Animal Kingdom (TV series)

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Animal Kingdom is an American drama television series developed by Jonathan Lisco. It is based on the 2010 Australian film by David Michôd, who is executive producer for the series, alongside Liz Watts who also produced the movie. The series follows a 17-year-old boy, who, after the death of his mother, moves in with the Codys, a criminal family clan governed by matriarch Smurf. Ellen Barkin portrays the leading role of Janine "Smurf" Cody, played by Jacki Weaver in the 2010 film. Animal Kingdom debuted on TNT on June 14, 2016, and was renewed for a second season on July 6, 2016, of thirteen episodes that premiered on May 30, 2017. On July 27, 2017, TNT renewed the series for a third season, that is set to debut on May 29, 2018.

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Cast and characters

Main

• Ellen Barkin as Janine "Smurf" Cody, the tough matriarch of the family and J's estranged grandmother. Smurf is protective of her family and presents a borderline-incestuous love towards them.
• Scott Speedman as Barry "Baz" Blackwell, Smurf's adopted son and leader in the Codys' robberies. Despite his quiet semblance, he is manipulative and self-centered. He also had a past relationship with J's mother Julia before he was born.
• Shawn Hatosy as Andrew "Pope" Cody, the oldest Cody son, who is mentally disturbed and considers suicide. He reappears after serving three years in Folsom State Prison and has an obsessive infatuation with Catherine. Smurf begins to secretly medicate Pope to control his unstable behavior.
• Ben Robson as Craig Cody, the middle Cody son, who has a predilection for drugs and extremely risky activities. He also dated Nicky after her breakup with J.
• Jake Weary as Deran Cody, the youngest Cody son, who is gay and is possessive of his on-again/off-again boyfriend, Adrian. He was also a competitive surfer and he has a legit side job running a bar.
• Finn Cole as Joshua "J" Cody, Smurf's grandson who moves in with her and his uncles following the death of his mother, Julia, who was Pope's twin sister.
• Daniella Alonso as Catherine Blackwell (season 1), Baz's wife, and mother to their daughter, Lena. She was later killed by Pope when Smurf hired him to kill her when she thought she was a criminal informant working for the cops.
• Molly Gordon as Nicky Belmont, J's girlfriend who launches a career of crime by robbing her schoolmate's house. She also briefly dated Craig after J broke up with her to try to protect her from his family's criminal lifestyle.
• Carolina Guerra as Lucy (season 2; recurring season 1), Baz's girlfriend from Mexico who is thought to have conspired against the Cody Clan, and had Baz shot so that she could steal his family's money.

Recurring

• Aamya Deva Keroles as Lena Blackwell, Baz and Catherine's daughter.
• Spencer Treat Clark as Adrian, Deran's on-again/off-again boyfriend who runs a surfboard shop and is a competitive surfer.
• C. Thomas Howell as Paul Belmont (season 1), a United States Navy Lieutenant Commander at Camp Pendleton, and Nicky's father.
• Nicki Micheaux as Det. Sandra Yates (season 1), a sharp, focused detective trying to catch the Cody family.
• Dorian Missick as Patrick (seasons 1-2), a tough cop with a sweet spot for Catherine.
• Christina Ochoa as Ren Randall, Craig's drug dealer ex-girlfriend.
• Ellen Wroe as Alexa Anderson (season 1), J and Nicky's teacher, who worked undercover with Det. Yates to try to take down the Codys. She also dated J.
• Michael Bowen as Vin (season 1), a man previously incarcerated with Pope.
• Kaitlin Huwe as Miriam
• Jack Conley as Jake, a former member of Smurf's gang and Craig's father.
• Alex Meraz as Javier "Javi" Cano (season 2), a man from a dangerous gang that Smurf worked with while her own sons were too young to commit crimes.
• Jennifer Landon as Amy (season 2), an employee at a megachurch Pope meets and briefly dates. She also runs a Bible study group and an ex-con rehabilitation program at the megachurch.
• Tembi Locke as Monica (season 2), a smart, low-key woman who's the technical brains of a criminal operation that the Codys rely on to fence their stolen goods.
• Laura San Giacomo as Morgan Wilson (season 2), Smurf's lawyer who Smurf told to give J power of attorney for the family instead of Baz.
• Andy Favreau as Mark Liston (season 2), a powerful business man who the Codys encounter at the church and who has a fling with Deran.
• Sohvi Rodriguez as Mia Trujillo (season 3), a sexy, tough young woman raised in a gang and very rough around the edges.
• Damon Williams as Clark Lincoln (season 3), a former motorcross rider and X Games participant who now works as an ER nurse.
• Denis Leary as Billy (season 3), Deran's drifter dad who Smurf kicked out years ago.
• Dichen Lachman as Frankie (season 3), Billy's edgy, free-spirited and dangerous girlfriend.
• Gil Birmingham as Pearce (season 2-3), an unflappable law enforcement officer with a dry sense of humor and more than 20 years on the job.
• Boone Platt as Officer Collins

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Episodes

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Production

TNT ordered the pilot of Animal Kingdom in May 2015, with Barkin and Speedman the first to be cast in July 2015 as matriarch Smurf and her adopted son Baz, respectively. In August, Cole and Weary were added as J and Deran, with Hatosy and Robson soon cast as the remaining Cody brothers Pope and Craig. Alonso was later announced as Baz's wife Catherine, and Gordon as J's girlfriend Nicky.

The project was picked up to series with a 10-episode order in December 2015. The show debuted on June 14, 2016, and on July 6, 2016 TNT renewed it for a 13-episode second season. On July 27 TNT announced it would be renewing Animal Kingdom for a third season slated to premiere on May 29, 2018.

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Reception

Critical response

The first season of Animal Kingdom has received positive reviews. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 74% based on 31 reviews. The consensus is: "Bolstered by Ellen Barkin's acting prowess, Animal Kingdom is a darkly intriguing, although occasionally predictable, twisted family drama." On Metacritic, the series has a score of 65 out of 100, based on 27 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Ratings

Accolades

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Broadcast

In Canada the show is broadcast on Bravo (Canada).

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Home media

The first season was released in DVD and Blu-ray formats on April 28, 2017. Each set contains behind-the-scenes featurettes and deleted scenes. The home media is distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

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References

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External links

• Official website
• Animal Kingdom on IMDb

Source of the article : Wikipedia