Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon’s Apple TV+ anthology series “Little America” will debut on the streaming service in January, Apple said on Thursday. Along with that news came the bigger announcement that the show had already been renewed for Season 2.
Inspired by the true stories of immigrants featured in Epic Magazine, the entire eight-episode first season of “Little America” will drop on Jan. 17 on Apple TV+. According to Apple, the series “goes beyond the headlines to bring to life the funny, romantic, heartfelt and surprising stories of immigrants in America.”
The Universal Television-produced anthology series is written and executive produced by Lee Eisenberg (“The Office,” Good Boys), who serves as showrunner, and executive produced by Nanjiani (“The Big Sick,” “Silicon Valley”), Gordon (“The Big Sick”), Alan Yang (“Master of None,” “Parks and Recreation”), Sian Heder (“Tallulah,” “Orange Is the New Black”), Joshuah Bearman (“Argo”), Joshua Davis (“Spare Parts”) and Arthur Spector (“The Shack”). Heder also serves as co-showrunner alongside Eisenberg.
“‘Little America’ episodes are meant to evoke emotions that are as unique as each immigrant’s experience in this country,” Gordon and Nanjiani said. “We’re so happy to have the opportunity to be the conduit for these stories, and to have the chance to tell more of them in a second season with Apple.”
The anthology is the sixth of Apple’s original shows to already receive a second-season pickup, as four of the freshmen series that were available when the service launched on Nov. 1 have all already been renewed, including “Dickinson,” “See,” “For All Mankind” and “The Morning Show” (“Morning Show” had a two-season order from the start, while “For All Mankind” was renewed ahead of the streaming service’s launch) and M. Night Shyamalan’s psychological thriller “Servant” got its Season 2 renewal ahead of its Thanksgiving Day premiere.
The first season of “Little America” consists of eight half-hour episodes, each with its own unique story from different parts of the world. Read the descriptions, provided by Apple, below:
“The Manager” – At 12 years old, Kabir must learn to run a Utah motel on his own when his parents are deported back to India.
“The Jaguar” – Marisol, an undocumented teenager from Mexico, navigates the rarefied world of competitive squash with the help of her coach who inspires her to dream big — on and off the court.
“The Cowboy” – Iwegbuna, an economic grad student from a small village in Nigeria, struggles to adjust to life in Oklahoma ,but he gains confidence and a connection to home by becoming a part of a culture he admired most as a child: cowboys.
“The Silence” – Sylviane’s ten-day silent meditation retreat takes an unexpected turn when she develops feelings for a man with whom she’s shared everything but words.
“The Son” – When Rafiq escapes from his home in Syria after his father discovers he is gay, he’s forced to go on the run until he finds his “home” in the unlikeliest of places.
“The Baker” – Beatrice, the only one of her 22 siblings to be sent from Uganda to college in the US, tries to achieve her own version of the American Dream by selling her chocolate chip cookies from a basket on her head.
“The Grand Prize Expo Winners” – A Singaporean single mother wins an all-inclusive Alaskan cruise– allowing her and her two children to experience a taste of the good life on an emotionally cathartic trip.
“The Rock”- Faraz will stop at nothing to build a home for his Iranian family, including attempting to remove a massive rock from an otherwise perfect piece of real estate in Yonkers.