Roar is the new star-studded dark comedy anthology series from the same creators of GLOW. The series was recently released exclusively on Apple TV Plus.
Photo courtesy of Apple TV+
Roar is an anthology series based on Cecelia Ahern’s 2018 short story collection of the same name. The series is a dark comedy featuring feminist fables. The genres span from magical realism to psychological horror. It is an eight-episode series that will most likely confuse, inspire, and enrage you. The best way to describe it is by equating it to a too-literal Black Mirror episode but with a focus on feminist issues.
The eight stand-alone stories feature ordinary women in some weird, yet extraordinary circumstances. Again, like a too-literal Black Mirror episode. It is supposedly so weird that a reviewer from CNET wrote, “the star-studded feminist fables sometimes feel like something an AI regurgitates after spending too much time on Twitter.”
Roar, An Anthology of Dark Comedic Feminist Fables
Surely, you must be curious by now because just how weird does it get? Well, looking at the trailer Apple TV released ahead of its premiere date, things have turned for the worse. The first five seconds of the trailer show Nicole Kidman munching on photographs, then there’s Daniel Dae Kim installing a shelf for his ‘trophy wife’ Betty Gilpin. Not only that, in the two-minute trailer, we see the women in Roar date ducks, turn invisible, and get mysterious bite marks.
Alright, it is very weird, but it does have a point. All these bizarre stories shine a light on feminist issues but do so with a hint of realism and sarcasm. It is like showing the most extreme and unrealistic thing that could happen, albeit most of the issues they touched on are very much real. For example, in an episode titled “The Woman Who Disappeared,” Issa Rae slowly turns invisible whenever her male peers dismiss her. Every time she gets ignored in a meeting, her physical presence slowly starts to diminish. In “The Woman Who Was Fed By a Duck,” actress Merrit Wever engages in a romantic relationship with a duck. Yes, a duck. It is apparently a commentary on the hopeless dating pool.
The Cast of Roar
The star-studded cast is led by Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos) who also acts as the show’s executive producer; Cynthia Erivo (Harriet); Issa Rae (Insecure); and Merrit Wever (Unbelievable). Joining the female-led cast are Alison Brie (Happiest Season, GLOW), Betty Gilpin (GLOW, The Tomorrow War), Meera Syal (Yesterday) and Fivel Stewart (Atypical), and Kara Hayward (Us).
The rest of the ensemble includes Nick Roll (Big Mouth), Judy Davis (Nitram), Alfred Molina (Spider-Man: No Way Home), and Jake Johnson (New Girl). Jason Mantzoukas (Big Mouth), Chris Lowell (GLOW), Griffin Matthews (The Flight Attendant), and Hugh Dancy (Hannibal) complete the cast.
Photo courtesy of Apple TV+
Per Saari and Emmy Award-winning Blossom Films executive produced the show alongside Nicole Kidman. Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky and Allie Goss executive produce on behalf of Made Up Stories. GLOW co-creators Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch serve as executive producers and co-showrunners. In addition, Ahern executive produced under Greenlight Go, while Theresa Park is under Per Capital Productions. Roar is produced and distributed for Apple by Endeavor Content.
Roar Now Streaming on Apple TV Plus
The eight-episode anthology show is now available to stream globally on Apple TV Plus.
Published by HOLR Magazine.