Apple TV Plus renews divisive sci-fi series Invasion for a third season, but I’m not sure it should
Apple TV Plus has confirmed that its critically divisive sci-fi show Invasion will be back for a third season.
Announced via a press release and on its social media channels, including X/Twitter, Apple revealed that the expensive, globe-trotting sci-fi series had been renewed for another season. Per the tech giant’s press blast, Invasion season 3 will enter full production in late February.
Invasion Season 3 is confirmed (aliens not to scale). pic.twitter.com/st2LxNwXX5February 13, 2024
In a statement accompanying Apple TV Plus‘ announcement, producer Simon Kinberg said: “I’m so proud of what we’ve been able to do with our first two seasons of the show with our partners at Apple TV Plus, and our cast and crew. This new season will continue to build on the scale, stakes, and propulsion of the ‘Invasion’, while keeping our characters front and center, bringing them together in ways that will hopefully surprise and most importantly move our audience, who have been so incredibly supportive and inspiring since day one.”
Billed as an ensemble sci-fi spectacle, Invasion follows the lives of numerous characters whose lives are upended by an alien race that’s infiltrated – and is currently attempting to conquer – Earth. Largely, each individual’s story is a standalone affair, but plot lines occasionally intersect when characters are forced to work together to fight, research, or simply escape the wrath of the extraterrestrial lifeforms. Golshifteh Farahani (Extraction), Shamier Anderson (John Wick: Chapter 4), and Shioli Kutsuna (Deadpool 3) are among its main stars.
Outstaying its welcome?
Apple’s decision to greenlight another season of Invasion is a strange one. Apple TV Plus is arguably the world’s best streaming service when it comes to top-tier sci-fi shows, so it’s a renewal that – on the surface – might not seem so bizarre.
That said, Invasion isn’t a fantastic sci-fi series. A quick scan of its Rotten Tomatoes page reveals that critics and general audiences consider it to be a middling TV offering at best, with viewers giving it a bang-average 50% score. Its 56% critics rating reveals that its two seasons haven’t faired much better with reviewers, either. In short: you won’t find it on our list of the best Apple TV Plus shows around.
So, if it isn’t one of Apple’s highly-rated sci-fi shows like Severance, Foundation, For All Mankind, or Silo, and – to use the company’s own words – it’s an expensive production, why has Invasion being renewed? Maybe it’s proved popular enough among Apple TV Plus’s global userbase to warrant another sequel season. Review aggregation websites like Rotten Tomatoes are a good barometer for how well a show has been received and whether you should watch them.
However, reviews on such sites shouldn’t be taken at face value, nor are they indicative of a series’ popularity. Just look at the below-par 38% audience rating that The Rings of Power, a non-canon Lord of the Rings prequel series that airs on Prime Video, has been met with. Then, consider that its September 2022 debut was the biggest Prime Video TV premiere of all time, with 25 million people tuning in to stream its first two episodes. Rotten Tomatoes scores, and how popular a show is among audiences worldwide, are not one and the same.
So, if Invasion has proven to be a huge success for Apple, the company’s streaming division will believe it deserves a third installment, regardless of its critical reception. Without concrete viewership data from Apple – it doesn’t reveal such information, unfortunately – we can’t say for sure. But, considering it’s unlikely to be a cost-effective show, Invasion‘s viewing figures must be the main reason why it’ll *ahem* invade our screens once more.
