NOW ENTERTAINMENT May 25 Month 00- -31, 00,2025 2023
Your Weekly TV Entertainment Brought To You By Olean Times Herald & The Bradford Era
A group of friends stumble into adulthood in “Adults,” premiering back-to-back episodes Wednesday, May 28, on FX, and next day on Hulu. Owen Thiele stars in “Adults”
Cover Story Troubles with adulting: FX explores growing pains in ensemble comedy ‘Adults’ By Dana Simpson There is something about a ragtag group of friends that the television industry just loves to latch on to. From “Three’s Company” in 1977 to “Seinfeld” in ‘89, “Friends” in ‘94 and “How I Met Your Mother” in 2005, proof that the ensemble comedy is alive and well rests in the DNA of shows such as HBO’s “Girls” and Netflix’s new Tina Fey (“Saturday Night Live”) dramedy, “The Four Seasons,” which premiered May 1. Joining the ranks of these predecessors and various other contemporaries is FX’s series “Adults,” premiering with two episodes Wednesday, May 28, on the broadcast network and the next day on Hulu. Created by Ben Kronengold and Rebecca Shaw, both of whom got their start as writers for “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “Adults” follows a group of 20-somethings in New York City who get a real taste of adulthood while staying at a friend’s childhood home while his parents are away on an
RV trip across the United States. The friend in question, Samir (Malik Elassal, “Joe Pickett”), has taken on the role of “de facto man of the house,” per the FX-released press materials, and is responsible for taking care of the home in his parents’ absence despite the fact that he can barely take care of himself. Described as “struggling to launch,” Samir is growing into a fine young man but still struggles to understand the complexities of his parents’ boiler and the importance of separating laundry. Growing up, Samir had his parents to rely on, but he also had Billie (Lucy Freyer, “Paint,” 2023). His childhood best friend, Billie was quick to mature and often found herself in control of matters, regardless of the situation. But after a poor choice at work that ended with her “vaguely threaten[ing] her boss,” says FX, Billie is back at square one: questioning her choices and mulling over her previously decided-upon path in life. Joining Samir and Billie in their quests to be kind and
functioning members of society are fellow burgeoning adults Issa (Amita Rao, “Deli Boys”), Anton (Owen Thiele, “Dollface”) and the always full-named Paul Baker (Jack Innanen, “The Office Movers”). Issa, who has been prone to collecting odd jobs as she learns which passion she wants to channel her energy into, is currently teaching a children’s dance class. Ever the driven activist type, Issa is described by FX as someone who “loves her friends hard but struggles to feel heard.” Paul Baker is known by both names despite the fact that he is the only Paul in their immediate friend group. Why? Well, some people just suit their full name better — like “Colin Robinson” of FX’s vampire series “What We Do in the Shadows,” for instance). A kind Canadian who moved to New York City to leave his imprint on the city — or maybe to have the city leave its imprint on him — Paul Baker is happy to have finally found a friend group that suits his personality and his lifestyle.
Last but not least in the group is Anton, “the only member of the friend group with a real job, even though he doesn’t quite understand what it is” (per FX). Despite initially only having ties to Samir, his college roommate, Anton has developed a close, fairly boundaryless relationship with all four of the others. Although the connection is genuine, intense friendships are par for the course with Anton and his oozing charisma. The series comes from Kronengold and Shaw, who have worked as a duo ever since their viral 2018 joint Yale graduation speech in front of public figure and honored guest Hillary Clinton. Their unbeatable chemistry, impeccable comedic timing and their own recent lived experiences with “adulting” show through the fiber of the new FX series. “We’re so grateful to be telling this story about a group of friends navigating the hardest, horniest time of life together,” Kronengold and Shaw said in a joint statement after “Adults” was picked up by FX.