A Man on the Inside is an American comedy television series created by Michael Schur and starring Ted Danson as a retiree-turned-amateur private investigator. It is based on Maite Alberdi's 2020 documentary The Mole Agent.[1] The series premiered on November 21, 2024.[2]
| A Man on the Inside | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Created by | Michael Schur |
| Based on | The Mole Agent by Maite Alberdi |
| Starring |
|
| Music by | David Schwartz |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Producers |
|
| Cinematography | David J. Miller |
| Editors |
|
| Running time | 27–34 minutes |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network | Netflix |
| Release | November 21, 2024 |
Cast
editMain
edit- Ted Danson as Charles Nieuwendyk,[3] a widower and retired engineering college professor who takes a job as an investigative assistant for a private detective to go undercover at Pacific View Retirement Community in San Francisco, in order to find a missing ruby necklace
- Mary Elizabeth Ellis as Emily Nieuwendyk,[3] Charles' daughter who lives in Sacramento with her husband Joel Piñero and their three teenage sons
- Lilah Richcreek Estrada as Julie Kovalenko,[3] a private investigator of Kovalenko Investigations who hires Charles
- Stephanie Beatriz as Deborah "Didi" Santos Cordero,[3] the managing director of Pacific View Retirement Community
Recurring
edit- Eugene Cordero as Joel Piñero,[3] Emily's husband
- Sally Struthers as Virginia Foldau[3]
- Marc Evan Jackson as Evan Cubbler[3]
- Kerry O'Malley[4] as Megan Chagughlaight-Accourse, Julie's assistant at Kovalenko Investigations
- Margaret Avery as Florence Joanne Whistbrook,[3] Virginia's best friend at the Pacific View Retirement Community
- John Getz as Elliott Haverhill[3]
- Susan Ruttan as Gladys Montrose,[3] Charles' neighbor at the Pacific View Retirement Community who was a costume designer
- Veronica Cartwright as Beverly Bankl
- Miles Fowler as Jaylen LaMont, a staff member of Pacific View Retirement Community
- Clyde Kusatsu as Grant Yokohama[3]
- Stephen McKinley Henderson as Calbert Graham,[3] a lonely resident at the Pacific View Retirement Community whom Charles befriends
- Lori Tan Chinn as Susan Yang,[3] the Pacific View Retirement Community resident council president
- Jama Williamson as Beatrice Vanbeck,[3] the activities director of Pacific View Retirement Community
In addition, Deuce Basco co-stars as Jace Nieuwendyk-Piñero,[4] Lincoln Lambert costars as Nico Nieuwendyk-Piñero,[4] and Wyatt Yang co-stars as Wyatt Nieuwendyk-Piñero.[4]
Episodes
edit| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Tinker Tailor Older Spy" | Michael Schur | Michael Schur | November 21, 2024 |
| 2 | "The Man Who Knew Too Much About Bridges" | Morgan Sackett | Sylvia Batey Alcalá | November 21, 2024 |
| 3 | "The Emily Always Rings Twice" | Rebecca Asher | Hayley Frazier & Emalee Burditt | November 21, 2024 |
| 4 | "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Painting Class" | Rebecca Asher | Bridget Stinson | November 21, 2024 |
| 5 | "Presents and Clear Danger" | Anu Valia | Janet Leahy & Alex Farber | November 21, 2024 |
| 6 | "Our Man in Sacramento" | Anu Valia | Karen Chee | November 21, 2024 |
| 7 | "From Russian Hill with Love" | Morgan Sackett | Lisa Muse Bryant | November 21, 2024 |
| 8 | "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold" | Michael Schur | Dan Schofield | November 21, 2024 |
Production
editMike Schur and his producing partner Morgan Sackett had been adapting the 1989 film Field of Dreams for Peacock. The series was not moving forward, so Sackett sent Schur an email asking if he had seen The Mole Agent, to adapt that into a television series.[5] Sackett suggested, via an email he sent to Schur, that Danson play the lead.[6]
In March 2023, it was announced that Danson was to star in the series.[1] The rest of the cast was announced in February 2024; at the time, the series was titled A Classic Spy.[3] In August that same year, Netflix released first look images from the series.[4]
During the week of May 9, 2024, for local filming in San Francisco and in the redwoods along the Russian River, the Netflix crew and President Joe Biden were all staying at the Fairmont hotel.[7][8][9][10]
Release
editA Man on the Inside was released on Netflix on November 21, 2024.[2]
Reception
editThe review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 96% approval rating with an average rating of 7.9/10, based on 26 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Tailor-made to suit Ted Danson's estimable strengths, this warm and witty sitcom discovers a lot of life left in those who've been put out to pasture."[11] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 75 out of 100 based on 21 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[12]
Ben Travers of IndieWire gave the series an A- and said, "It's a tremendous performance made to look effortless, much like A Man on the Inside is a sage, ambitious new series made to be painlessly, pleasantly enjoyed."[13] Reviewing the series for Chicago Sun-Times, Richard Roeper gave a rating of 3.5/4 and wrote, "A Man on the Inside moves at a breezy clip, but still finds room to flesh out a number of subplots and supporting players."[14]
References
edit- ^ a b Otterson, Joe (March 7, 2023). "Netflix Orders 'Mole Agent' Series Adaptation Starring Ted Danson From Mike Schur". Variety. Retrieved August 30, 2024.
- ^ a b Nemetz, Dave (October 28, 2024). "Ted Danson's Netflix Comedy A Man on the Inside Nabs Release Date — See Him Go Undercover in a New Trailer". TVLine. Retrieved October 28, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Andreeva, Nellie (February 2, 2024). "Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Stephanie Beatriz, Sally Struthers, Margaret Avery & Eugene Cordero Among 13 Cast In Mike Schur/Ted Danson Netflix Comedy". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 30, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Otterson, Joe (August 23, 2024). "Ted Danson Goes Undercover in First Look at Mike Schur's Netflix Comedy Series 'A Man on the Inside'". Variety. Retrieved August 30, 2024.
- ^ Villarreal, Yvonne (November 14, 2024). "Ted Danson and Mike Schur celebrate 'living a bigger life' with age in 'A Man on the Inside'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ Huff, Lauren (September 20, 2024). "Mike Schur says it was 'a no-brainer' to cast Ted Danson as a nursing home spy in A Man on the Inside". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 21, 2024.
- ^ Mense, Ryan (May 9, 2024). "San Francisco road closures, commuter impacts during Biden visit". KRON4. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ Kelly, George (May 9, 2024). "Everything we know about President Biden's trip to San Francisco". The San Francisco Standard. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ Cabanatuan, Michael (May 10, 2024). "President Biden arrives in Silicon Valley to attend fundraisers". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
Air Force One landed at Moffett Airfield in Mountain View around 7:30 p.m. Thursday, President Biden didn't stop to greet anyone.
- ^ Gentile, Dan (November 21, 2024). "San Francisco is the star of Ted Danson's new Netflix show". SFGATE. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
- ^ "A Man on the Inside: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 25, 2024.
- ^ "A Man on the Inside: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
- ^ Travers, Ben (November 21, 2024). "'A Man on the Inside' Review: Ted Danson Is a Perfect Spy in Netflix's Brave and Sentimental Sitcom". IndieWire. Retrieved November 25, 2024.
- ^ Roeper, Richard (November 21, 2024). "'A Man on the Inside' is a Netflix gem, thanks to Ted Danson and some sharp writing". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved November 25, 2024.
