'Roar': Apple TV+ Orders Female-Driven Anthology Series Starring Nicole Kidman, Alison Brie, And More

They are women, hear them roar — at least, that's what I imagine the tagline for the new Apple TV+ anthology series Roar will be. A series of "darkly comic feminist fables" executive produced by Nicole Kidman, Roar has been given a series order by Apple TV+, which announced a star-studded cast including Kidman, Alison Brie, and more.

Apple TV+ announced that it has given a series order for Roar, a "new anthology series of darkly comic feminist fables," executive produced by and starring Kidman, who is joined by a murderer's row of stars, including Cynthia Erivo, Merritt Wever, and Alison Brie, with more to be announced soon.

Roar is created by Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch (GLOW) and is based on a book of short stories by Cecelia Ahern. An eight-episodes series of half-hour "genre-bending" episodes, Roar is an anthology series "told from a uniquely female point of view."

It's hard to tell what Roar will be like with that brief amount of information, but judging by the title, and the description of Ahern's book, the anthology series will examine the different forms of female rage — which sounds like a juicy dramatic exercise for talented stars like Kidman, Erivo, Wever, and Brie. Kidman has been thriving on TV after turns in Big Little Lies and The Undoing, while Erivo is on her way to EGOT status with acclaimed roles on the big screen and small screen. But let's not discount stellar TV and film stars like Wever and Brie, the former showing her star power in titles like Unbelievable and Run, while the latter gets to reunite with her GLOW creators Flahive and Mensch.

Here is the synopsis for Ahern's Roar short story collection, which was comprised of 30 short stories:

In this singular and imaginative story collection, Cecelia Ahern explores the endless ways in which women blaze through adversity with wit, resourcefulness, and compassion. Ahern takes the familiar aspects of women's lives — the routines, the embarrassments, the desires — and elevates these moments to the outlandish and hilarious with her astute blend of magical realism and social insight.

One woman is tortured by sinister bite marks that appear on her skin; another is swallowed up by the floor during a mortifying presentation; yet another resolves to return and exchange her boring husband at the store where she originally acquired him. The women at the center of this curious universe learn that their reality is shaped not only by how others perceive them, but also how they perceive the power within themselves.

Kidman will executive produce Roar alongside Per Saari via Blossom Films, making this her latest prestige TV project that examines the female mystique in some way (following the likes of Emmy-winning series like Big Little Lies). Flahive and Mensch will create, showrun and serve as executive producers, under their overall deal with Apple. Also executive producing are Emmy-winning producer Bruna Papandrea, Steve Hutensky and Allie Goss on behalf of Made Up Stories, while Theresa Park will serve as executive producer for her Per Capita Productions and author Cecelia Ahern will executive produce through Greenlight Go.