I wonder if Apple will stick to this family friendly attitude on a world-wide scale. When Disney launched Euro Disney in Paris, Disney had to abandon very quickly the no alcohol policy because the European customers complained.
I can imagine similar complaints about nudity for Apple produced content
The obsession with nudity is one of the strangest aspects of the USA. Sadly I’ve seen Americans traveling abroad, take a group trip to the nude beach and then complain to the officials about they naked people. It is like what did you expect before boarding the bus? Beyond that what point is there to trying to raise hell in a country that isn’t yours?
This might be a smart move on Apple's part. I agree with Dead_Pool above. TV and movies have gone about as far with sex and violence, and CGI absurdity. I think more and more people are looking for good scripts, with uplifting stories told realistically. Add to this the aging demographic and people wanting to be able to watch shows with their kids and you have a market for tamer, but well written and acted fare. . I think Apple might be ahead of the curve.
This is the right way to see it, in my opinion. Apple is once again reimagining a sick industry.
Hollywood has been a wasteland for many years now, and TV fiction shows even worse, because people get caught up in — addicted to — stupid, violent series and garbage epics.
The article here calls this “mature content.” I beg to differ. It’s mostly adolescent fantasies.
HBO's first foray into original content was a made for TV movie called "The Terry Fox Story" about the marathon runner who lost a leg to cancer and ran a marathon. It was called ordinary by critics. But it gave them the experience creating original content. Now we have Game of Thrones. Also I don't think limiting content is really a bad or negative thing. Imagine how unfunny the Seinfeld episode "The Contest" would have been if they had just said what they were talking about instead of working it around the censors. It actually forced them to be witty in the humor rather than just going for the gutter. Sex, violence and drugs don't necessarily make the show edgy, the writing, acting and presentation make it edgy. Would Game of Throne be any less engaging if the sex and nudity was toned down? It would not surprise me if Apple is using the restrictions in the initial round of series and then once they get a feel moving into more "edgy' content.
Apple's approach to television so far has been very unfocused, though it is starting to look like it's coming together. The central premise of this editorial, though, is that not allowing gratuitous (does Andrew know what this means?) sex/violence and focusing on family-safe content is a bad idea because it "limits creative freedom" -- which is a ridiculous claim. I think Disney and Pixar, among many others, have long since proven that notion to be nonsense.
Writer: I want more nudity, profanity, drug-use, and gore.
Apple: Think different.
Writer: Apple is bad because they don't think like everyone else!
It's a shame that the feces you consume don't teach you how to be tolerant of differences.
Can we stop using the words "mature content" and "adult content"?
I'm 71 and like sex and violence as much as anyone, unless it's just stupid, which is more than 1/2 of such content. This does not appeal to my adult self- quite the opposite. Let's go back to "R" and "X". Imperfect? Yes. "Adult" and "mature" is pretentious.
World has grown to be arrogant,ignorant and thinks good old values are no good. So, Apple should come up with multiple channels or packages that categorizes into family, family + R-rated. Let people decide what they like to watch. At least critics won't complain against Apple's values and ethics.
Because Apple is a part of the story, there will be critics complaining about something. By not spending its money on the R-rated video content, Apple is giving people a choice: Join us or not.
Apple should stop interfering with creative ideas of writers, producers and directors who want to include scenes of sex and/or violence in their movies.
This site closes off comments about politically sensitive subjects. With that in mind, revisit the theme of this article. This site made a decision to step away from nightmarish commenting. Apple made a similar decision about video content. Why is this site right and Apple is wrong?
I'm with Apple on this, if all that is postulated in the story is true.
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. But I can understand people enjoying their shows laced with risqué material.
Personally, I have never been able to invest in a TV series, unless it is a comedy (like Scrubs or Coupling), or is comedic (like Psych). The only drama series I actually love is Sherlock, but that had it's share of humour as well. Otherwise, I've never been able to get into dramas, or sci-fi shows, or reality shows.
It starred Martin Freeman as a man wandering the Australian outback, looking for someone to take care of his baby daughter before he succumbed to the infection.
It had no gore, and hardly any zombies.
It was the best zombie film I have ever seen, bar none.
Likewise, scariest werewolf flick I've ever seen? Dog Soldiers.
No gore, and you didn't get to see a werewolf.
You rely too much on sex and gore to sell your story, and before long you've got Ed Sheeran doing cameos.
I'm with Apple on this, if all that is postulated in the story is true.
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. But I can understand people enjoying their shows laced with risqué material.
Personally, I have never been able to invest in a TV series, unless it is a comedy (like Scrubs or Coupling), or is comedic (like Psych). The only drama series I actually love is Sherlock, but that had it's share of humour as well. Otherwise, I've never been able to get into dramas, or sci-fi shows, or reality shows.
I had hoped that Apple would be interested in continuing the series Sense8. It was an amazing show fully embracing diversity, celebrating love, connection and what it is to be human. It was expensive to make, and Apple seemed a perfect fit. However it celebrated sex, showed the violence that is common these days, and some characters had a potty mouth. So, that will never happen. It’s too bad. Maybe someday someone will have what it takes to revive this show.
It it does sound like it will be great for 4th grade school kids, and adults looking to relive 1950’s TV. I’m curious to see the sleeping arrangements for Married coulpes. Will they show two side by side twin beds with plenty of space in between? When I was growing up I thought my parents were strange for sharing one larger bed!
Thankfully I can turn to HBO, Netflix, and even BBC for my far less puritanical interests. It’s odd that Apple sells lurid novels and graphic music, and videos that depict what they refuse to put their name on. Guess that’s OK to start. It would not surprise me if in time they start releasing more adult video under a different name. They could call it Next TV, leaving Apple’s pristine image unsullied...
Apple should stop interfering with creative ideas of writers, producers and directors who want to include scenes of sex and/or violence in their movies.
Using that sorry excuse for logic, Disney should stop "interfering" with those the creative ideas of writers, producers, and directors who want to include hardcore porn in their movies.
Or, those writers, producers, and directors could go elsewhere and use somebody else's money to fund and create their works. Nobody is holding a gun to their head and telling them they must work with Apple.
In the end, the creators of work will go where they think they get the best deal. If that turns out to be Apple, fine. If it's somewhere else, that's fine as well. The market will decide whether or not it likes what Apple produces.
No, Apple's planned content restrictions are not "censorship," as Daily Telegraphludicrously stated in a headline. Apple can air or not air whatever content it chooses on their own platform. It remains not a public venue, and can police its platform, and its devices, any way it sees fit.
No, Apple's planned content restrictions are not "censorship," as Daily Telegraphludicrously stated in a headline. Apple can air or not air whatever content it chooses on their own platform. It remains not a public venue, and can police its platform, and its devices, any way it sees fit.
Exactly right.
I second that thought. The title of this article is pretentious. Artists who are willing to accept payment for their work from Apple and then cry "creative freedom" restrictions need to put their values ahead of their wallet. It's really very easy: If you really want unrestricted "creative freedom" then go ahead and engage in some "creative financing" to pay for it. Apple is your customer and the customer is always right, whether you're making movies or making donuts. Fund your personal crusades with your own money.
I wonder if Apple will stick to this family friendly attitude on a world-wide scale. When Disney launched Euro Disney in Paris, Disney had to abandon very quickly the no alcohol policy because the European customers complained.
I can imagine similar complaints about nudity for Apple produced content
The obsession with nudity is one of the strangest aspects of the USA. Sadly I’ve seen Americans traveling abroad, take a group trip to the nude beach and then complain to the officials about they naked people. It is like what did you expect before boarding the bus? Beyond that what point is there to trying to raise hell in a country that isn’t yours?
I think the nudity thing started with the Puritans. It amazes me how we celebrate violence, but a nipple shown on live TV is a scandal. It is maintained by people who romanticize a past that never actually existed and who, in many cases, seem to be in denial about who they are and are overcompensating. For example, gay, or serially divorcing or cheating “traditional family values” government officials who sit in judgement of others. Viewers tolerated thie resulting, generic programming in the past largely due to lack of alternatives. In the 70’s and 80’s I could watch 4 local channels and maybe 2 more from the next closest markets and were redundant.
Apple can do what it wants, but If writers’ and producers’ hands are tied their shows will seem boring and retrograde to modern viewers, and it really won’t end well.
I wonder if Apple will stick to this family friendly attitude on a world-wide scale. When Disney launched Euro Disney in Paris, Disney had to abandon very quickly the no alcohol policy because the European customers complained.
I can imagine similar complaints about nudity for Apple produced content
The obsession with nudity is one of the strangest aspects of the USA. Sadly I’ve seen Americans traveling abroad, take a group trip to the nude beach and then complain to the officials about they naked people. It is like what did you expect before boarding the bus? Beyond that what point is there to trying to raise hell in a country that isn’t yours?
I think the nudity thing started with the Puritans. It amazes me how we celebrate violence, but a nipple shown on live TV is a scandal. It is maintained by people who romanticize a past that never actually existed and who, in many cases, seem to be in denial about who they are and are overcompensating. For example, gay, or serially divorcing or cheating “traditional family values” government officials who sit in judgement of others. Viewers tolerated thie resulting, generic programming in the past largely due to lack of alternatives. In the 70’s and 80’s I could watch 4 local channels and maybe 2 more from the next closest markets and were redundant.
Apple can do what it wants, but If writers’ and producers’ hands are tied their shows will seem boring and retrograde to modern viewers, and it really won’t end well.
They can either take the money and "sell out" (sic) or walk away. People will either tune in, or walk away. If People like to see decent shows that are not violence or sleaze fests, then the market (people) will be served; creatives that want to be edgy will either not find a market elsewhere, or will.
Hang wringing about the whole thing is annoying.
If Apple stopped all content but G rated from their platform I'd get it, otherwise the who argument is specious.
How is Apple's exercise of creative control over content any different than over hardware and software? For all the hand wringing over things like removal of floppy, CD, ports, software options and the like, Apple has done fairly well.
I invested in Pixar's IPO, not because of impressive technology they brought to bear in service of storytelling, but because they treated storytelling as something worth serving. Though Jony Ive can sometimes sound ponderous, he's pondering the right things, and it shows in Apple's products. There will be misses, of course, but if Apple can produce content that's generally as good as their last 40 years of advertising, I won't be concerned.
Like others here, when I hear something described as "mature" or "adult", I wonder if its juvenile and intellectually shallow.
Comments
Hollywood has been a wasteland for many years now, and TV fiction shows even worse, because people get caught up in — addicted to — stupid, violent series and garbage epics.
The article here calls this “mature content.” I beg to differ. It’s mostly adolescent fantasies.
I'm 71 and like sex and violence as much as anyone, unless it's just stupid, which is more than 1/2 of such content. This does not appeal to my adult self- quite the opposite. Let's go back to "R" and "X". Imperfect? Yes. "Adult" and "mature" is pretentious.
I'm with Apple on this, if all that is postulated in the story is true.
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. But I can understand people enjoying their shows laced with risqué material.
Personally, I have never been able to invest in a TV series, unless it is a comedy (like Scrubs or Coupling), or is comedic (like Psych). The only drama series I actually love is Sherlock, but that had it's share of humour as well. Otherwise, I've never been able to get into dramas, or sci-fi shows, or reality shows.
It starred Martin Freeman as a man wandering the Australian outback, looking for someone to take care of his baby daughter before he succumbed to the infection.
It had no gore, and hardly any zombies.
It was the best zombie film I have ever seen, bar none.
Likewise, scariest werewolf flick I've ever seen? Dog Soldiers.
No gore, and you didn't get to see a werewolf.
You rely too much on sex and gore to sell your story, and before long you've got Ed Sheeran doing cameos.
Agree on Sherlock.
It it does sound like it will be great for 4th grade school kids, and adults looking to relive 1950’s TV. I’m curious to see the sleeping arrangements for Married coulpes. Will they show two side by side twin beds with plenty of space in between? When I was growing up I thought my parents were strange for sharing one larger bed!
Thankfully I can turn to HBO, Netflix, and even BBC for my far less puritanical interests. It’s odd that Apple sells lurid novels and graphic music, and videos that depict what they refuse to put their name on. Guess that’s OK to start. It would not surprise me if in time they start releasing more adult video under a different name. They could call it Next TV, leaving Apple’s pristine image unsullied...
Or, those writers, producers, and directors could go elsewhere and use somebody else's money to fund and create their works. Nobody is holding a gun to their head and telling them they must work with Apple.
In the end, the creators of work will go where they think they get the best deal. If that turns out to be Apple, fine. If it's somewhere else, that's fine as well. The market will decide whether or not it likes what Apple produces.
Apple can do what it wants, but If writers’ and producers’ hands are tied their shows will seem boring and retrograde to modern viewers, and it really won’t end well.
I invested in Pixar's IPO, not because of impressive technology they brought to bear in service of storytelling, but because they treated storytelling as something worth serving. Though Jony Ive can sometimes sound ponderous, he's pondering the right things, and it shows in Apple's products. There will be misses, of course, but if Apple can produce content that's generally as good as their last 40 years of advertising, I won't be concerned.
Like others here, when I hear something described as "mature" or "adult", I wonder if its juvenile and intellectually shallow.