The illustrious star of 'The Good Place', William Jackson Harper, has joined the esteemed returning cast of 'The Morning Show', led by the formidable Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. The Apple TV+ hit series is expanding its sports desk for season four, welcoming Harper in the role of Ben, the confident and groundbreaking Head of Sports at the fictional network.
The addition to 'The Morning Show's' stellar cast continues to grow, with Marion Cotillard, an Oscar winner, taking on the role of the shrewd operator Celine Dumont, and Jeremy Irons portraying Martin Levy, the patriarch to Aniston's Alex Levy. Aaron Pierre, a star from 'Genius: MLK/X', will also guest star as a celebrated visual artist. The ensemble boasts an array of talents including Billy Crudup, Mark Duplass, Nestor Carbonell, Karen Pittman, Greta Lee, Jon Hamm, and Nicole Beharie. While Julianna Margulies won't reprise her role in season four, there's always a chance for her return in future installments.
Season four is currently in production, with no premiere date set yet. 'The Morning Show' delves into the competitive world of morning news and the lives of those who help America awaken each day. The third season left viewers on another cliffhanger, ending with a dramatic coup led by Alex Bradley (Aniston), who outwitted her love interest Paul Marks (Hamm) and aimed to steer their fictional network UBA and morning show 'TMS' into a post-merger era.
As for the fate of Alex's loyal partner-in-crime, Bradley Jackson (Witherspoon), the creative team recently revealed that the series plans to jump forward two years, leaving plenty of room for unexpected plot twists. When season four premiers, it will catch up to 2024, with Alex in charge and some of her 'TMS' colleagues rising to new heights. "Alex comes in, saves the day, the merger happens, and then we're going to see a couple years down the line just how easy, or not, this undertaking has been," teased Aniston. "We reenter the world mid-chaos. She doesn't know what the outcome for Bradley is going to look like. However that character comes back in, we'll see how that affects Alex's war plan. Because she loves her, but not enough to sacrifice the big picture."
Witherspoon echoed this sentiment, noting the uncertainty surrounding Bradley's future. "Bradley walks into that building [to turn herself in] and there are a hundred things that could have happened. We're sort of weighing and measuring each one."
Developed by Kerry Ehrin, 'The Morning Show' is executive produced by Aniston and Kristin Hahn through Echo Films, as well as Witherspoon and Lauren Neustadter through Hello Sunshine, a Candle Media company. Mimi Leder, under a multi-year deal with Apple TV+, directs and executive produces the series alongside Michael Ellenberg. Stoudt also has a multi-year deal with Apple TV+ for scripted television series. Harper's recent credits include Netflix's 'A Man In Full', Max's 'Love Life', 'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' on the silver screen, and Broadway's 'Uncle Vanya', further showcasing his versatility as an actor.
