Apple Inc orders Aniston-Witherspoon drama series

Apple Inc has acquired the rights to a new series starring and co-produced by American actresses Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, a spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, the spokesperson said Apple had given the go-ahead for two seasons, totalling 20 episodes – a rarity in the world of TV series production and the latest hint at the California tech giant's content production ambitions.

The untitled project taps top-level Hollywood talent at a time when deep-pocketed technology companies are jockeying with traditional networks to land A-list stars.

It marks Aniston's first TV show since her famous role on the hit comedy Friends ended in 2004. 

Witherspoon, who appeared on Friends as Aniston's younger sister, recently starred in and served as a producer of the Emmy-winning Home Box Office (HBO) series Big Little Lies.

According to US media, several broadcasters were engaged in a bidding war for the as yet unnamed project – a drama that will offer a peek into the lives of American TV's morning presenters.

It is the second TV production project announced by Apple in recent weeks.

In mid-October, Apple announced an agreement with NBC Universal and director Steven Spielberg's production house to work on ten new episodes of Amazing Stories, a five-time Emmy Award winning show broadcast on the American channel NBC between 1985 and 1987. According to the Wall Street Journal, the series' budget will exceed $5 million per episode.

It is unclear when the shows will be released or where viewers will be able to see them. 

Apple has not divulged if it will put its own TV series in the iTunes Store, where it sells shows made by other companies, or on another platform.