''Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23'' is an American television
sitcom
A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...
created by
Nahnatchka Khan
Nahnatchka Khan (born June 17, 1973) is an American television writer and producer. She created and executive produced the ABC comedy series '' Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23'' (2012–2013) and '' Fresh Off the Boat'' (2015–2020), a ...
and starring
Krysten Ritter
Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She th ...
that aired on
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
for two seasons from April 11, 2012 to January 15, 2013 and July 19 to September 6, 2014.
Originally airing as a
midseason replacement
In American network television scheduling, a mid-season replacement is a television show that premieres in the second half of the traditional television season, usually between December and May. Mid-season replacements usually take place after a ...
, ABC renewed the series for a second season with some episodes from its first season aired as part of its second, without regard for continuity. The series starred Ritter as Chloe, an irresponsible party girl who searches for roommates by asking for rent up front and then behaving outrageously until they leave. Her latest roommate, June Colburn (
Dreama Walker
Dreama Elyse Walker (born June 20, 1986) is an American actress. She is known for her supporting role in the series ''Gossip Girl'', her lead role in the film '' Compliance'' (2012), and her lead roles in two short-lived television series, the c ...
), proves to be harder to drive away, and the women end up forming an unlikely friendship.
James Van Der Beek co-starred as a fictionalized version of himself, one of Chloe's friends who is desperate to revive his withering acting career.
Liza Lapira
Liza Lapira (born December 3, 1981) is an American actress. She played Kianna in the 2008 film '' 21'', Special Agent Michelle Lee in the CBS police procedural series '' NCIS'' and Ivy, Topher Brink's assistant in ''Dollhouse''.
Lapira has also c ...
,
Michael Blaiklock
Michael "Mookie" Blaiklock is an American actor and writer who has starred in the television series ''Secret Girlfriend'' and '' Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23''.
Biography
Blaiklock was born and raised in Ashland, Massachusetts. While at ...
,
Eric André
Eric Samuel André (born April 4, 1983) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, producer, television host and writer. He is best known as the creator, host, and co-writer of the Adult Swim comedy series '' The Eric Andre Show'' (2012–present) ...
, and Ray Ford led the supporting cast.
Synopsis
The series follows June Colburn as she moves from
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
to pursue her dream job—until she finds out that it no longer exists. She ends up moving in with a
bon vivant party girl named Chloe. Chloe keeps her apartment by inviting roommates to move in, asking for rent up front, and then behaving outrageously until they leave. June proves more difficult to dislodge than expected, and when June reverses Chloe's latest attempt to eject her in an unexpected fashion, they end up forming an unlikely friendship.
Cast and characters
Main
*
Krysten Ritter
Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She th ...
as Chloe, the
titular
Titular may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Title character in a narrative work, the character referred to in its title
Religion
* Titular (Catholicism), a cardinal who holds a titulus, one of the main churches of Rome
** Titular bisho ...
"Bitch in Apartment 23", a hard-partying, irresponsible, freeloading, sexually adventurous con artist, described as having "the morals of a pirate"
*
Dreama Walker
Dreama Elyse Walker (born June 20, 1986) is an American actress. She is known for her supporting role in the series ''Gossip Girl'', her lead role in the film '' Compliance'' (2012), and her lead roles in two short-lived television series, the c ...
as June Colburn, who becomes Chloe's roommate after moving to New York from
Richmond, Indiana, and losing both her job and her apartment
*
James Van Der Beek as a fictionalized version of himself, who is a close friend of Chloe's and desperate to revamp his dwindling acting career
*
Eric André
Eric Samuel André (born April 4, 1983) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, producer, television host and writer. He is best known as the creator, host, and co-writer of the Adult Swim comedy series '' The Eric Andre Show'' (2012–present) ...
as Mark Reynolds, the meek manager of a coffee shop who hires June, whom he met at her failed job, to work for him
*
Michael Blaiklock
Michael "Mookie" Blaiklock is an American actor and writer who has starred in the television series ''Secret Girlfriend'' and '' Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23''.
Biography
Blaiklock was born and raised in Ashland, Massachusetts. While at ...
as Eli Webber, a city health inspector and next-door neighbor of Chloe and Junes who occasionally spies on the girls
*
Liza Lapira
Liza Lapira (born December 3, 1981) is an American actress. She played Kianna in the 2008 film '' 21'', Special Agent Michelle Lee in the CBS police procedural series '' NCIS'' and Ivy, Topher Brink's assistant in ''Dollhouse''.
Lapira has also c ...
as Robin, a nurse and one of Chloe's former roommates, who is obsessed with her
* Ray Ford as Luther Wilson (season 2; recurring season 1), James' personal assistant
Recurring
*
Tate Ellington
James Tate Ellington (born April 17, 1979) is an American actor. He portrayed Aidan Hall, the best friend of Tyler Hawkins (Robert Pattinson) in the 2010 romantic drama film '' Remember Me''. Ellington starred as Oliver Hunt in ''The Elephant Kin ...
as Steven, June's ex-fiancé
*
Eve Gordon
}
Eve Gordon (also known as Eve Bennett-Gordon) is an American actress. Her television roles include playing Marilyn Monroe in the Emmy Award-winning miniseries ''A Woman Named Jackie'', Congressional aide Jordan Miller in the short-lived sit ...
as Connie Colburn, June's mother, whom June, then James, occasionally turns to for advice
* Peter MacKenzie as Donald Colburn, June's father
* Katherine Tokarz as Nicole, a nurse with whom Steven cheats on June
* Jennie Pierson as Pepper, June and Mark's socially awkward coworker at the coffee shop
*
Rosalind Chao
Rosalind Chao (; born September 23, 1957) is an American actress. Chao's best-known roles have been Soon-Lee Klinger in the mid-1980s CBS show '' AfterMASH'', Rose Hsu Jordan in the 1993 movie '' The Joy Luck Club'', the recurring character Ke ...
as Pastor Jin, the pastor at the
First Korean Baptist Church where June attends worship services
*
Angelique Cabral
Angelique Cabral is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Colleen Brandon-Ortega on CBS' sitcom '' Life in Pieces'' (2015–2019) and Staff Sergeant Jillian Perez on Fox's comedy television series ''Enlisted'' (2014). She has a ...
as Fox Paris, June's rival at Harkin Financial
* Teresa Huang as Hillary, June's coworker at Harkin Financial
Guest
*
Michael Landes
Michael Christopher Landes (born September 18, 1972) is an American actor of television and film.
Personal life
Michael Christopher Landes was born to Patricia and Bernard Landes on September 18, 1972 in The Bronx, New York (state), New York. ...
as Scott, Chloe's father, who has a brief relationship with June
*
Marin Hinkle
Marin Elizabeth Hinkle (born March 23, 1966) is an American actress. Among many television and movie roles, she is best known for playing Judy Brooks on the ABC television drama ''Once and Again'', Judith Harper-Melnick on the CBS sitcom ''Two ...
as Karen, Chloe's paraplegic mother
*
Kerris Dorsey
Kerris Dorsey (born January 9, 1998) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her roles as Paige Whedon in the television series '' Brothers & Sisters'', Casey Beane, Billy Beane's daughter, in the 2011 film ''Moneyball'', and as Emily ...
as Molly, Chloe's temporary foster daughter
*
Nora Kirkpatrick
Nora Kirkpatrick (born December 6, 1984) is an American director, writer and musician.
Early life
Kirkpatrick grew up in rural Iowa. She graduated from La Quinta High School. She graduated with a BA in theater from UCLA School of Theater, Film a ...
as Crissy, June's friend
*
Hartley Sawyer
Hartley Sawyer (born January 25, 1985) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Kyle Abbott on the CBS Daytime soap opera ''The Young and the Restless'' and Ralph Dibny / Elongated Man on The CW series '' The Flash''.
Career
In ...
as Charles, who has a brief sexual relationship with June
*
Shanti Lowry
Shanti Lowry (born Ashanti Misha Lowry; April 2, 1982) is an American actress and dancer. She is best known for her roles as the Treasure Chest Dancer in the 2003 film '' Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle'', and the recurring role as Dionne Taylo ...
as Valentina, James' upgraded ''Dancing with the Stars'' partner
*
David Krumholtz
David Krumholtz (born May 15, 1978) is an American actor and comedian. He played Mr. Universe in '' Serenity'', Charlie Eppes in the CBS drama series ''Numb3rs'', and starred in the '' Harold & Kumar'' and ''The Santa Clause'' film franchises.
...
as Patrick Kelly, the creator of the graphic novel ''Shitagi Nashi'' (''Tall Slut, No Panties''), based on Chloe
*
Ben Lawson as Benjamin Lovett, an Australian director, who is friends with James and becomes a love interest for Chloe
*
Keith Allan as Peter, an employee at ''
People
A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...
'' magazine
*
Missi Pyle
Missi Pyle (born November 16, 1972) is an American actress and singer. She has appeared in a number of successful films, including ''Galaxy Quest'' (1999), '' Big Fish'' (2003), ''Bringing Down the House'' (2003), '' Dodgeball: A True Underdog ...
as Angie Beckencort, a lousy pro dancer who ends up paired with James on ''Dancing with the Stars''
*
Fiona Gubelmann
Fiona Victoria Gubelmann is an American actress. She has appeared in a number of single-episode roles in television, including ''CSI: NY'', ''My Name Is Earl'' and '' Knight Rider'', as well as a handful of films including '' Employee of the Mont ...
as Stephanie, one of June's friends from Pilates
*
Kyle Howard
Kyle Alan Howard (born April 13, 1978) is an American actor.
Early life
Howard grew up in Loveland, Colorado. He has worked in both film and television. His film career includes '' House Arrest'' alongside Jamie Lee Curtis, ''Skeletons'' with ...
as Daniel, who briefly dates June
*
Patti Deutsch
Patricia Deutsch Ross (born Elaine Patricia Deutsch; December 16, 1943 – July 26, 2017) was an American actress and comedian who was well known as a recurring panelist on the 1970s game shows ''Match Game'' and ''Tattletales''.
Early life
Deuts ...
as an old lady
*
Michael Stahl-David
Michael Stahl-David (born October 28, 1982) is an American actor, known for his role as Sean Donnelly on the NBC drama series ''The Black Donnellys'' and his lead role as Robert "Rob" Hawkins in the J. J. Abrams-produced film ''Cloverfield'' and ...
as Teddy, Chloe's childhood friend from psychopath camp
*
Nicholas D'Agosto
Nicholas D'Agosto (born April 17, 1980) is an American actor, best known for featuring in ''Final Destination 5'', '' Heroes'' and ''The Office''. He starred in the Showtime series ''Masters of Sex'' and the Fox series '' Gotham''.
Early li ...
as Will, James's agent's assistant who briefly dates June
*
Jonathan Willie Cruz as James Martinez, June and Luther's yoga instructor
*
Meg Chambers Steedle as Emily, who briefly dates James
*
Sarah Wright Olsen as Trish, Chloe's first New York roommate
*
Meagen Fay
Meagen Fay is an American actress known for her work in television. Best known as Roxy in '' Ohara'' (1987-1988), Principal Halloron in ''Life With Louie'' (1995-1998), and Gretchen Mannkusser in ''Malcolm in the Middle'' (2002-2004) and Loot on ...
as Katherine, James' mother
Special cameos
These guest stars made special cameo appearances as themselves in the series:
*
Kiernan Shipka
Kiernan Brennan Shipka (born November 10, 1999) is an American actress, best-known for her roles as Sally Draper in the AMC drama series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), Sabrina Spellman in the Netflix series '' Chilling Adventures of Sabrina'' (2018 ...
, James' co-star in a poorly conceived
father/daughter body-swap film
*
Kevin Sorbo
Kevin David Sorbo (born September 24, 1958) is an American actor. He had starring roles in two television series: as Hercules in '' Hercules: The Legendary Journeys'', and as Captain Dylan Hunt in '' Andromeda''. Sorbo is also known for actin ...
, Chloe's unwitting wedding date
*
Dean Cain
Dean George Cain ( Tanaka; born July 31, 1966) is an American actor. From 1993 to 1997, he played Clark Kent / Superman in the TV series '' Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman''. Cain was the host of '' Ripley's Believe It or Not!'' a ...
, James' ''Dancing with the Stars'' rival
*
Busy Philipps
Elizabeth Jean "Busy" Philipps (born June 25, 1979) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles on the television series '' Freaks and Geeks'' (1999–2000), ''Dawson's Creek'' (2001–2003), ''Love, Inc.'' (2005–2006) and '' ER' ...
, James' former ''Dawson's Creek'' co-star
*
Frankie Muniz
Francisco Muniz IV (; born December 5, 1985) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the title character in the Fox sitcom ''Malcolm in the Middle'' (2000–2006), which earned him an Emmy Award nomination and two Golden Globe Award ...
, a hapless shopper
*
Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Mark-Paul Harry Gosselaar (; born March 1, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for his television roles, most notably as Zack Morris in ''Saved by the Bell''. In 1991, he won a Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Starring in an Off-Pri ...
, who gives James a pep-talk about fleeting fame
*
Karina Smirnoff, Dean Cain's ''Dancing with the Stars'' partner
*
Charo
María Rosario Pilar Martínez Molina Baeza, professionally known by her stage name Charo, is a Spanish-American actress, singer, comedian, and flamenco guitarist.
Charo began playing guitar at the age of nine and trained under the famed A ...
, Chloe's muse
*
Richard Dean Anderson
Richard Dean Anderson (born January 23, 1950) is a retired American actor and producer. He began his television career in 1976, playing Jeff Webber in the American soap opera series '' General Hospital'', and then rose to prominence as the lead ...
, one of the potential candidates for James' biological father
Development and production
The series was originally titled ''Don't Trust the Bitch in Apartment 23'' and was developed at
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
as a 2009 fall contender, but was eventually passed on.
In January 2011,
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
green-lit the production of a
pilot episode.
[ In February and March 2011, ]Dreama Walker
Dreama Elyse Walker (born June 20, 1986) is an American actress. She is known for her supporting role in the series ''Gossip Girl'', her lead role in the film '' Compliance'' (2012), and her lead roles in two short-lived television series, the c ...
, Krysten Ritter
Krysten Alyce Ritter (born December 16, 1981) is an American actress and model. She came to prominence when she appeared as Jane Margolis in the AMC drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2009–2010) and its spinoff film '' El Camino'' (2019). She th ...
, and James Van Der Beek were cast as the three leads. On May 13, 2011, ABC picked up the project to series under the shortened title ''Apartment 23''. A few days later, ABC announced that the show would most likely debut in the 2011–12 mid-season.
On October 11, 2011, ABC again renamed the show, this time to a bowdlerized
Expurgation, also known as bowdlerization, is a form of censorship that involves purging anything deemed noxious or offensive from an artistic work or other type of writing or media.
The term ''bowdlerization'' is a pejorative term for the practi ...
version of its original name, censoring the word "Bitch
Bitch may refer to:
* A female dog or other canine
* Bitch (slang), a vulgar slur for a human female
Bitch or bitches may also refer to:
Arts and media Film and television
* ''The Bitch'' (film), a 1979 film starring Joan Collins
* ''Bitc ...
" and replaced with "B----".
The first two episodes were made available on iTunes, Hulu, ABC.com, and on Xfinity
Comcast Cable Communications, LLC, doing business as Xfinity, is an American telecommunications company and division of Comcast Corporation used to market consumer cable television, internet, telephone, and wireless services provided by the c ...
in the United States before the premiere on April 11, 2012. In Canada, the first episodes were made available on Rogers on Demand and on Citytv.com, also before the April 11, 2012 premiere. On May 11, 2012, ''Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23'' was renewed for a second season, with the remaining six episodes of season one airing as a part of it. The second season premiered on October 23, 2012.
On May 11, 2012, ABC renewed ''Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23'' for a second season. The remaining six episodes of season one (with production codes beginning 1A in the table) aired as part of season two bringing the total to 19 episodes for the season. ABC elected to air these episodes out of order, interspersing first and second-season episodes without regard to continuity. As a result, some multi-episode plot arcs (particularly James's appearance on ''Dancing with the Stars'' and June's travails at a new job outside the coffee shop) are almost incomprehensibly jumbled in the original broadcast order.
Ray Ford, who plays Luther, was promoted to a series regular for season two. Liza Lapira
Liza Lapira (born December 3, 1981) is an American actress. She played Kianna in the 2008 film '' 21'', Special Agent Michelle Lee in the CBS police procedural series '' NCIS'' and Ivy, Topher Brink's assistant in ''Dollhouse''.
Lapira has also c ...
was originally announced as having been demoted to a recurring role; ultimately she appeared in only one episode ("Dating Games...") that was produced for the second season.
ABC announced on January 22, 2013, that it was removing ''Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23'' from its schedule immediately. The next day, the cast of the show confirmed its cancellation. On April 18, 2013, ABC announced that the remaining eight unaired episodes would be streamed online beginning May 17 and ending June 2.
Although series star Krysten Ritter originally stated in February 2013 that ABC was committed to airing the eight unaired episodes in the summer of 2013, she later confirmed that the show would not return to ABC's schedule, but that all eight episodes would be made available on ABC.com, iTunes and Hulu starting May 17, 2013. The additional episodes have since been removed from Hulu, without announcement. It was later announced that the episodes would air on Logo TV
Logo TV (often shortened to Logo, and stylized as Logo.) is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched in 2005, Logo was originally dedicated to lifestyle and entertainment progr ...
Network in July 2014.
In July 2014, it was announced that Logo TV
Logo TV (often shortened to Logo, and stylized as Logo.) is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched in 2005, Logo was originally dedicated to lifestyle and entertainment progr ...
had acquired the full run of the series—including the eight episodes that were previously unaired in the United States—and would air it in the correct order beginning July 19.
Episodes
Series overview
Each episode is styled as "...in Apartment 23".
Season 1 (2012)
Season 2 (2012–14)
Broadcast
In addition to premiering on ABC, the show has since been sold to various international markets.
Reception and legacy
In June 2011, ''Apartment 23'', as it was called at the time, was one of eight honorees in the ''Most Exciting New Series'' category at the Critics' Choice Television Award
The Critics' Choice Television Awards are accolades that are presented annually by the Critics Choice Association (CCA). They were established in 2011, and the first ceremony was held on June 20, 2011, and streamed live on VH1.com. The fourt ...
s, voted by journalists who had seen the pilots. The series received positive reviews from critics, with many critics praising Ritter for her performance in what could be called her first "leading role". The first season received a score of 71 on Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
based on 29 critics. On Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the first season holds a 88% and the second season has a score of 83%. The site's consensus states: "An odd couple sitcom with a modern twist, ''Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23'' is sleeker and smarter than expected, thanks to strong acting and snappy dialogue." Due to popularity of the show after its cancellation, attempts to revive the show for another season have been petitioned by fans on petition sites.
Ratings
Awards and nominations
Notes
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Don't Trust The B In Apartment 23
2010s American single-camera sitcoms
2012 American television series debuts
2013 American television series endings
American Broadcasting Company original programming
English-language television shows
Television series by 20th Century Fox Television
Television series created by Nahnatchka Khan
Television shows filmed in New York City
Television shows set in New York City