M.I.A. (TV series)
2026 American crime drama television series
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M.I.A. is an American crime drama television series created by Bill Dubuque for Peacock. Karen Campbell serves as the showrunner of the series. Set in South Florida, it stars Shannon Gisela as Etta Tiger Jonze, a young woman from the Florida Keys who goes after the cartel that murdered her family.[1][2]
| M.I.A. | |
|---|---|
| Genre | |
| Created by | Bill Dubuque |
| Showrunner | Karen Campbell |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Bear McCreary |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 9 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Production locations |
|
| Running time | 38–55 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | Peacock |
| Release | May 7, 2026 |
All nine episodes of the first season were released on Peacock on May 7, 2026. The pilot later aired on NBC on May 14.[3] Reviews were mixed, but the series topped Peacock's U.S. streaming chart on its first day.[4]
Premise
Etta Tiger Jonze, a 21-year-old living in the Florida Keys, discovers that her family's marina is a front for a drug-running operation tied to the Rojas cartel. Most of her family is killed in an ambush. She heads to Miami, befriends Lovely and Stanley, and works to take down the cartel from inside while hunting the men responsible.[5][6]
Cast and characters
Main
- Shannon Gisela as Etta Tiger Jonze
- Cary Elwes as Tim Kincaid, a Florida investigator working the Jonze case[7]
- Danay Garcia as Leah / Carmen[2]
- Brittany Adebumola as Lovely
- Dylan Jackson as Stanley
- Alberto Guerra as Elias Perez[7]
- Maurice Compte as Mateo Rojas
- Gerardo Celasco as Samuel Rojas[8]
- Marta Milans as Caroline Carver, a member of the Rojas family who launders the cartel's money through Miami real estate[9]
Recurring
- Loretta Devine as Aunt Judith
- Tovah Feldshuh as Lena
- Tyler Tomás Perez as Matt
- Wynn Everett as Nancy
- Paul Ben-Victor as Boris Federov
- Selenis Leyva as Dr. Maribel Torres
- Mike Colter as Dominick Pierre
- Marc Macaulay as Wade Boone
- Dawn Noel as Detective Isabel
- Anthony Pyatt as Yuri
Guest
- Edward James Olmos as Isaac Rojas
- Billy Burke as Sheriff Jack Taylor
- Sonia Braga as Vida Rojas
- David Denman as Daniel Jonze
- Nikolai Nikolaeff as Kazimir
- Ashley Reyes as Gabriela
- Alyssa Jirrels as London
- Chabely Ponce as Dulce
- Austin Woods as Nathan Jonze
Episodes
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Revenge" | Alethea Jones | Bill Dubuque | May 7, 2026 |
| 2 | "Orphans" | Alethea Jones | Karen Campbell | May 7, 2026 |
| 3 | "Immigrant" | Gwyneth Horder-Payton | Debra Moore Muñoz and David Paul Francis | May 7, 2026 |
| 4 | "Can't Hardly Carlito" | Mairzee Almas | Felicia Hilario | May 7, 2026 |
| 5 | "Fault Lines" | Mairzee Almas | Jeff Augustin | May 7, 2026 |
| 6 | "Original Sin" | Ben Semanoff | Christina Piña | May 7, 2026 |
| 7 | "Hammer Drop" | Ben Semanoff | David Paul Francis and Felicia Hilario | May 7, 2026 |
| 8 | "Heart Matters" | John Dahl | Debra Moore Muñoz and Jeff Augustin | May 7, 2026 |
| 9 | "Aperture" | John Dahl | Karen Campbell | May 7, 2026 |
Production
Development
Peacock gave the series order on August 22, 2024.[1][11] Dubuque is credited as creator and executive producer; Karen Campbell, whose earlier credits include Dexter and Outlander, serves as showrunner and executive producer alongside him.[1] Alethea Jones and Stefano Sollima are also executive producers. Jones directed the first two episodes; Gwyneth Horder-Payton, Marizee Almas, Ben Semanoff and John Dahl directed the rest.[10] MRC is the studio, with Paramount Global Content Distribution handling international sales.[11]
Casting
Shannon Gisela was cast as Etta in 2024; M.I.A. is her first leading role.[12] In March 2025 Deadline reported that Maurice Compte, Danay Garcia and Cary Elwes had joined her in the principal cast.[13] Brittany Adebumola, Dylan Jackson, Alberto Guerra, Gerardo Celasco and Marta Milans were announced later, along with a guest lineup that included Edward James Olmos and Sonia Braga.[2] Rich Delia and Nicole Bruno handled casting.[12]
Filming
Filming took place in South Florida — mostly Miami-Dade County and the Florida Keys — with interiors shot at the EUE/Screen Gems facility in Miami.[8] The on-location shoot was unusual for the genre: many earlier Miami-set crime dramas, including Griselda and Dexter, filmed elsewhere using Miami stand-ins.[2][14]
Release
Reception
Critical response
Reviews were mixed. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has a 67% approval rating; the score was below 60% at launch and rose as more reviews came in.[15][4] Metacritic gives the season a weighted-average score of 59 out of 100 based on seven critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[7]
Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter was lukewarm, calling the show disposable but watchable and noting that the middle of the season drags.[9] Variety likened the tone to a telenovela and described the plot as engaging but preposterous.[5] Jessica Toomer of Collider was more positive, praising Gisela's performance and the use of real Miami locations.[14] A dissenting view came from JoBlo's Alex Maidy, who wrote that "M.I.A. is D.O.A."[4]
Viewership
Per FlixPatrol, M.I.A. debuted at No. 1 on Peacock in the United States. On Paramount+ it reached No. 3 worldwide during its premiere week, behind Yellowstone and Tulsa King.[4][16]
Future
In an interview with Screen Rant before the premiere, Dubuque and Campbell said they had plans for further seasons, though Peacock has not announced a renewal.[6]