Breeders
Breeders Title Card.png
GenreDark comedy
Created by
Starring
Country of origin
  • United Kingdom
  • United States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes30
Production
Executive producers
  • Martin Freeman
  • Chris Addison
  • Simon Blackwell
  • Richard Allen-Turner
  • Rob Aslett
  • David Martin
  • Jon Thoday
  • Michael Wiggs
  • Ben Palmer (co-exec. producer)
Producers
  • Toby Welch
  • Jim Poyser
Running time30 minutes
Production companies
  • FXP
  • Avalon Television
  • Sky Original Productions
DistributorDisney-ABC Domestic Television
Release
Original network
Original releaseMarch 2, 2020 (2020-03-02) –
present (present)

Breeders is a dark comedy[1] television series created by Martin Freeman, Chris Addison and Simon Blackwell. The series follows two parents who struggle with parenthood and is partially based on Freeman's own experiences. Freeman plays one of the two leads in the series.

The series premiered on March 2, 2020 on the American cable network FX, and on the British network Sky One on March 12, 2020.[2] In May 2020, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on March 22, 2021. In May 2021, the series was renewed for a third season which premiered on May 9, 2022. In July 2022, the series was renewed for a fourth season.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
110March 2, 2020 (2020-03-02)April 27, 2020 (2020-04-27)
210March 22, 2021 (2021-03-22)May 17, 2021 (2021-05-17)
310May 9, 2022 (2022-05-09)July 11, 2022 (2022-07-11)

Season 1 (2020)

No.
overall		No. in
season		Title [3]Directed byWritten byOriginal air date [3]U.S. viewers
(millions)
11"No Sleep"Ben PalmerSimon BlackwellMarch 2, 2020 (2020-03-02)0.328[4]
22"No Places"Ben PalmerSimon BlackwellMarch 2, 2020 (2020-03-02)0.212[4]
33"No Accident"Ben PalmerSimon BlackwellMarch 9, 2020 (2020-03-09)0.179[5]
44"No Lies"Ben PalmerBarunka O'ShaughnessyMarch 16, 2020 (2020-03-16)0.243[6]
55"No Dad"Ben PalmerOriane Messina & Fay RuslingMarch 23, 2020 (2020-03-23)0.188[7]
66"No Talking"Chris AddisonJamie BrittainMarch 30, 2020 (2020-03-30)0.298[8]
77"No Exit"Chris AddisonJamie BrittainApril 6, 2020 (2020-04-06)0.249[9]
88"No Honeymoon"Chris AddisonOriane Messina & Fay RuslingApril 13, 2020 (2020-04-13)0.144[10]
99"No Cure Part 1"Chris AddisonSimon BlackwellApril 20, 2020 (2020-04-20)0.278[11]
1010"No Cure Part 2"Chris AddisonSimon BlackwellApril 27, 2020 (2020-04-27)0.252[12]

Season 2 (2021)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
111"No Surrender"Ben PalmerSimon BlackwellMarch 22, 2021 (2021-03-22)0.364[13]
122"No Fear"Ben PalmerOriane Messina & Fay RuslingMarch 22, 2021 (2021-03-22)0.256[13]
133"No Connection"Ben PalmerJamie BrittainMarch 29, 2021 (2021-03-29)0.195[14]
144"No Faith"Ben PalmerRebecca CallardApril 5, 2021 (2021-04-05)0.206[15]
155"No Baby"Ben PalmerJamie Brittain and Barunka O'ShaughnessyApril 12, 2021 (2021-04-12)0.160[16]
166"No Choice"Ollie ParsonsFay RuslingApril 19, 2021 (2021-04-19)0.156[17]
177"No Excuses"Ollie ParsonsRebecca CallardApril 26, 2021 (2021-04-26)0.226[18]
188"No Friends"Ollie ParsonsSimon BlackwellMay 3, 2021 (2021-05-03)0.247[19]
199"No Power Part I"Ollie ParsonsSimon BlackwellMay 10, 2021 (2021-05-10)0.181[20]
2010"No Power Part II"Ollie ParsonsSimon BlackwellMay 17, 2021 (2021-05-17)0.139[21]

Season 3 (2022)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
211"No Direction Home"Chris AddisonSimon BlackwellMay 9, 2022 (2022-05-09)0.120[22]
222"No Worries"Chris AddisonSimon BlackwellMay 9, 2022 (2022-05-09)0.070[22]
233"No Comfort"Chris AddisonRose HeineyMay 16, 2022 (2022-05-16)0.155[23]
244"No Body"Chris AddisonRebecca CallardMay 23, 2022 (2022-05-23)0.168[24]
255"No Can Do"Chris AddisonSimon BlackwellMay 30, 2022 (2022-05-30)0.189[25]
266"No Show"Ollie ParsonsOriane Messina & Fay RuslingJune 6, 2022 (2022-06-06)0.177[26]
277"No Pressure"Ollie ParsonsTaylor GlennJune 13, 2022 (2022-06-13)0.107[27]
288"No Way Back"Ollie ParsonsSimon BlackwellJune 20, 2022 (2022-06-20)0.158[28]
299"No More Part One"Ollie ParsonsSimon BlackwellJune 27, 2022 (2022-06-27)0.172[29]
3010"No More Part Two"Ollie ParsonsSimon BlackwellJuly 11, 2022 (2022-07-11)0.087[30]

Production

Development

On March 7, 2018, it was announced that Avalon Television was developing a comedy series created by Martin Freeman. The series was originally a co-production between the BBC and FX, similar to the drama series Taboo.[31] A pilot was already filmed at the time of the announcement. On October 14, 2018, it was announced that FX and Sky (the latter replacing the BBC) had commissioned the series with ten half-hour episodes, with a series debut in 2020.[32] On January 20, 2020, FX announced that the series would premiere on March 2, 2020.[33]

On May 18, 2020, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on March 22, 2021.[34][35] On May 27, 2021, the series was renewed for a third season.[36] On July 19, 2022, the series was renewed for a fourth season.[37]

Casting

Alongside the series announcement, it was announced that Freeman would star in the series. Furthermore, Daisy Haggard and Michael Gambon were also cast in the series.[31] However, in April 2019, it was reported that Gambon left the series as he was having trouble memorising his lines due to memory loss issues.[38]

Filming

Filming for the second season had been delayed by sixteen weeks due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Following the delay, filming for the second season began on September 1, 2020 in London,[39][40] and concluded production on December 18, 2020.[41] Season 3 began filming in November 2021 and concluded filming in March 2022.

Release

The series premiered on March 2, 2020 on FX in the United States and Canada. The series premiere coincided with the launch of FX on Hulu and therefore the series became the first FX series with episodes available on Hulu by the next day.[42] In Bulgaria and Poland, the series airs on HBO Europe.[43][44] The series was formerly broadcast in Australia on Foxtel, via its broadcast network FOX One and on demand services until May 2022. It comes as Disney is looking forward to reclaiming its FX and 20th Television titles in order to stream them exclusively on the company's service: Disney+. Breeders Moved to Disney+ on June 1 2022. Soon after Breeders Departed Foxtel and its Service, Season 3 moved to streaming on June 15 2022 exclusively on Disney+ as a Star Original with new episodes airing on a weekly basis.

Reception

Critical response

On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds a 91% approval rating with the website's critics consensus reading, "A provocative addition to the growing slate of shows about parents behaving badly, Breeders' take on the realities of child-rearing are as hilarious as they are cringe-inducing."[45] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, has assigned the series a score of 65 out of 100 based on 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[46]

Accolades

Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref.
2020 Venice TV Awards Best Comedy Rob Aslett, Richard Allen-Turner, Simon Blackwell, David Martin, Jon Thoday, Martin Freeman, Chris Addison, Michael Wiggs, Toby Welch, Sophie MacClancy, Ben Palmer, Avalon Television Won [47]
2021 BAFTA Awards British Academy Television Award for Best Female Comedy Performance Daisy Haggard Nominated [48]

References

  1. ^ "'Breeders' is a Dark Comedy That Gets the Parenting Struggle".
  2. ^ "Breeders". Sky UK. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Breeders – Listings". The Futon Critic. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Metcalf, Mitch (March 3, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.2.202". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on March 3, 2020.
  5. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (March 10, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.9.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on March 11, 2020.
  6. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (March 17, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.16.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on March 17, 2020.
  7. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (March 24, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.23.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on March 24, 2020.
  8. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (March 31, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.30.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 1, 2020. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  9. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 7, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.6.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 7, 2020.
  10. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 14, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.13.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020.
  11. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 21, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.20.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 21, 2020.
  12. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 28, 2020). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.27.2020". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 29, 2020.
  13. ^ a b Metcalf, Mitch (March 23, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.22.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on March 23, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
  14. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (March 31, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 3.29.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  15. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 6, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.5.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 6, 2021. Retrieved April 6, 2021.
  16. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 13, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.12.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 13, 2021. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  17. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 20, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.19.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 20, 2021. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  18. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (April 27, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 4.26.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  19. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (May 4, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.3.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021. Retrieved May 4, 2021.
  20. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (May 11, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.10.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on May 11, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
  21. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (May 18, 2021). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Monday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 5.17.2021". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  22. ^ a b Metcalf, Mitch (May 10, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 5.9.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  23. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (May 17, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 5.16.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  24. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (May 24, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 5.23.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
  25. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (June 1, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 5.30.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
  26. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (June 7, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 6.6.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  27. ^ Salem, Mitch (June 14, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 6.13.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  28. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (June 21, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 6.20.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  29. ^ Salem, Mitch (June 28, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 6.27.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  30. ^ Salem, Mitch (July 12, 2022). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Monday 7.11.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals UPDATED". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  31. ^ a b White, Peter (March 7, 2018). "Avalon Developing Martin Freeman Comedy 'Breeders' For BBC & FX". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  32. ^ White, Peter (October 14, 2018). "FX & Sky Team For Parenting Comedy 'Breeders' From 'Sherlock' Star Martin Freeman & 'Catastrophe' Producer Avalon". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  33. ^ Petski, Denise (January 9, 2020). "FX Sets Premiere Dates For 'Fargo', 'Mrs. America', 'Better Things', 'Devs', 'Archer' & More – TCA". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  34. ^ ""Breeders" Returns for a Second Series - Critically Acclaimed Sky Original Starring Martin Freeman and Daisy Haggard" (Press release). FX. May 18, 2020 – via The Futon Critic.
  35. ^ "FX Sets Premiere Dates for Next Wave of Programming" (Press release). FX. February 5, 2021 – via The Futon Critic.
  36. ^ White, Peter (May 27, 2021). "'Breeders' Renewed For Season 3 At FX & Sky". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  37. ^ Porter, Rick (July 19, 2022). "'Breeders' Renewed for Season 4 at FX". The Hollywood Reporter.
  38. ^ Pearce, Tilly (April 21, 2019). "Sir Michael Gambon 'steps down from new sitcom after struggling with memory loss'". Metro. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  39. ^ "Daisy Haggard on Instagram: "Filming has resumed on #breeders2 with me and my spanx pants and that bloke from Hardware.. @breedersfx @skytv"". Instagram. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  40. ^ Bennett, Steve. "Filming resumes on series 2 of Breeders : News 2020 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  41. ^ Kanter, Jake (December 22, 2020). "'Breeders': Season 2 Of FX/Sky's Martin Freeman & Daisy Haggard Comedy Wraps". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
  42. ^ White, Peter (January 9, 2020). "John Landgraf Calls FX On Hulu "Transformative Opportunity" For Cabler As Digital Hub Sets March Launch Plans – TCA". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  43. ^ "Родители и деца І - 1". HBO Go (in Bulgarian). Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  44. ^ "Rodzice (Breeders) - sezon 1 - HBO GO". HBO Go (in Polish). Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  45. ^ "Breeders: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  46. ^ "Breeders: Season 1". Metacritic. Red Ventures. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  47. ^ "Winners 2020". Venice TV Award (in German). Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  48. ^ "Bafta TV Awards 2021: Winners and nominees in full". BBC News. June 6, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2022.

External links

FX original programming
Sky One, Sky Max and Sky Showcase original programming
Categories