| Revision as of 20:16, 8 June 2015 edit68.110.212.125 (talk) →Main cast← Previous edit | Revision as of 20:16, 8 June 2015 edit undo68.110.212.125 (talk) →Main castNext edit → | ||
| Line 39: | Line 39: | ||
| ===Main cast=== | ===Main cast=== | ||
| * ] as Rachel Goldberg, a producer on ''Everlasting'', who is brought back to the show by executive producer Quinn despite Rachel's epic breakdown during the previous season. Though conflicted by how she must lie to and manipulate the contestants, Rachel is a "closer" who thinks fast on her feet and know exactly what needs to be done to create drama on the show. | * ] as Rachel Goldberg, a field producer on ''Everlasting'', who is brought back to the show by executive producer Quinn despite Rachel's epic breakdown during the previous season. Though conflicted by how she must lie to and manipulate the contestants, Rachel is a "closer" who thinks fast on her feet and know exactly what needs to be done to create drama on the show. | ||
| * ] as Chet Wilton, the eccentric drug-addicted creator of ''Everlasting'' who is having an affair with Quinn. | * ] as Chet Wilton, the eccentric drug-addicted creator of ''Everlasting'' who is having an affair with Quinn. | ||
| * ] as Adam Cromwell, a rich British playboy and the "suitor" on ''Everlasting''. He is reluctant to do the show, but does so in order to do damage control over his "bad boy" reputation. | * ] as Adam Cromwell, a rich British playboy and the "suitor" on ''Everlasting''. He is reluctant to do the show, but does so in order to do damage control over his "bad boy" reputation. | ||
| * Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman as Jay, a gay producer on the dating show. | * Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman as Jay, a gay field producer on the dating show. | ||
| * ] as Anna Martin, a contestant who is a ] and an attorney. | * ] as Anna Martin, a contestant who is a ] and an attorney. | ||
| * Aline Elasmar as Shia, a producer who has a professional rivalry with Rachel. | * Aline Elasmar as Shia, a field producer who has a professional rivalry with Rachel. | ||
| * ] as Grace, a contestant who is a swimsuit model. | * ] as Grace, a contestant who is a swimsuit model. | ||
| * ] as Jeremy, a ] and ] on ''Everlasting'' and Rachel's ex-boyfriend, currently engaged to the show's new make-up artist Lizzie. | * ] as Jeremy, a ] and ] on ''Everlasting'' and Rachel's ex-boyfriend, currently engaged to the show's new make-up artist Lizzie. | ||
Revision as of 20:16, 8 June 2015
For other uses, see Unreal (disambiguation). 2015 American TV series or program| Unreal | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Black comedy Drama |
| Created by | Marti Noxon Sarah Gertrude Shapiro |
| Based on | Sequin Raze by Sarah Gertrude Shapiro |
| Starring | Shiri Appleby Craig Bierko Freddie Stroma Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman Johanna Braddy Aline Elasmar Siobhan Williams Nathalie Kelley Josh Kelly Ashley Scott Breeda Wool Constance Zimmer |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 1 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Marti Noxon Robert M. Sertner Sarah Gertrude Shapiro Bill Davenport Sally DeSipio |
| Running time | 42 minutes |
| Production companies | A+E Studios Wieden-Kennedy Entertainment |
| Original release | |
| Network | Lifetime |
| Release | June 1, 2015 – present |
UnREAL is an American comedy-drama television series that is premiered on Lifetime on June 1, 2015. It stars Shiri Appleby as a young reality television producer pushed by her unscrupulous boss (Constance Zimmer) to swallow her integrity and do anything it takes to drum up salacious show content. The show was created by Marti Noxon and Sarah Gertrude Shapiro, and was inspired by Shapiro's award-winning independent short film Sequin Raze.
Plot
Reality TV producer Rachel Goldberg (Appleby) returns to the new season of Everlasting, a popular dating show, after an epic meltdown the season before. With a reputation to rebuild and the show's demanding executive producer Quinn King (Zimmer) breathing down her neck, Rachel must pull out all the stops in what she does best: manipulating the contestants to create the outrageous drama the viewers of Everlasting expect.
Cast and characters
Main cast
- Shiri Appleby as Rachel Goldberg, a field producer on Everlasting, who is brought back to the show by executive producer Quinn despite Rachel's epic breakdown during the previous season. Though conflicted by how she must lie to and manipulate the contestants, Rachel is a "closer" who thinks fast on her feet and know exactly what needs to be done to create drama on the show.
- Craig Bierko as Chet Wilton, the eccentric drug-addicted creator of Everlasting who is having an affair with Quinn.
- Freddie Stroma as Adam Cromwell, a rich British playboy and the "suitor" on Everlasting. He is reluctant to do the show, but does so in order to do damage control over his "bad boy" reputation.
- Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman as Jay, a gay field producer on the dating show.
- Johanna Braddy as Anna Martin, a contestant who is a bulimic and an attorney.
- Aline Elasmar as Shia, a field producer who has a professional rivalry with Rachel.
- Nathalie Kelley as Grace, a contestant who is a swimsuit model.
- Josh Kelly as Jeremy, a cameraman and director of photography on Everlasting and Rachel's ex-boyfriend, currently engaged to the show's new make-up artist Lizzie.
- Ashley Scott as Mary, a contestant who is single mother with an abusive ex-husband.
- Breeda Wool as Faith, a contestant who is an insecure and shy Christian virgin.
- Constance Zimmer as Quinn King, Everlasting's demanding executive producer who pushes boundaries on the show to get high ratings. She is also having an affair with her boss, the show's creator Chet.
Recurring cast
- Arielle Kebbel as Britney, a contestant whom Quinn brands "the villain" and is the first one voted off Everlasting.
- Brennan Elliott as Graham, the host of Everlasting.
- Amy Hill as Dr. Grace Wagerstein, a therapist employed by the show who feeds the producers personal information about the contestants so that they can manipulate dramatic moments from them.
- Stephanie Bennett as Pepper, a contestant.
- Andrea Brooks as Tanya, a contestant.
- Genevieve Buechner as Madison, Quinn's production assistant.
- Natasha Burnett as Athena, a contestant.
- Melissa Elias as Crystal, a contestant.
- Elise Gatien as Rita, a contestant.
- Christie Laing as Shamiqua, a contestant.
- Siobhan Williams as Lizzie, a make-up artist on the dating show and Jeremy's fiancée.
- Natasha Wilson as Maya, a contestant.
- J. R. Bourne as Bill DeYoung, Quinn's former writing partner and ex-boyfriend who's a recovering alcoholic.
Episodes
| Ep. # | Title | Director | Writer | Original airdate | Viewers (million) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Return" | Peter O'Fallon | Marti Noxon & Sarah Gertrude Shapiro | June 1, 2015 (2015-06-01) | 0.82 | |
| The crew of the popular dating show Everlasting are shocked to find that their demanding and unscrupulous executive producer Quinn has rehired Rachel, a seasoned producer who had an epic meltdown during the previous season's finale. Among her surprised coworkers are rival producer Shia, and Rachel's cameraman ex-boyfriend Jeremy, who is now engaged to someone else. With a life and reputation to rebuild, Rachel steps back in the hot seat, swallowing her discomfort with the lies and manipulation that are required to keep the suitor Adam and a handful of other contestants from quitting, and all of the cast playing their assigned parts. | ||||||
| 2 | "Relapse" | Unknown | Unknown | June 8, 2015 (2015-06-08) | N/A | |
| 3 | "Mother" | Unknown | Unknown | June 15, 2015 (2015-06-15) | N/A | |
| 4 | "Wife" | Unknown | Unknown | June 22, 2015 (2015-06-22) | N/A | |
| 5 | "Truth" | Unknown | Unknown | June 29, 2015 (2015-06-29) | N/A | |
Production and development
On July 30, 2013, Lifetime placed a pilot order on UnREAL, inspired by Sarah Gertrude Shapiro's award-winning independent short film Sequin Raze. The pilot was written by Marti Noxon and Sarah Gertrude Shapiro and directed by Roger Kumble. On February 6, 2014, Lifetime officially green-lit Un-Real with a 10-episode series order, set to premiere in 2015.
Casting
Casting announcements began in September 2013, with Shiri Appleby first cast in the lead role of Rachel Goldberg, the young staffer working on the reality dating competition. Freddie Stroma was the next actor cast in the series, in the role of Adam Cromwell, the smart and wealthy bachelor on the dating series. Shortly after, Josh Kelly signed onto the series regular role of Jeremy, Rachel's ex-boyfriend who also works as a cameraman on the dating series. Breeda Wool was then added to the cast for the role of Faith, one of the contestants on the series. In early-November, Megyn Price, Nathalie Kelley, and Johanna Braddy joined the series. Price signed onto the role of Quinn King, the controlling executive producer on the reality series; Kelley joined in the role of Grace, an eco-swimwear designer/model and contestant on the series; and Braddy set as Anna, a type-A control freak and attorney who is also a contestant on the series. Ashley Scott was later cast in the role of Mary, the single mother of a 4-year-old daughter who joins the series hoping to find love.
In June 2014, Price was replaced by Constance Zimmer as Quinn. On July 22, 2014, it was announced that Craig Bierko has been cast as a character named Chet, who is the reality dating show's creator. On August 8, 2014, it was announced that J. R. Bourne and Siobhan Williams were both cast on the show. Bourne will play Quinn's ex-boyfriend and former writing partner who was a former drug addict and is now running a surf charter company. Williams will play the reality dating show's new make-up artist who is also Jeremy's fiancée.
Reception
UnREAL has received positive critical reviews. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes lists a 95% approval rating, based on 22 reviews, with a rating average of 8.2/10. The site's consensus states: "The revealing and thought-provoking UnREAL uses reality TV as a suitably soapy springboard for absorbing drama." On Metacritic, the series has a score of 77 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews."
In May 2015, UnREAL was one of five honorees in the Most Exciting New Series category at the 5th Critics' Choice Television Awards.
References
- Adams, Bradley (June 2, 2015). "Final Adjusted TV Ratings for Monday 1st June 2015". SpoilerTV.com. Retrieved June 3, 2015.
- ^ "UnREAL - Episodes". Zap2it.com. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
- "Development Update: Tuesday, July 30". The Futon Critic. July 30, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
- Porter, Rick (February 6, 2014). "Lifetime picks up Buffy EP Marti Noxon's Un-Real to series". Zap2it.com. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
- Andreeva, Nellie (February 6, 2014). "Lifetime Picks Up Marti Noxon's Dark Comedy Pilot Un-Real To Series". Deadline.com. Retrieved January 21, 2015.
- Bibel, Sara (March 16, 2015). "Scripted Drama UnREAL to Premiere Monday, June 1 on Lifetime". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
- Masters, Megan (September 20, 2013). "TVLine Items: New Supernatural Poster Revealed, Shiri Appleby Joins Buffy Vet's Pilot and More!". TVLine. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
- Goldberg, Lesley (September 30, 2013). "'Harry Potter' Alum Books 'Unreal' Work for Lifetime (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
- Andreeva, Nellie (October 1, 2013). "Josh Kelly Books Lifetime Pilot 'Unreal', Grainger Hines Joins Cinemax's 'The Knick'". Deadline.com. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
- Goldberg, Lesley (October 22, 2013). "'Secret Life' Alum to Co-Star in Lifetime's 'Unreal' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
- "Development Update: Thursday, November 7". The Futon Critic. November 7, 2013. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
- Andreeva, Nellie (June 2, 2014). "Constance Zimmer To Star In New Lifetime Series Un-Real". Deadline.com. Retrieved May 9, 2015.
- Nellie Andreeva. "Craig Bierko To Star In New Lifetime Series 'Un-Real', Michael Irby Joins 'The Lottery'". Deadline.com. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
- The Deadline Team. "JR Bourne & Siobhan Williams Join Lifetime's 'Un-Real'". Deadline.vom. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
- "UnReal: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. 1 June 2015. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
- "UnReal". Metacritic. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
- Petski, Denise. "Critics' Choice TV Awards Top New Series Revealed". Deadline.com. Retrieved 2 June 2015.