Note: This story contains spoilers from the first two episodes of “The Morning Show” Season 3.
Season 3 of “The Morning Show” premiered Wednesday, Sept. 13 with two episodes launching on Apple TV+. Dynamic duo Alex Levy (Jennifer Anniston) and Bradley Jackson (Reese Witherspoon) returned, but not exactly in the same roles as they were at the end of Season 2. The new episodes jumped forward in time to March 10, 2022 — about two years since we last saw the characters, with Alex fighting through COVID in front of the cameras during the early days of the pandemic in 2020.
Bradley has taken on the Evening News chair, which she coveted back when Eric Nomani (Hasan Minhaj) rose up in the ranks to helm the hard-hitting political coverage at UBA. Alex found new fame with “Alex Unfiltered,” her Emmy Award-winning special which stemmed from Chip’s idea to broadcast her live battle with COVID across the airwaves. Yanko (Nestor Campbell) no longer handles as many weather duties, instead anchoring ‘The Morning Show’ with newcomer Chistina Hunter (Nicole Beharie), a former U.S. Olympic athlete turned journalist.
Read on for our list of shocking highlights from the first two episodes of “The Morning Show” Season 3:
Episode 1: “The Kármán Line”
Bradley Woke Up in Bed with a Woman Who Was NOT Laura Peterson
Bradley’s sexuality came into question last season, during which she and YDA anchor Laura Peterson (Julianna Margulies) struck up a relationship. Last we left off, the two had started a relationship of sorts, though the way they were outed to the public wasn’t the most desirable. Early on in the first episode, Bradley wakes up (way past the early rising time for filming “The Morning Show”) in bed with a dark-haired woman, but that woman is not Laura. What happened?
Cory Wants to Sell UBA to Tech Titan Paul Marks
Maybe this shouldn’t be surprising since “The Morning Show” tends to mirror real-life events, and tech titans have been purchasing legacy media companies recently. But the way Cory courted Jon Hamm’s Paul Marks in a sauna brings into question why the deal-making is so tense between the Hyperion head and the president of UBA.
Bradley’s Drunk Acceptance Speech
Bradley received a prestigious journalism award for her reporting of the Jan. 6 insurrection from inside the US Capitol building. This is not surprising at all since she constantly wants to be at the heart of things as a journalist. But, she did use the speech to call out some people behind the scenes at UBA for canning her story about a woman in Texas who crosses the border to get abortion pills for women. She’s come far from the shy, new hire at UBA three seasons ago, whose life was changed when Alex pulled a similar move and went off script for her own award-acceptance speech.
Paul Marks Flirted with Alex
Alex had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fly up into space for a short while in the Hyperion 1 rocket with Paul Marks and Cory, foreshadowing his potential acquisition of UBA. Marks approached Alex and offered her a tour of the facilities, but actually took her on a chaotic ATV ride around the Hyperion property. This is the first sign of a spark between the billionaire and America’s favorite TV journalist.
Alex Jumped (Rocket)Ship to Send Cory a Message, Bradley Went to Space Instead
In another power move that Alex knew she could pull now that she has more sway at UBA, she left to go take Bradley’s abortion story after Bradley tipped her off about the woman’s arrest and detainment. Alex had asked Cory for a spot on the UBA board and more stake in her future at the company, so this was her way of driving the message home. Bradley flew out herself to initially report the news, but Cory intercepted her to ask that she take Alex’s place on Hyperion 1 so that UBA can save face. Paul Marks was not happy about Alex’s absence and came off as a jerk to Bradley, who tried to keep their introduction lighthearted on the heels of a serious space adventure.
The Rocket’s Live Feed Cut Out
Yanko and Christina reported from the ground as the rocket launched. Once Bradley, Paul and Cory arrive above the earth’s surface, Bradley began to report from the rocket to Yanko and Chris. Yanko asks Bradley how the view was, but as she began to describe how awestruck she felt, the live feed from the rocket to UBA went black. What a cliffhanger for the first episode of Season 3!
Episode 2: “Ghost in the Machine”
The Hack/Cyberattack
Even though the feed from the rocket resumed rather quickly, UBA wasn’t in the clear just yet. Someone hacked into their system during “The Morning Show” broadcast. Then the live feed cut to black, the doors to the control room locked and blaring rock music signified that someone was messing with UBA’s operations. Even the elevators stopped working, forcing Bradley and Chip to spend unplanned time together between floors.
The scariest moment might have been the perpetrator emailing a leaked intimate video that Bradley made for Laura Peterson when they were together, or when the hacker recorded Stella (Greta Lee) pinpointing that the UBA server was compromised and played a recording of her voice back to her through her phone.
What Happened “Last Year” That Bradley Is So Worried About?
Did Bradley and Corey sleep together? Something suggests they might have when she asks to talk to him about “what happened last year.” She asks if he’s told anyone about that event, in light of the hacker’s access to anything and everything. Cory shook his head no at Bradley’s question, noting that she didn’t tell anyone either, so looks like viewers will have to wait for their secret to eventually come to light.
Maria Canals-Barrera (“Wizards of Waverly Place”) Cameos as a UBA Board Member
The actress plays Mercedes, who appears in a few shots during the emergency board meeting Cory calls to try and convince the stakeholders that they need to pay off the hacker with $50 million so that Bradley’s risky video doesn’t make headlines in the morning. Unfortunately, Cybil (Holland Taylor), Leonard (Stephen Fry), Mercedes and more vote not to pay the ransom, so Bradley has to hint at the news herself on the evening segment.
Chip and Isabella Are Now Dating
Chip (Mark Duplass) and Isabella (Hannah Leder), UBA’s new director of development, had been keeping their relationship status secret — so Alex, of course, found out under awkward circumstances. The couple went to her apartment to check a personal computer connected to the UBA server. They got a bit carried away and were half-stripped when Alex got home to find them making out on her countertop. Alex took everything in stride, but some viewers might remember that Chip was engaged to another woman last season. His feelings for Alex seemed to get in the way of that too.
Stella Has a Selfie with Paul!
Stella, who came to UBA from the tech world, is revealed to have some sort of history Paul Marks, hinting that it’s not a rosy past when she founf out Cory is courting him to buy UBA. She warned Cory that Paul is tricky and way more clever than people might first give him credit for, calling him a “whole different beast.” Something must have gone down between Stella and Paul, especially because she has a past selfie with the tech mogul from a while ago, in which she looks younger and has long hair.
“The Morning Show” airs new episodes Wednesdays on Apple TV+.
