Free Agents is an American sitcom television series that premiered on NBC September 14, 2011, in the 10:30 pm Eastern/9:30 pm Central time slot, before assuming its regular time slot on September 21, 2011, where it aired at 8:30 pm Eastern/7:30 pm Central on Wednesday nights.[1] It is based on the British comedy series of the same name that was created by Chris Niel, who also serves as co-creator and producer on this version with John Enbom, Karey Burke, Todd Holland, and Kenton Allen for Big Talk Productions, Dark Toy Entertainment and Universal Television.[2] This show was the last series to be produced by Universal Media Studios during the revival of Universal Television.
| Free Agents | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Based on | Free Agents by Chris Niel |
| Developed by | John Enbom |
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Eli "Paperboy" Reed |
| Composer | Kurt Farquhar |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 (4 aired online) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Camera setup | Videotape; Single-camera |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network | |
| Release | September 14, 2011 – January 16, 2012 |
| Related | |
| Free Agents (UK Original) | |
On October 6, 2011, NBC cancelled the series after only four episodes were broadcast, due to low ratings.[3] The remaining four episodes produced were later released via Hulu on January 16, 2012.
Synopsis
editThe series followed the lives of two public relations executives at an advertising firm in Portland, Oregon: Alex Taylor (Hank Azaria), who is recently divorced, and Helen Ryan (Kathryn Hahn), a woman trying to move on after the death of her fiancé. They discover that they seem to have an attraction for each other, and have a drunken one-night stand, but try to stay professional at work, where their friends will do anything to get them to re-enter the dating scene.
Cast and characters
edit- Hank Azaria as Alex Taylor
- Kathryn Hahn as Helen Ryan
- Mo Mandel as Dan Mackey
- Natasha Leggero as Emma Parker
- Al Madrigal as Gregg
- Joe Lo Truglio as Walter
- Anthony Head as Stephen Yates
Development and production
editNBC took interest in this project after Executive Producer Todd Holland began developing the American adaptation with the UK's original writer Chris Niel and producers Nira Park, Kenton Allen and Matthew Justice in September 2010.[4] They also made changes to the workplace setting from talent agents in the British version to PR executives for American viewers, after NBC greenlit the pilot in February 2011.[5]
Actor Anthony Head was the only cast member who had ties to both shows, in which he played Stephen, the boss in the UK and US adaptations.[6]
Episodes
edit| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | U.S. viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | Todd Holland | John Enbom | September 14, 2011 | 101 | 6.12[7] |
| 2 | "What I Did for Work" | Peter Lauer | Ira Ungerleider | September 21, 2011 | 103 | 3.86[8] |
| 3 | "Dr. Hu" | Todd Holland | Diane Ruggiero | September 28, 2011 | 102 | 3.07[9] |
| 4 | "Rebranding" | Millicent Shelton | John Enbom | October 5, 2011 | 104 | 3.25 |
| 5 | "Nice Guys Finish...At Some Point" | Michael Engler | Emily Cutler | January 16, 2012 (on Hulu) (unaired on NBC) | 105 | TBA |
| 6 | "Are You There, Helen? It's Me, God" | Bryan Gordon | Alexa Junge | January 16, 2012 (on Hulu) (unaired on NBC) | 106 | TBA |
| 7 | "The Kids Are Probably All Right" | Todd Holland | Jill Cargerman | January 16, 2012 (on Hulu) (unaired on NBC) | 107 | TBA |
| 8 | "Sexin' the Raisin" | Kevin Dowling | Jon Silberman & Josh Silberman | January 16, 2012 (on Hulu) (unaired on NBC) | 108 | TBA |
Ratings
edit| No. | Title | Air date | 18-49 rating | Viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | September 14, 2011 | 2.1 | 6.12 |
| 2 | "What I Did For Work" | September 21, 2011 | 1.3 | 3.86 |
| 3 | "Dr. Hu" | September 28, 2011 | 1.0 | 3.07 |
| 4 | "Rebranding" | October 5, 2011 | 1.0 | 3.25 |
International broadcasts
editThe series was simulcast in Canada by CTV2.[10]
Broadcast by TV Séries in Portugal 4 weeks after the US air date.
References
edit- ^ Seidman, Robert (July 6, 2011). "NBC Announces Fall Premiere Dates - 'Chuck,' 'Grimm' Premiere October 21; Early Premiere for 'Parenthood'". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on July 9, 2011. Retrieved July 6, 2011.
- ^ Updated: NBC Picks Up "Smash", "Prime Suspects" and Two More Sitcoms to Series, TV By the Numbers, May 11, 2011
- ^ NBC Cancels 'Free Agents', Hollywood Reporter, October 6, 2011
- ^ Development Update from The Futon Critic (September 2, 2011)
- ^ NBC Picks Up 4 More Pilots: Drama From 'Lone Star' Creator, 3 Comedies from Deadline.com (February 3, 2011)
- ^ Ben Rappaport To Star In CBS Half-Hour Pilot, Anthony Head Cast In NBC Comedy, Deadline Hollywood, March 23, 2011
- ^ Gorman, Bill (September 15, 2011). "Wednesday Final Ratings: 'America's Got Talent' Finale Adjusted Up; Plus 'Up All Night,' 'Free Agents' 15 Min. Ratings". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on September 24, 2011. Retrieved September 15, 2011.
- ^ TV Ratings Wednesday: 'X Factor' No Idol; 'Modern Family' Premieres Big; 'Revenge' Gets Nice Start; 'CSI' > 'SVU', TV By the Numbers, September 22, 2011
- ^ TV Ratings Wednesday: 'Suburgatory' Gets A Good Start; 'X Factor' Leads Fox Win, As Post-Premiere Declines Vary, TV By the Numbers, September 29, 2011
- ^ From Channel Canada Archived 2011-10-12 at the Wayback Machine
External links
edit- Official website
- Official Facebook page
- Official Twitter page
- Free Agents at IMDb