How much money did Apple TV+ bring in when fired
There’s no doubt that The Gap is the show of the winter. Three years after its first season received rave reviews and caused viewers to generate theories online, “The Gap” season 2 was launched to great fanfare, highlighted by high-profile publicity stunts such as the cast appearing in a pop-up at Central Station. That’s all well and good, and the show is firmly planted in the zeitgeist, but has all the attention translated into actual financial success for Apple TV+?
Apple’s streaming platform has never been at the top of the heapdespite having one of the strongest track records when it comes to investing in quality content. It’s also one of the few companies involved in the streaming wars whose entire business isn’t tied to digital content. Apple TV+ extended trials are included with new iPhone and iPad purchases, giving Apple’s platform value beyond its paid subscribers. In other words, the question of the “value” of a show on a streamer is not entirely simple.
In a recent research report by Parrot Analytics, Deadline shared that the first season of “The Gap” generated more than $200 million in revenue, according to the agency’s Content Valuation methodology, “a formula that correlates audience demand with subscribers and, therefore, revenue.” That number might sound like a lot, but it’s also roughly the same as the reported production budget for Season 2. What’s particularly interesting is that, according to Parrot Research, nearly half of Season 1’s total revenue came in the year after the finale, which speaks to a powerful word of mouth marketing series.
Severance has become one of Apple’s biggest streaming series
A report from Deadline shared some of Parrot’s ratings for other popular Apple TV+ originals, revealing that “Severance” has already entered the upper echelon of shows on the platform. Apple’s flagship original “The Morning Show” brought in $299.4 million, but over a much longer time period, while the hit spy series “Slow Horses” earned $184.8 million for a “length similar” to Season 1 of “Severance “. however, that compares to the numbers obtained from Ted Lasso, which Parrott said brought in $609.4 million between 2020 and 2024.
There’s no question that “Ted Lasso” has been the most popular Apple TV+ original to date, which may be due in large part to the fact that it maintained a regular release schedule in an era when many other streaming series did not. “The Breakup” took nearly three years between seasons, but that could bode well for the show’s continued rise in popularity. The first season was a bit of a surprise, even with the notable marketing push it received—an original sci-fi thriller featuring big-name comedians both in front of and behind the camera. By the time Season 1 ended, the series had only grown its profile online, and there are many more to come for the first time with the start of Season 2 of The Rupture..
Apple is betting big on making Severance even more popular
While “Severance” Season 3 has yet to be officially ordered by Apple, members of the production team, including director Ben Stiller, have confirmed that work is already underway, and they seem confident in Apple’s commitment to the series. The company kicked off 2025 with a free Apple TV+ weekend for everyone, which can be seen as a general New Year promotion. However, given its proximity to the season 2 premiere of The Rupture, it was also likely largely intended to attract non-subscribers who had heard good things about the series online.
Like other “mystery boxes” before it, like “Lost” and “Manifest”, “Severance” became something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. The nature of his writing, which requires fans to master theory and focus on every little clue, naturally attracts viewers. We all want to watch what everyone is talking about, especially while the real answers have yet to be revealed.
It remains to be seen whether “Severance” can maintain the same level of interest once it starts cashing in on some of its long-held secrets. Answers can often be the bane of shows built around mysteries, but The Gap certainly has a strong foundation at the start of Season 2, and that’s already working well for Apple.