Pieces of Her
Genre
Created byCharlotte Stoudt
Based onPieces of Her
by Karin Slaughter
Directed byMinkie Spiro
Starring
Music byDanny Bensi & Saunder Jurriaans
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes8
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Sharon Hoffman
  • Dan LeFranc
  • Toni Collette
  • Louisa Kors
  • Anne M. Uemura
CinematographyOle Birkeland
Editors
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time42–62 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkNetflix
ReleaseMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)

Pieces of Her is an American thriller drama streaming television series created by Charlotte Stoudt, based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Karin Slaughter, that premiered on Netflix on March 4, 2022.[1]

Between February 27, 2022, and April 3, 2022, the series was watched for 227.5 million hours on Netflix, globally, according to Netflix top 10s.[2]

Premise

Pieces of Her follows the story of Andy, a 30-year-old woman who is caught in a deadly shooting at a local diner. Moments later, she witnesses her mother, Laura, violently eliminate the threat with ease. As Andy begins to unravel her mother's actions on that day, her perspective on their entire familial relationship takes a new turn. Soon, figures from her mother's past reappear, and she is forced to escape. On the journey, she attempts to find the truth that her mother buried long ago.[3]

Cast and characters

Main

Recurring

Production

Development

On February 5, 2019, it was announced that Netflix had given the production an 8-episode series order.[4] The series was created by Charlotte Stoudt, who also serves as showrunner and is executive producer, along with Lesli Linka Glatter and Bruna Papandrea. Production companies involved with the series consist of Made Up Stories and Endeavor Content.[5][6][7] Stoudt is also credited as a writer, whilst Minkie Spiro directed all eight episodes.[8] The series premiered on March 4, 2022.[1]

Casting

In February 2020, Toni Collette and Bella Heathcote were cast in starring roles.[9][10] In May 2020, it was announced that David Wenham was cast in a starring role.[11] In January 2021, Jessica Barden, Joe Dempsie, Jacob Scipio, and Omari Hardwick joined the main cast.[12] In February 2021, Gil Birmingham, Terry O’Quinn and Calum Worthy joined the cast in recurring roles.[13] In April 2021, Nicholas Burton and Aaron Jeffery were cast in recurring capacities.[14]

Filming

Principal photography for the series was originally expected to begin on March 16, 2020 and conclude on July 17, 2020 in Burnaby, British Columbia.[15] Following an AU$21.58 million investment from the Australian Government, shared with the production of Spiderhead to boost the local economy during the COVID-19 pandemic, the production was lured to Sydney, Australia, where filming took place in early 2021.[16][17][18]

Episodes

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal release date
1"Episode 1"Minkie SpiroTeleplay by : Charlotte StoudtMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)

Briefly shown is a young girl hiding inside of a run down wooden structure.

While Andrea (Andy) and Laura have lunch at a diner, a young man shoots a young woman, her mother, and a random man. Mistaking Andy's 911 uniform for a police uniform, he prepares to shot her. Laura begs him to shoot her instead, but when he misses his last shot, he embeds a knife through Laura's hand; she waves the hand to slit his throat. Laura tells Andy she is afraid “he” is coming, and asks Andy not to speak to the police. A man at a large estate is seen saying “we’ve got a problem, it’s her” on a phone. Waking up in the middle of the night, Andy sees a man enter into the house. She knocks him unconscious as he tries to suffocate Laura. Laura gives Andy a bag with money, a key card, and a phone. She tells Andy to drive the man's car to a storage unit in Georgia, where she has another car, then drive to Camden, ME and to wait for her call. While rushing to find the attacker's car, Andy notices a rabbit's foot hanging from the rear view of a nearby vehicle, then she drives into the night.
2"Episode 2"Minkie SpiroAnna FishkoMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
After stopping at a gas station and buying supplies, the cashier notices the blood on her hand when handing her the change, she awkwardly rushes out to the truck, and washes the blood off while being overlooked by the cashier. Arriving in Carrollton Andy uses a library computer to look up directions to the Get-Em-Go and to Camden. On her way out she notices a hooded man peering into the window of the truck, she rushes out the rear fire exit and finds her way to the storage unit while the hooded man heads into the library. Once at the storage unit she find her mothers old wagon, with a gun in the glove box, some supplies in the hatch, and a suitcase of a large amount of cash with several fake IDs and a photo of her mothers youth that shows the cut that formed her mothers scar. Continuing her trip she checks into a small motel for the night. Meanwhile her mother reaches out to her ex husband, Gordon, for help, when he arrives she shows him the intruder tied up in a closet. Asking for his help to get them to the intruders meet point hoping to catch a glimpse at who he’s meeting. He reluctantly agrees, though along the way the attacker dies in the car. Gordon sends Laura home in a cab so he can bury the body alone. Racked by questions of her mothers past, Andy goes to a bar across the street where she confides in a stranger the feelings regarding her mother's secrets before asking to teach her to use the gun she found in the car, he reluctantly agrees. Meanwhile, her mother is desperate for a way to reach the man from her past who wants her dead, reaches out to the reporter in the news van outside her home, and agrees to an interview on the Today Show the next morning. After learning to shoot, Andy and the man walk to his truck together where she notices the same rabbit’s foot hanging, panicked, she heads to the motel room, continually checking over her shoulder only to see him watching her the whole way, once inside she quickly reloads the handgun, unsure of what’s next.
3"Episode 3"Minkie SpiroSharon HoffmanMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
4"Episode 4"Minkie SpiroDan LeFrancMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
5"Episode 5"Minkie SpiroJerome Hairston & Sharon HoffmanMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
6"Episode 6"Minkie SpiroAnna Fishko & Dan LeFrancMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
7"Episode 7"Minkie SpiroMichelle Denise JacksonMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)
8"Episode 8"Minkie SpiroCharlotte StoudtMarch 4, 2022 (2022-03-04)

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 50% approval rating with an average rating of 5.7/10, based on 34 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "While Toni Collette heroically tries to bring Pieces of Her together, this lumbering mystery is too bogged down by backstory to satisfyingly cohere."[19] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 52 out of 100 based on 18 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[20]

Angie Han writing for The Hollywood Reporter praised Collette's performance throughout the series as "fascinating to watch". Han also noted that the series eventually "loses steam" after the first three episodes, describing Heathcote's character as merely "a mechanism propelling the narrative forward" with little to no character development.[21]

References

  1. ^ a b Huff, Lauren (January 25, 2022). "Toni Collette is a mother with blood on her hands in 'Pieces of Her' first look". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
  2. ^ "'Pieces of Her' Season 2: Will Netflix Renew or Cancel?". What's on Netflix. April 27, 2022. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  3. ^ Otterson, Joe (February 5, 2019). "Netflix Orders 'Pieces of Her' Adaptation With Bruna Papandrea, Lesli Linka Glatter Producing". Variety. Archived from the original on April 21, 2022. Retrieved March 19, 2019.
  4. ^ Andreeva, Nellie; Pedersen, Erik (February 5, 2019). "'Pieces Of Her': Netflix Orders Novel-Based Series From Lesli Linka Glatter, Charlotte Stoudt & Bruna Papandrea". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on November 2, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  5. ^ Elise Sandberg, Bryn (February 5, 2019). "Netflix Orders 'Pieces of Her' Thriller Series Based on Novel". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 5, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  6. ^ "Netflix orders thriller series pieces of her from #1 international bestselling author Karin Slaughter". Netflix Media Center. Archived from the original on February 6, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  7. ^ Perez, Lexy (April 13, 2019). "Karin Slaughter Talks Netflix 'Pieces of Her' Adaptation, Tackling #MeToo in Writing". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 14, 2019. Retrieved April 15, 2019.
  8. ^ Iannucci, Rebecca (February 3, 2020). "Toni Collette to Star in Pieces of Her Series Adaptation at Netflix". TVLine. Archived from the original on February 4, 2020. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  9. ^ Andreeva, Nellie; Petski, Denise (February 3, 2020). "Toni Collette To Star In 'Pieces Of Her' Netflix Drama Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 3, 2020. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  10. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (February 26, 2020). "Bella Heathcote To Star In 'Pieces Of Her' Netflix Drama Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on September 15, 2022. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
  11. ^ Groves, Don (May 21, 2020). "David Wenham cast in Netflix thriller with Toni Collette, Bella Heathcote". IF. Archived from the original on April 19, 2022. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  12. ^ Otterson, Joe (January 28, 2021). "Omari Hardwick, Jessica Barden, Joe Dempsie Among Five Cast in Netflix Series 'Pieces of Her'". Variety. Archived from the original on February 20, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  13. ^ Petski, Denise (February 5, 2021). "'Pieces Of Her': Gil Birmingham, Terry O'Quinn & Calum Worthy Join Netflix Series As Recurring". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved February 5, 2021.
  14. ^ Petski, Denise (April 2, 2021). "'Pieces Of Her': Nicholas Burton & Aaron Jeffery Join Netflix Thriller Series As Recurring". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 2, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  15. ^ "DGC BC Production List" (PDF). Directors Guild of Canada. February 28, 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 28, 2020. Retrieved February 28, 2020.
  16. ^ Keast, Jackie (November 16, 2020). "Netflix's 'Escape from Spiderhead' and 'Pieces of Her' to shoot in Australia". IF Magazine. Archived from the original on April 15, 2022. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  17. ^ Maddox, Garry (January 24, 2021). "'We're certainly busy': behind the boom in overseas film and TV production". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on May 8, 2022. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  18. ^ "Pieces of Her (2021)". Screen Australia. Archived from the original on October 15, 2021. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  19. ^ "Pieces of Her: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  20. ^ "Pieces of Her: Season 1". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
  21. ^ Han, Angie (March 4, 2022). "Netflix's 'Pieces of Her': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on April 1, 2022. Retrieved March 11, 2022.

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