Meanings
- broadcastingIn the style of filmmaker Judd Apatow.
Go for a comedy, and you end up with Apatovian beta males whose emotions are largely tied up in the diminishing value of their comic-book collections.
2011, David Fear, “You've Got Male”, in Spin2 more examples
Segel, who may not have a third or fourth gear, plays Peter Bretter, a recognizable Apatovian hero: he thinks obsessively about sex, and at the same time he's an instinctively moral man.
2008, David Denby, “Overripe, Undernourished”, in The New YorkerYet without the Apatovian arc of its predecessor, it also feels a bit like a regression—especially given its typical sequel strategy of undoing the hard work of the previous film.
2015, A.A. Dowd, The AV Club, Ted 2 gets filthier but less charming
Origin
Apatow + -ian, with 'w' hardened to 'v'; compare Shavian.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Apatovian. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Apatovian
“Apatovian.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Apatovian. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Apatovian,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Apatovian.
Source: Apatovian on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.