apple might be having second thoughts about propping up Globalstar – October 6, 2025
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