“Severance” Budget: Apple TV+ Spending a Record Breaking Amount for the Highly Anticipated Season 2

Severance Season 2 will be one of the first major releases of 2025 and it is one of the highly anticipated projects given the Apple TV+ series’ critically acclaimed first season. The series explores a group of office employees who enter the ‘Severance’ project which makes it impossible for them to remember their office life at home.

Adam Scott in the still poster of Severance | Credits: Apple TV+

Fans were astonished to hear about the exorbitantly high budget of the series. For a series that takes place mostly inside a vast office setup, fans just couldn’t believe that it would break the record of most Netflix shows to become one of the most expensive TV shows. The series has Ben Stiller working behind the camera and Adam Scott leading a cast of talented actors.

Severance Season 2 budget beats some of the most expensive shows out there

Adam Scott as Mark S. in a still from Severance Season 2 | Credits: Apple TV+

According to Forbes, the second season of Severance costs at least $20 million per episode. It was reported that the second season will consist of 10 episodes, meaning that the total cost of the new season is a whopping $200 million. The high cost makes it one of the most expensive streaming series of all time.

The exorbitant cost makes it more expensive than most high-end Netflix shows. For instance, One Piece costs $18 million per episode, The Sandman $15 million, The Crown $13 million, and The Witcher $10 million per episode. The only show on Netflix’s roster with a higher per-episode cost is Stranger Things, which reached $30 million per episode in its fourth season.

Needless to say, fans are puzzled, as Severance lacks the grand settings that many high-cost projects typically require. Moreover, it’s disheartening for Apple to see that Netflix continues to dominate the streaming market by a significant margin.

This is particularly frustrating given Apple’s focus on producing high-quality shows, as shown by the audience appeal of Severance. According to Bloomberg, Apple is facing challenges due to the hefty budgets of shows like Severance. The report indicates that the company is scaling back its spending on original shows.

The future seasons of shows like Ted Lasso and Monarch: Legacy of Monsters alongside Adam Scott‘s series may not enjoy the same lavish budget. However, there’s more to uncover about the high production cost of the series.

Why is the budget for Severance Season 2 so high?

Adam Scott as Mark S., John Turturro as Irving, Britt Lower as Helly, and Zach Cherry as Dylan in Severance | Credits: Apple TV+

Severance Season 2 is set to stream in January, and only then can the questions surrounding its exorbitant budget be fully addressed. Apple TV+ already hosts great shows set in expansive, otherworldly settings like Foundation and For All Mankind. However, the budget of these shows remains lower than that of Severance.

One of the likely reasons for the inflated costs for the studio lies in the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes of 2023. The series was already in development during this period, forcing the studio to shell out millions of dollars to keep the production alive amid the industry-wide disruptions.

The show also appeared to have some hidden costs, like the cost of keeping major stars like Adam Scott, John Turturro, and Christopher Walken on television. One factor can be the set of the sci-fi series, which might incur huge production costs. Severance shows several one-off locations that are never seen again in the show.

The report from Bloomberg hints at behind-the-scene difficulties that may have significantly ballooned the budget. The outlet reported that there were creative differences between producers Dan Erickson and Mark Friedman.

Moreover, executive producer and director Ben Stiller rolled out plans for creating a movie between the first and second seasons, following the success of the show’s debut season. He brought on board writer Beau Wilimon to help with the script of this film. Wilimon is the creator of Netflix’s critically acclaimed political drama House of Cards and a writer for the Star Wars series Andor.

Stiller also had plans to make Wilimon the head writer of Season 3. However, when the planned movie didn’t happen—largely due to Stiller being too involved with the series—Apple Studios reportedly had to pay Wilimon millions of dollars for his work. Willimon contributed to only a few episodes of Severance Season 2.

It becomes more clear as to why Apple is now tightening its control over the show’s production and budget. While Season 3 may not have to face such production issues, it would ideally have to work with a limited budget.

Severance Season 2 drops its first eight minutes on Apple TV+

Adam Scott as Mark S. in Severance Season 2 | Credits: Apple TV+

After three years of waiting for answers, Severance Season 2 is finally here. The first season of the show left us with more questions than answers. The show explored Adam Scott’s Mark S., who is an employee of the fictional corporation Lumon Industries. He separates his non-work memories from his work memories as part of a ‘Severance’ program.

The first season ended with several characters realizing the truths about their inny and outie personalities. Severance just dropped the first eight minutes of the second season on the streamer, which didn’t answer any of the massive cliffhangers directly. In fact, the sneak peek takes place five months after Mark’s rebellion at the end of Season 1.

Mark meets three new co-workers inside the Macrodata Refinement section. He also learns that none of his former team members chose to return to work while his outie persona did. Mark doesn’t entirely believe that narrative and wants to hear from his former team members. The mystery is set to continue in the second season as well.

The sci-fi series stars Adam Scott, Zach Cherry, Britt Lower, Tramell Tillman, Jen Tullock, Dichen Lachman, Michael Chernus, John Turturro, Christopher Walken, and Patricia Arquette.

Severance Season 2 will premiere on Apple TV+ on January 17, 2025.