In an impressive career on both sides of the Atlantic, David Oyelowo has come a long way from the ill-fated Danny in Spooks. 

From his acclaimed role as Dr. Martin Luther King in Selma, to lighter fare like See How They Run, he’s always interesting to watch. On television, he’s appeared in Silo and Les Miserables, as well as voicing Agent Kallus for Star Wars: Rebels.

Now, Oyelowo headlines the forthcoming Apple TV+ comedy Government Cheese, which looks like a lot of fun.

The surrealist family comedy takes place in the San Fernando Valley, 1969, and follows the Chambers clan. They’re described as a quirky family, pursuing lofty and seemingly impossible dreams, beautifully unfettered by the realities of the world.

When Hampton Chambers is released from prison, his long-awaited family reunion doesn’t go quite as he’d planned. During his absence, Hampton’s wife Astoria, and sons Einstein and Harrison, have formed an unconventional family unit, and Hampton’s return spins their world into chaos.

Oyelowo leads a cast which includes Simone Missick, Jahi Di’Allo Winston and Evan Ellison.

Talking to Variety, ahead of the show’s premiere at SXSW, Oyelowo said:

“I describe it as a parabolic, surrealist, absurdist family comedy, because it’s the only way I can quantify it. I hadn’t seen that before. And it’s very rare — certainly at the stage of my career that I’m at — to genuinely find and be part of something that you haven’t seen before.”

On that unusual title of Government Cheese, co-creator Ayesha Carr explains:

“The beauty of the title is that it means something different to different generations. In the writers’ room, we had some 20-year-olds who thought ‘cheese’ was government money. They don’t have any basis for what it meant in the ’70s, or as a whole. We like the vagueness of the title; we are not talking about this block of cheese or government assistance; we’re talking about taking something small and making it big.”

Government Cheese comes from writers, executive producers and co-showrunners Paul Hunter and Ayesha Carr. Hunter also directs. David Oyelowo executive produces the show for his Yoruba Saxon company. The producers are Apple Studios and MACRO Television Studios.

The show lands at Apple TV+ with its first four episodes on Wednesday, 16th April, 2025. The remaining six episodes follow weekly on Wednesdays.