Apple TV’s ‘Ted Lasso’ Alternative Is Filling a Gap for Viewers

1 week ago 10

Published Feb 4, 2026, 3:54 PM EST

Adam Blevins began working in the entertainment industry in 2022 as a Staff Writer for Agents of Fandom, where he progressed to Senior Editor and interviewed talent from Marvel Studios, House of the Dragon, and Planet of the Apes. He joined Collider as a News Author in April 2024, was promoted to a Senior position in December 2024, and has written over 3,000 articles for the site, including exclusives relating to Avengers: Doomsday, The Penguin, Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, and more. He primarily writes about the latest box office numbers and the hottest movies and TV shows on streaming, while also covering superhero and sci-fi news. He has completed a set visit for The Chosen and even has several months of experience writing Gaming Features at ScreenRant. You can find him on X, LinkedIn, and Muckrack.

Apple TV quietly released the first episode of its hit Ted Lasso replacement over the weekend, and the show is already a massive streaming hit. At the time of writing, Shrinking, the comedy series starring Harrison Ford and Jason Segel, is the #1 most popular show on Apple TV in America. To take the top spot, it had to dethrone Hijack, the gripping thriller starring Idris Elba, which is in the middle of its second season. Shrinking is still training Hijack on global charts, but it likely won’t be long before it claims the crown all for itself.

If Shrinking fans weren’t already excited enough to check out the newest season of the show, Apple TV displayed a tremendous amount of faith in Bill Lawrence’s hit comedy in the days before its return. The streamer announced that Shrinking had been renewed for a fourth season, a decision it was confident enough to make before fans had seen a single episode of Season 3. The latest season has earned stunning reviews of 89% from critics and 86% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes, and it’s on a path straight to the top of streaming charts. Apple made a wise choice renewing it for another season.

As for Hijack, the sophomore season of Idris Elba’s thriller certainly isn’t going as Apple TV would have hoped. The show opened to poor reviews, earning a sub-par 50% critics' rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, as new episodes have been released, it has clawed its way out of this hole to a respectable 72% at the time of writing. The audience-driven Popcornmeter has also settled at 70%, but that is based on fewer than 100 verified reviews.

Apple TV’s New Sleeper Hit Is a Best Picture Nominee

Apple TV’s latest sleeper hit comes in the form of F1, the massive racing blockbuster starring Brad Pitt that earned several Oscar nominations, including one for Best Picture. The film, directed by Joseph Kosinski, has been compared to a racing version of Top Gun: Maverick, which may explain its strong box-office performance. Apple TV spent $200 million on the making of F1, which proved to be a worthy investment when the film grossed over $631 million at the global box office. It’s been atop Apple TV streaming charts for weeks now.

Watch both Hijack and Shrinking on Apple TV and stay tuned to Collider for more streaming updates.