Apple made two Severance references during its iPhone 14 event – and fans can't work out what it means

Apple stopped talking about the iPhone 14 for a second to sneak two Severance nods into its recent Far Out event – and fans of the show are desperate to find out what the mysterious references mean. Were they teasing season 2, or was it merely a fun Easter Egg? 

The first moment came during an ad for AirPods, where a clip depicted a woman who looks just like Britt Lower's Helly R, in her pencil skirt, polo neck and Lumon lanyard, boarding a subway train. Curiously, the car's display suggests that its destination is 'Infinite Loop' via 'Milky Way Road', which could be nothing but could equally be a cryptic indication of what's to come in the thriller's second chapter. (Episode 2 of Severance is titled 'Half Loop', so it's arguably not a complete coincidence).

Then, at the end of the presentation, another clip showed the same red-haired doppelgänger waiting for the train as Severance's eerie theme tune kicks in. What's odd, though, is that it then shows Helly R glitching out of focus. Is Severance season 2 about to go full sci-fi? 

"Wait a darn minute! Apple casually slips 'Helly R' in their new product video!?!?" one watcher tweeted, while another wrote: "Who came up with adding Helly R into the event… they need a reward. Maybe a melon bar or egg bar?"

This isn't the first time Apple has acknowledged one of its more successful series at a tech event. Back in April 2021, at Spring Loaded, the brand "dropped" Ted Lasso's famous shortbread recipe, linking eagle-eyed viewers to a New York Times one online. (Apparently, the trick to making them as delicious as Ted is to add tons of butter).

Created by Dan Erickson and produced and directed in part by Ben Stiller, Severance follows a team of office workers at a sinister biotech company called Lumon Industries, who have all undergone a surgical procedure known as 'severance'. 

Supposedly used to keep the work they do a secret, the operation splits people's consciousnesses in two: one for work and one for their personal lives. That means that when they're in the office, their 'innie' can't remember anything about their real life, and is essentially trapped at work. As soon as they leave, their 'outie' can't recall what they've been doing all day. 

Season 1, which is available to stream now, follows Mark (Adam Scott), the new head of Lumon's Macrodata Refinement division, and his colleagues Helly, Dylan (Zach Cherry), and Irving (John Turturro) as they join forces to rebel against the company and rediscover who they are.

The show was renewed in early April. If you’re all up to date and itching for your next genre fix, then you might also want to check out our roundup of the best sci-fi movies, and draw up a new to-watch list.