Apple Music’s first series, based on the Carpool Karaoke segment done by James Corden on his Late Late Show, will have an altered format to it, the show’s producers announced at the TCA winter press tour this week.
The 16 half-hour spin-off episodes won’t have Corden as host, but rather 16 different hosts, executive producer Ben Winston said. Plus, they will also involve parts shot outside the car in the manner of interviews, making them longer than what we see via Late Late Show.
“What James does is so special and singular,” Winston added. “It was silly, as we figured out how to make a full series, to try and replicate that. We fell in love with doing 16 specials. Each one was its own event.”
Branching out in that fashion allows the Apple series to present something different than what Corden already does on the Late Late Show, and to be able to include other celebrities that aren’t related to the music industry.
In terms of pairings, a sizzle reel revealed the likes of John Legend with Alicia Keys, Seth MacFarlane with Ariana Grande, Billy Eichner with Metallica, and Corden himself with Will Smith in one of the episodes.
The reason they have expanded with the new series is down to the demands they were getting from the celebrities themselves. “We wouldn’t do Will Smith on [Late Late Show],” Winston said. “So many people have been getting in touch with us, big movie stars, and we’re like, ‘that’s not really for us,’ but here with Apple Music it’s perfect.”
The spin-off Carpool Karaoke series will be exclusively available to Apple Music subscribers upon launch, but doesn’t have a release date yet.
Catch the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show on Gadgets 360, at our CES 2026 hub.