Malala Yousafzai signs Apple TV deal

Malala Yousafzai, the youngest Nobel prize laureate has signed a deal with Apple TV+.

As part of the deal, Malala will help create original programming for Apple TV+ across the realms of dramas, comedies, documentaries, animation, and children’s series.

Malala  will produce Apple TV+ original content through her new production company Extracurricular.

The multi-year partnership would “draw on her ability to inspire people around the world”,  said the company in a statement, adding that content would also include animation and children’s series.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity to support women, young people, writers, and artists in reflecting the world as they see it,” the 23-year-old Malala  Yousafzai said in a prepared statement.

“I believe in the power of stories to bring families together, forge friendships, build movements, and inspire children to dream,” she added.

“And I couldn’t ask for a better partner than Apple to help bring these stories to life. I’m grateful for the opportunity to support women, young people, writers, and artists in reflecting the world as they see it.

“My focus is entertainment, but the theme that I want to cover is connection. I think [TV shows and movies] — it builds that connection between us, as young people, as parents, as friends. If you’re sitting with your friends and watching one of your favourite TV shows, or you’re watching something in a different language and learning about a new culture, all of this reminds us that we’re such a diverse world but again, there’s so much in common between all of us.

Malala  Yousafzai further added that:

“In my own life, I’ve seen Bollywood films to Cartoon Network, they all have helped us in who we are, helped us learn about each other, different cultures, and so I hope that I can cover a wide range of areas through my creation as well.

“For me, it was the impact of Bollywood films and Indian dramas that helped me understand how society was — especially from a perspective of women and girls. And a lot of the Indian soap operas are — they reflect the traditional role of women. And for me, I’d enjoy it and it was a source of entertainment but also, I’d completely disagree with it, and I wanted to see it differently.

“There’s a lack of feminist perspective, there’s a lack of women’s perspective — and I often think, ‘What would it have been like if women had directed these shows if women had written these shows?’ I can bring in my perspective and I can show my side of the story, and I think we need to do a lot.”

this is going to be Malala’s first foray into audio-visual content.

The young activist who graduated from Oxford last year has previously written best-selling books: “I Am Malala Yousafzai: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban” published in 2013.

Her second book was “We Are Displaced: True Stories of Refugee Lives” released in 2019.