As much as I love comedy, my favorite TV shows are dramas with story-lines that constantly keep you guessing. Add in mystery, a murder and/or kidnapping with a great cast and I’m hooked! I think that’s why I’m so drawn to The Family on ABC (Sunday nights at 9pm EST).
If you haven’t heard of this great new show, and love darker television with twists and turns that you don’t see coming, definitely get in now because The Family is about to get really good!
To recap a bit, The Family centers around a family, led by matriarch and politician Claire Warren (Joan Allen), her husband John (Rupert Graves), and their children Willa (Alison Pill) and Danny (Zach Gilford). Their youngest son, Adam (Liam James), who was kidnapped and assumed dead, suddenly returns home after a decade … but of course everything is not as it seems. Other key characters in The Family include Detective Nina Meyer (Margot Bingham), who worked on Adam’s case from the beginning, neighborhood pedophile Hank Asher (Andrew McCarthy), and up-and-coming reporter Bridey Cruz (Floriana Lima).
I was able to get a sneak preview of tonight’s episode with two executive producers and some of the cast (for a family style dinner no less!) and can confirm that this thriller is on point— my mouth literally dropped in one of the final scenes, changing everything I thought I knew going in. It’s a cliffhanger at its best — and I can’t wait to see more!
After screening episode 8 “Sweet Jane”, we were treated to a Q&A with creator/executive producer Jenna Bans, executive producer Laurie Zaks, Alison Pill (Willa), Zach Gilford (Danny) and Floriana Lima (Bridey Cruz). Here are some of the highlights.
Where did the idea for The Family come from?
Jenna Bans: Well, I’ll tell a brief version of the story. I lived in a house, and across the street was a sex offender, and I freaked out and got really scared. So part of it sort of came from there.  And the other part was, ABC had been wanting to do this idea, with an imposter who was in the ether —and they were like, make it into a mystery thriller. So I sort of married the two ideas.
Alison, the emotion that you emote on screen is amazing. How do you get into character to do all that?
Alison Pill: First of all, we have really good writers, and it really makes sense to me. I think the sort of touchstone for me is the moment, when me and Madeline Arthur switch places on the bed in the motel. And she’s fully frozen at thirteen. Like, she is somebody who will do anything to keep her family together.  And everything else that is built up- all of this armor is only to get to her ultimate goal, which is having her entire family under one roof again. That’s it. And every- literally, everything else is driven by that, so when anything threatens that, that is the worst thing that can happen in the world.  So all of the emotion just comes from that thought of being thirteen and trying to keep your family together … and I was a very emotional thirteen year old!
How many seasons could you see this show running?
Jenna Bans: Definitely three. Beyond that- what happens is, you know I was on Scandal, too, and we’re like, this can only go a season. What are we gonna do? And then you get to the end of the first season, and you’re like, oh, that’s a second season, and then in second season, you’re like, that’s obviously the third season…. Somehow it always works itself out.
You can watch previous episodes of The Family on ABC.com and on Hulu— but make sure you tune in live on Sunday nights at 9pm EST on ABC.
Already love The Family and want to see more? Here’s a tip: Watch new episodes live on Sunday nights at 9pm EST or within 3 days on DVR!
Photo Credit: Coralie Seright — Special thanks to ABC television for hosting me during the #ABCTVEvent. All opinions are my own.Â
