The budget forSeveranceseason 2 increased to the point that it reportedly wiped out all of the production studio’s profit.Severanceseason 2 has returned to Apple TV+, three years after the first installment premiered. Although some of that extended gap between episodes comes down to strike-related delays, the production process was also slowed down by disagreements between the showrunners and changing ideas about what the second installment would look like.
Due to reported animosity between showrunners Dan Erickson and Mark Friedman, not to mention scrapped scripts and aborted storylines,the cost ofSeveranceseason 2rose to $20 million per episode. New details underline where some of that cost went. It also explains what the price tag means for Fifth Season, formerly known as Endeavor Content, which produces the sci-fi thriller.
Severance Season 2 Reportedly Wiped Out Fifth Season’s Profit
The Production Studio Shouldered A Lot Of The Cost
Fifth Season is also behind shows like Hulu’sNine Perfect Strangersand Max’sTokyo Vice.
Apple and Fifth Season declined to comment onPuck’s story, but the new details suggest that Fifth Season is unlikely to make much profit on season 2. Still, because of the earlypositive reviews forSeveranceseason 2, there’s a hope that the viewership will continue to grow and that the thriller will receive attention at major awards like the Emmys. If that is the case, Belloni suggests that Apple is likely to move forward onSeveranceseason 3 and beyond.
Our Take On Severance’s Future
At Least Season 3 Seems To Be A Lock
When he has addressed the show’s reported budget in interviews, executive producer and director Ben Stiller largely maintained that he pushed for the much-anticipatedSeverancereturn to be perfect. If that quest for perfection results in a notable uptick in interest for Apple TV+, making it more competitive with Netflix and Prime Video, then these sophomore stumbles are likely to be forgiven.
Cast
Severance is a psychological thriller series featuring Adam Scott as Mark Scout, an employee at Lumon Industries who undergoes a “severance” procedure to separate his work and personal memories. However, as work and life personas mysteriously begin to collide, it quickly becomes clear that not all is as it seems. Created by Dan Erickson and directed by Ben Stiller and Aoife McArdle.
