Blunt Talk
2015 American TV series or program
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Blunt Talk is an American television sitcom on the Starz cable network starring Patrick Stewart, created by Jonathan Ames, and executive produced by Seth MacFarlane.[1][2] The series' first two episodes were released online on August 15, 2015,[3] and premiered on Starz on August 22, 2015. The first season concluded on October 24, 2015.[4]
| Blunt Talk | |
|---|---|
| |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | Jonathan Ames |
| Starring | |
| Theme music composer | Moby |
| Opening theme | "Blunt Talk Theme" |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 2 |
| No. of episodes | 20 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Running time | 27–30 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | Starz |
| Release | August 22, 2015 – December 11, 2016 |
Starz ordered 20 episodes, which were split into two seasons.[1] The second season premiered on October 2, 2016, and concluded on December 11, 2016.[5] On December 20, 2016, the show was cancelled after two seasons.[6]
Premise
The show follows British newscaster Walter Blunt who moves to Los Angeles with the intention of conquering American nightly cable news. His misguided decisions on and off the air prove that his ultimate ambitions will be difficult to achieve.
Blunt's name was taken from the minor character Sir Walter Blunt in William Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1, which was Stewart's first role with the Royal Shakespeare Company.[citation needed]
Cast
Main
- Patrick Stewart as Walter Blunt,[1] Falklands War veteran and former Royal Marines major turned cable journalist.
- Jacki Weaver as Rosalie Winter[7]
- Adrian Scarborough as Harry Chandler,[7] Falklands War veteran and former Royal Marines lance corporal turned Walter's valet
- Dolly Wells as Celia, Walter's producer[8]
- Timm Sharp as Jim Stone[9]
- Mary Holland as Shelly Tinkle (recurring season 1; starring season 2)[10]
- Karan Soni as Martin Bassi (recurring season 1; starring season 2)[10]
Recurring
- Richard Lewis as Dr. Weiss,[9] Walter's psychiatrist
- Golden Brooks as Vivian, Blunt's ex-wife[10]
- Ed Begley, Jr. as Teddy Winter, Rosalie's husband[10]
- Fred Melamed as Dr. Mendelson,[9] Walter's second psychiatrist
- Romany Malco as Bob Gardner,[10] Walter's boss
- Brent Spiner as Phil,[11][12] a pianist at the bar Walter frequents.
- Lesley Ann Warren as Cornelia[13]
- Erik Griffin as Gershawn[14]
- Trace Lysette as Giselle
- Swati Kapila
Guest stars
- Elisabeth Shue as Suzanne Mayview[15]
- Jason Schwartzman as Duncan Adler[15]
- Sharon Lawrence as Sophie[11]
- Moby as himself[16]
- Daniel Stewart as Rafe Blunt[17]
Episodes
Season 1 (2015)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | U.S. viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "I Seem to Be Running Out of Dreams for Myself" | Tristram Shapeero | Jonathan Ames | August 22, 2015 | 0.446[18] |
| 2 | 2 | "I Experience Shame and Anticipate Punishment" | Tristram Shapeero | Jonathan Ames | August 29, 2015 | 0.341[19] |
| 3 | 3 | "All My Relationships End in Pain" | Michael Lehmann | Jonathan Ames | September 5, 2015 | 0.204[20] |
| 4 | 4 | "A Beaver That's Lost Its Mind" | Michael Lehmann | Reed Agnew & Eli Jorne and Jonathan Ames | September 12, 2015 | 0.221[21] |
| 5 | 5 | "The Queen of Hearts" | Bill D'Elia | Kirsten Kearse and Jonathan Ames | September 19, 2015 | 0.169[22] |
| 6 | 6 | "Goodnight, My Someone" | Bill D'Elia | Sam Sklaver and Jonathan Ames | September 26, 2015 | 0.179[23] |
| 7 | 7 | "Meth or No Meth, You Still Gotta Floss" | Michael Lehmann | Duncan Birmingham and Jonathan Ames | October 3, 2015 | 0.160[24] |
| 8 | 8 | "Who Kisses So Early in the Morning?" | Michael Lehmann | Jim Margolis and Jonathan Ames | October 10, 2015 | 0.183[25] |
| 9 | 9 | "I Brought a Petting Goat!" | Tristram Shapeero | Jonathan Ames | October 17, 2015 | 0.136[26] |
| 10 | 10 | "Let's Save Central Florida! Let's Save Midtown!" | Tristram Shapeero | Sam Sklaver and Jonathan Ames | October 24, 2015 | 0.161[27] |
Season 2 (2016)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | U.S. viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 1 | "I Remember That Time More Like a Movie I Saw Than a Life I Lived" | Tristram Shapeero | Jonathan Ames | October 2, 2016 | 0.160[28] |
| 12 | 2 | "If It Comes in a Plastic Bag, Don't Eat It" | Tristram Shapeero | Sam Sklaver and Jonathan Ames | October 9, 2016 | 0.135[29] |
| 13 | 3 | "Your Therapist and His P.... Are Here" | Leslye Headland | Duncan Birmingham & Jonathan Ames | October 16, 2016 | 0.095[30] |
| 14 | 4 | "How Is It That Every Conversation We Have Comes Back to the Size of Your Penis" | Leslye Headland | Jeanne Darst and Jonathan Ames | October 23, 2016 | 0.112[31] |
| 15 | 5 | "It's Been Months Since I Kidnapped You" | Bill D'Elia | Kirsten Kearse & Jonathan Ames | October 30, 2016 | 0.105[32] |
| 16 | 6 | "Love Is Not Linear" | Tristram Shapeero | Robbie Macdonald and Jonathan Ames | November 6, 2016 | 0.119[33] |
| 17 | 7 | "I Can't Believe I Made Love to a Sociopath" | Michael Lehmann | Sam Sklaver & Jonathan Ames | November 13, 2016 | 0.155[34] |
| 18 | 8 | "A Cell Doesn't Have to Be a Closet" | Michael Lehmann | Duncan Birmingham & Jonathan Ames | November 20, 2016 | 0.107[35] |
| 19 | 9 | "Walter Has to Look After Walter" | Tristram Shapeero | Kirsten Kearse & Jonathan Ames | December 4, 2016 | 0.098[36] |
| 20 | 10 | "Is This All Because I Didn't Call You" | Tristram Shapeero | Jonathan Ames | December 11, 2016 | 0.077[37] |
Ratings
Season 1
| No. | Title | Air date | Rating/share (18–49) | Viewers (millions) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "I Seem to Be Running Out of Dreams for Myself" | August 22, 2015 | 0.13 | 0.446 | [18] |
| 2 | "I Experience Shame and Anticipate Punishment" | August 29, 2015 | 0.15 | 0.341 | [19] |
| 3 | "All My Relationships End in Pain" | September 5, 2015 | 0.07 | 0.204 | [20] |
| 4 | "A Beaver That's Lost Its Mind" | September 12, 2015 | 0.10 | 0.221 | [21] |
| 5 | "The Queen of Hearts" | September 19, 2015 | 0.05 | 0.169 | [22] |
| 6 | "Goodnight, My Someone" | September 26, 2015 | 0.03 | 0.179 | [23] |
| 7 | "Meth or No Meth, You Still Gotta Floss" | October 3, 2015 | 0.06 | 0.160 | [24] |
| 8 | "Who Kisses So Early in the Morning?" | October 10, 2015 | 0.07 | 0.183 | [25] |
| 9 | "I Brought a Petting Goat!" | October 17, 2015 | 0.05 | 0.136 | [26] |
| 10 | "Let's Save Central Florida! Let's Save Midtown!" | October 24, 2015 | 0.04 | 0.161 | [27] |
Season 2
| No. | Title | Air date | Rating/share (18–49) | Viewers (millions) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "I Remember That Time More Like a Movie I Saw Than a Life I Lived" |
October 2, 2016 | 0.06 | 0.160 | [28] |
| 2 | "If It Comes in a Plastic Bag, Don't Eat It" | October 9, 2016 | 0.05 | 0.135 | [29] |
| 3 | "Your Therapist and His P.... Are Here" | October 16, 2016 | 0.03 | 0.095 | [30] |
| 4 | "How Is It That Every Conversation We Have Comes Back to the Size of Your Penis" |
October 23, 2016 | 0.04 | 0.112 | [31] |
| 5 | "It's Been Months Since I Kidnapped You" | October 30, 2016 | 0.03 | 0.105 | [32] |
| 6 | "Love Is Not Linear" | November 6, 2016 | 0.05 | 0.119 | [33] |
| 7 | "I Can't Believe I Made Love to a Sociopath" | November 13, 2016 | 0.07 | 0.155 | [34] |
| 8 | "A Cell Doesn't Have to Be a Closet" | November 20, 2016 | 0.04 | 0.107 | [35] |
| 9 | "Walter Has to Look After Walter" | December 4, 2016 | 0.02 | 0.098 | [36] |
| 10 | "Is This All Because I Didn't Call You" | December 11, 2016 | 0.02 | 0.077 | [37] |
Reception
Critical response
Blunt Talk received generally mixed reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the first season of the show a rating of 53%, based on 34 reviews, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The site's consensus states: "Blunt Talk squanders Sir Patrick Stewart's considerable gifts on a show that too often mistakes forced vulgarity for wit."[38] Metacritic gives the show a score of 54 out of 100, based on reviews from 24 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[39]
Dominic Patten of Deadline Hollywood stated in his review: "If the new series from creator Jonathan Ames and executive producer Seth MacFarlane was just a mix between another Network-inspired show about journalism and some very consistently bad behavior on the part of Patrick Stewart’s cable news host Walter Blunt, it would be hard to recommend giving such a collection of clichés much of your time. However, Blunt Talk, which debuts August 22 on Starz, is more than that and worth going along for the ride."[40]
TV Columnist Brian Lowry of Variety stated in his review: "The premiere starts with a rambunctious energy that temporarily promotes a sense of good will. Stewart’s Walter Blunt goes on a bender, sings rap and picks up a transgender prostitute. When the hooker politely asks if he’s troubled at all by who she is, he replies cheerfully, “No, I’m English.” The adventure ends fantastically badly, at least for Blunt's reputation. But from there, the series—which Ames produced with the seemingly ubiquitous Seth MacFarlane — pretty rapidly disintegrates, relying too heavily on Stewart's madcap antics and an assortment of not particularly distinctive supporting players, including Walter's sycophantic producers, Richard Lewis as his therapist and Romany Malco as the harried network boss."[41]
The Guardian's Brian Moylan stated in his review: "Blunt Talk is an odd bird. It's sort of like if The Newsroom and Veep had a love child and it was raised by Nanny McPhee in the Royal Shakespeare Company. It takes a close look at cable news and the personalities and celebrity involved, but it's essentially about one man who is trying to change himself and do the right thing, but is incredibly bad at it. A crew as colorfully inept as Selina Meyer's also surrounds him, but they don't have the stinging bile of Veep's crew.[42]
Mike Hale of The New York Times stated in his review: "It’s not accurate to say that Patrick Stewart hasn’t done comedy. He was funny playing himself as a poker-faced pervert in an episode of Extras, or dancing with Kelsey Grammer and telling him how sexy he looked in a tux on Frasier. And he’s lent his plummy voice to a raft of animated shows from Family Guy to Robot Chicken. But it’s fair to say that Blunt Talk, a new sitcom beginning on Saturday night on Starz, offers Patrick Stewart as we haven’t seen him before. Shuffling around an airport men’s room stall with his pants around his ankles, for instance, losing his patience as he tries unsuccessfully to cover the toilet seat, or gravely asking a transgender prostitute whether he can feed at her breasts."[43]
Accolades
For the 73rd Golden Globe Awards, Patrick Stewart was nominated for Best Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy.[44]
