‘TV’s Top 5’: Sara Bareilles on How ‘Felicity’ Influenced Apple’s ‘Little Voice’

Welcome to another episode of TV’s Top 5, The Hollywood Reporter‘s TV podcast.

Every week, hosts Lesley Goldberg (West Coast TV editor) and Daniel Fienberg (chief TV critic) break down the week in TV news with context from the business and critical sides, welcome showrunners, executive and other guests and provide a critical guide of what to watch (or skip, as the case may be).

This week’s five topics are:

1. Netflix whirlwind week.
The streaming giant has already had a busy July, with decisions to end four breakout hits and a rare move reversing course on perhaps its most important original. This segment explores the why behind it all and also surveys the latest digital news as the streaming wars welcome another entrant.

2. Cable’s been busy, too.
Peak TV has felt very, well, peak-y, this week with a slew of breaking news announcements from Showtime, FX, HBO, Syfy and Comedy Central, with the latter’s vision for its future starting to come into focus.

3. Broadcast is here, too.
ABC and Fox have selected their pilot frontrunners as they await a green light to begin production. The CW has its new Batwoman and said will bring back a DC Universe series, but not a Riverdale spinoff (which was one of two Archie-set shows to get the ax this week). Plus CBS fired one of its most prolific producers.

4. Showrunner Spotlight.
Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles and writer-director Jessie Nelson — who earned a Tony nomination for their work on Waitress — join the show this week to discuss Apple’s half-hour dramedy Little Voice. Named after a long-gestating song by Bareilles, the duo co-created the series that features original music by the latter. “What if Felicity was a songwriter?” That’s how Bareilles describes the genesis for what became Little Voice. The duo also discuss how J.J. Abrams — who exec produces — got involved with the series.

5. Critic’s Corner.
As usual, every episode ends with Dan’s look at what to watch (or skip). This week, he weighs in on Peacock’s scripted originals including Brave New World, Apple’s Little Voice, Starz’s P-Valley and more.

Hear it all now on TV’s Top 5. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to never miss an episode. (Reviews welcome!) You can also email us with any topics or questions you’d like to be addressed in future episodes at TVsTop5@THR.com.