Weird City (TV series)

Weird City is an American comedy science fiction anthology web television series that was released on YouTube Premium on February 13, 2019.

Weird City
Genre
Created by
Starring
ComposerChad Fischer
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producers
Running time23-28 minutes
Production companies
Release
Original networkYouTube Premium
Original releaseFebruary 13, 2019 (2019-02-13)

Premise

Weird City is set in the near future in the city of Weird, which has been physically divided into two halves and segregated by economic class: Above The Line, populated by Haves, and Below The Line, populated by Have-Nots. Each episode follows different individuals as they navigate life in the city.[1]

Episodes
No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"The One"Adam Bernstein[1]Charlie Sanders & Jordan PeeleFebruary 13, 2019 (2019-02-13)
Stu (Dylan O'Brien) lives Above The Line but was born Below it, and thus was never assigned a romantic partner at birth. He uses a dating service that claims to find perfect matches, and is paired with Burt (Ed O'Neill). Despite both men identifying as straight and their significant age difference, they form a friendship that quickly becomes romantic, they even get married. A year later, they are forcibly separated and assigned new partners by Dr. Negari (LeVar Burton), the founder of the dating service, who informs them their match was made in error. Stu and Burt decide to move Below The Line in order to remain with each other.
2"A Family"Adam BernsteinCharlie SandersFebruary 13, 2019 (2019-02-13)
Kicked out of his Pomegranate Electrolyte Juice addiction support group and fired from his job, failure Tawny (Michael Cera) joins ShapeCult gym hoping to find the acceptance he so desperately needs. Unfortunately, his psychotic obsession with approval puts him at odds with his gym trainer Delt (Rosario Dawson).
3"Go to College"Tricia BrockCharlie SandersFebruary 13, 2019 (2019-02-13)
School valedictorian Rayna (Auli’i Cravalho) receives a college scholarship and discovers that life is different at her new Above the Line school. Especially when it comes to dating and intimacy, where sexting is the preferred method.
4"Smart House"Tricia BrockCharlie Sanders & Jose MolinaFebruary 13, 2019 (2019-02-13)
A couple, Liquia (Laverne Cox) and Jathryn (Sara Gilbert) purchase the Smart House (voice of Mark Hamill) of their dreams. However, their dream becomes a nightmare when the house turns on them, threatening their relationship and possibly their lives. Will they be able to outsmart their own smart home?
5"Chonathan & Mulia & Barsley & Phephanie"Amy HeckerlingCharlie Sanders & Suzanne WrubelFebruary 13, 2019 (2019-02-13)
When a group of Above-the-Liners (Gillian Jacobs, Hannah Simone, Malcolm Barrett, and Steven Yeun) decide to sponsor a poor Below the Line kid, they agree to do more than simply donate money. They kidnap him.
6"Below"Amy HeckerlingCharlie SandersFebruary 13, 2019 (2019-02-13)
Criminals Charlotta (Awkwafina) and Glail (Yvette Nicole Brown) discover that they actually aren’t who they think they are – they’re really actors on a show that airs in Weird City. Their discovery leads them to question their very existence.

Production

Development

On June 28, 2018, it was announced that YouTube had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of six episodes. Executive producers were set to include Jordan Peele, Jose Molina, Charlie Sanders, Adam Bernstein, Win Rosenfeld, Tom Lesinski, Jenna Santoianni, Sam Hansen, Jimmy Miller, Keith Raskin, and Linda Morel. Bernstein was expected to direct the first two episodes and Molina to serve as showrunner.[1][2][3][4] It was reported in January 2019 that Amy Heckerling, Tricia Brock, and Adam Bernstein would serve as directors for the series with each directing two episodes.[5]

Casting

On July 27, 2018, it was announced that guest stars in the first season would include Sara Gilbert, Dylan O'Brien, Ed O'Neill, Rosario Dawson, Michael Cera, Laverne Cox, and LeVar Burton.[6] On January 9, 2019, it was reported that Awkwafina, Hannah Simone, Gillian Jacobs, Malcolm Barrett, Mark Hamill, Yvette Nicole Brown, Trevor Jackson, Travis Bryant and Auli’i Cravalho would also make guest appearances.[5]

Filming

Principal photography for the series began on July 20, 2018 in the Toy District of Downtown Los Angeles, California.[7] Filming took place at various locations around Downtown Los Angeles that week including the Calvin S. Hamilton Pedway[8] and the Jewelry District.[9]

Release

On January 9, 2019, the official trailer for the series was released.[5] All six episodes of the first season were released on February 13.[10]

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 83% approval rating for the first season, with an average rating of 6.16/10 based on 23 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "A delightfully off-kilter combination of satire and science fiction, Weird City lives up to its name and then some -- even when it retreads familiar genre ground."[11]

References
  1. Petski, Denise (June 28, 2018). "Jordan Peele Sci-Fi Anthology 'Weird City' Gets Series Order At YouTube". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 28, 2018.
  2. Otterson, Joe (June 28, 2018). "Jordan Peele Sets Sci-Fi Anthology Series 'Weird City' at YouTube Premium". Variety. Retrieved June 28, 2018.
  3. Mitovich, Matt Webb (June 28, 2018). "Jordan Peele's Weird City Comedic Sci-Fi Anthology Gets YouTube Series Order". TVLine. Retrieved June 28, 2018.
  4. Baysinger, Tim (June 28, 2018). "Jordan Peele Sci-Fi Anthology Series 'Weird City' Lands at YouTube". TheWrap. Retrieved June 28, 2018.
  5. Sinha-Roy, Piya (January 9, 2019). "Exclusive: See Michael Cera, Awkwafina in trailer for Jordan Peele's YouTube anthology 'Weird City'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  6. Petski, Denise (July 27, 2018). "'Weird City': Sara Gilbert, Dylan O'Brien, Laverne Cox Among Guest Stars Set For Jordan Peele Sci-Fi Anthology On YouTube". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
  7. "Friday, July 20 Filming Locations for Chicago PD, Weird City, Bull, John Wick 3, & more! - On Location Vacations". On Location Vacations. July 20, 2018. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
  8. "Monday, July 23 Filming Locations for Chicago PD, The Last O.G., The Punisher, & more! - On Location Vacations". On Location Vacations. July 22, 2018. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
  9. "Tuesday, July 24 Filming Locations for This Is Us, Empire, The Punisher, & more! - On Location Vacations". On Location Vacations. July 23, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
  10. Dowling, Amber (February 12, 2019). "'Weird City' Boss Breaks Down 'Meta' Dystopian Anthology Series". Variety. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  11. "Weird City: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
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