''The Kids Are Alright'' 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 ne ...

created by

Tim Doyle Tim Doyle is an American television producer and television writer. His credits include ''Dinosaurs'', ''Roseanne'', ''Grace Under Fire'', ''Ellen'', '' Sports Night'', '' Still Standing'', ''The Big Bang Theory'', ''Better Off Ted'', ''Rules o ...

for

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 ...

, inspired by Doyle's own childhood. The series is a single-camera comedy about an

Irish Catholic Irish Catholics are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland whose members are both Catholic and Irish. They have a large diaspora, which includes over 36 million American citizens and over 14 million British citizens (a quarter of the British ...

family raising eight sons in suburban Los Angeles circa 1972, navigating the trials and tribulations of the era. The series stars

Michael Cudlitz Michael Cudlitz (born December 29, 1964) is an American actor known for portraying John Cooper in the NBC/ TNT drama series '' Southland'' for which he won the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2013 ...

and

Mary McCormack Mary Catherine McCormack (born February 8, 1969) is an American actress. She has had leading roles as Justine Appleton in the series '' Murder One'' (1995–97), as Deputy National Security Adviser Kate Harper in ''The West Wing'' (2004–06), a ...

as parents Mike and Peggy Cleary, with

Jack Gore John Henry Gore (16 June 1899 – 18 March 1971) was a Welsh international rugby flanker who played rugby union for Blaina and rugby league for Salford. His son, Billy Gore, played international rugby for Wales national rugby union team the sa ...

, Sam Straley, Caleb Foote,

Sawyer Barth Sawyer Barth (born November 7, 2001) is an American actor, known for his role as Flake in ''And Then I Go'' and Frank Cleary in the ABC sitcom '' The Kids Are Alright''. Biography and Career A native of West Long Branch, New Jersey, he receiv ...

, Christopher Paul Richards,

Andy Walken Andy Walken (born April 26, 2006) is an American actor, known for his role as William Cleary in '' The Kids Are Alright'' and Ralphie Parker in ''A Christmas Story Live!''. In 2022, he won the first-ever Children's and Family Emmy Award for Out ...

, and Santino Barnard starring as their first seven sons. The series received a

put pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...

commitment at ABC in September 2017, with a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

ordered in January 2018. ''The Kids Are Alright'' was ordered to series by ABC in May 2018, and it was picked up for a full season of 22 episodes in November 2018. ABC ordered an additional episode in December 2018, bringing the order to 23 episodes. Filming for the series took place primarily in the Van Nuys area of Los Angeles. The series premiered on October 16, 2018, and received generally positive reviews, a 2019 Best Comedy Episode nomination from the

Writers Guild of America The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers: * The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), headquartered in New York City and affiliated with the AFL–CIO * The Writers Guil ...

for its pilot script, and a 97% 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 ...

. Despite these accolades, on May 10, 2019, new management at ABC canceled the series after one season.

Cast and characters

Main

as Peggy Cleary, mother *

as Mike Cleary, father *

as Timmy, fifth son *

Sam Straley Sam Straley (born July 13, 1995) is an American actor. Early life and education Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. Straley studied in Anderson High School until his graduation in 2013. He graduated from The Theatre School at DePaul University ...

as Lawrence, first son * Caleb Foote as Eddie, second son *

as Frank (Francis), third son * Christopher Paul Richards as Joey, fourth son *

as William, sixth son * Santino Barnard as Pat (Patrick), seventh son * Sawyer and Jax Laucius as Andy, eighth son, an infant *

as the narrator, voice of adult Timmy

Recurring

* Kennedy Lea Slocum as Wendi Falkenberry, Eddie's girlfriend *

Paul Dooley Paul Dooley (born Paul Brown; February 22, 1928) is an American character actor, writer and comedian. He is known for his roles in ''Breaking Away'', ''Sixteen Candles'', and ''Popeye''. Early life Dooley was born Paul Brown on February 22, 1 ...

as Father Cecil Dunne *

Markie Post Marky or Markie may refer to: Nickname * Marky Cielo (1988–2008), Filipino actor and dancer * Marky Delgado (born 1995), American soccer player * Markie Mark (born 1974), BBC Radio director * Marky Markowitz (1923–1986), American jazz trumpete ...

as Helen Portello, Peggy's friend and nemesis * Jojo Nwoko as Father Bootaan Abdi *

Thomas Barbusca Thomas Barbusca is an American actor. He is known for portraying Chip Pemberton, one of the three kids on the television sitcom '' The Mick''. He also starred in the film '' Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life'' and plays Drew, the camp ...

as Davey, Joey's best friend *

Michael Cornacchia Michael Cornacchia (born February 23, 1975) is an American actor. Biography Education Michael graduated from Conestoga High School in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, and the University of Southern California with a degree in theatre. Career He has app ...

as Boxcar Benji * Sarah Benoit as Sister Euphemia * Martha Boles as Jenny, Wendi's classmate *

Galadriel Stineman Galadriel Lynn Putthoff Stineman is an American actress and model. She is best known for her roles as Gwen Tennyson in '' Ben 10: Alien Swarm'' and as List of The Middle characters#Friends, Crushes and Classmates, Cassidy Finch in ''The Middle ( ...

as Fiona, Lawrence's girlfriend

Guest

* Aidan Wallace as young Lawrence * Gracen Newton as young Eddie * Connor Cain as Bobby (S1, E5) *

Nat Faxon Nathaniel Faxon (born October 11, 1975) is an American actor, comedian, director, and screenwriter. A frequent presence on comedic films and TV series, he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for co-writing ''The Descendants'' (2011) ...

as Tom, Peggy's brother (S1, E8) *

Ken Jeong Kendrick Kang-Joh Jeong (, ; born July 13, 1969) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, producer, writer and licensed physician. He rose to prominence for playing Leslie Chow in ''The Hangover'' film series (2009–2013) and Ben Chang in the ...

as Grover Young, Mike's co-worker (S1, E9) * Dara Renee as Melissa, Wendy's classmate (S1, E10) *

Jason Rogel Jason Rogel is an American actor. He recently played Sebastian on Season 2 of ''Raven's Home.'' Rogel also starred as Ricky, the office gossip, on Freeform's '' Kevin from Work,'' and as Larry in ABC Family's Christmas musical, ''The Mistle-T ...

as Mailman * David Alan Smith as The Great Pepe (S1, E12) * Ray Porter as Ernie (S1, E15) *

Danny Bonaduce Dante Daniel Bonaduce (born August 13, 1959) is an American radio personality, actor, television personality, and professional wrestler. Bonaduce is the son of veteran TV writer and producer Joseph Bonaduce (''The Dick Van Dyke Show'', '' One Da ...

as Boris and Danny Partridge (archive footage) (S1, E17) * Emma Meisel as Angela, Frank's love interest (S1, E20) *

Josh McDermitt Josh McDermitt (born June 4, 1978) is an American film and television actor and comedian. He is best known for playing Eugene Porter on AMC's '' The Walking Dead''. In 2006, McDermitt appeared on ''Last Comic Standing'' as a contestant. McDermitt ...

as Mr. Crane, Mike's boss (S1, E21) * Jeff Holman as Terry, Mike's co-worker (S1, E21) * Mary Passeri as Marybeth (S1, E21) *

Jim Meskimen James Ross Meskimen (born September 10, 1959) is an American actor, comedian and impressionist, who is best known for his voice-over work in video games. Early life James Ross Meskimen was born in Santa Monica, California on September 10, 1959 ...

Johnny Carson John William Carson (October 23, 1925 – January 23, 2005) was an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He is best known as the host of ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson'' (1962–1992). Carson received six Pr ...

(voice) (S1, E21) * Hal Alpert as Mr. Franklin (S1, E20) * Jo Farkas as Rita (S1, E20) * Carol Gutierrez as Darlene (S1, E20) *

Regan Burns Regan Burns (born June 14, 1968) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Bennett James on ''Dog with a Blog,'' as well as being the host of the hidden camera game show '' Oblivious.'' Burns is also known for various ...

as Tex O'Shaughnessy (S1, E22) * Nancy Berggren as Mrs. Ava Greenblatt (S1, E22) *

Jenny O'Hara Patricia Joanne "Jenny" O'Hara (born February 24, 1942) is an American film, television, and stage actress. She is best known for Dixie in ''My Sister Sam'' (1986–1988), Janet Heffernan in ''The King of Queens'' (2001–2007), and Nita in ''B ...

as Aunt Tess (S1, E22) *

Willie Tyler Willie Tyler (born September 8, 1940) is an American ventriloquist, comedian and actor. Tyler has been credited as Willie Tyler and Lester or Willie Tyler & Lester. Willie Tyler recorded "Cannibal" for Motown Records in 1968, but it was not rele ...

as himself (S1, E23)

Episodes

Production

Development

Series creator

grew up in an Irish Catholic family in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from ...

, near Los Angeles, in the 1970s; this makes the show semi-autobiographical. The series is produced by

ABC Studios ABC Signature is an American television Filmmaking#Production, production studio that is a subsidiary of Disney Television Studios, a division of Walt Disney Television, which is part of the List of assets owned by The Walt Disney Company#Disne ...

. ABC officially ordered the series to

on January 19, 2018. In February 2018,

Randall Einhorn Randall Einhorn (born December 7, 1963) is an American television cinematographer, director, and producer, best known for his work on ''The Office'', '' Wilfred'', ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'', and '' Survivor''. Early life and career Bo ...

signed on to direct and executive produce the pilot. On May 11, 2018, ABC ordered the show to series and announced that the series would be titled ''The Kids Are Alright''. On November 7, 2018, the series was picked up for a full season of 22 episodes. On December 14, 2018, ABC ordered an additional episode of the first season, bringing the order to 23 episodes.

Casting

On February 13, 2018,

was cast as Mike Dwyer. A few days later,

was cast as Peggy Dwyer. By the end of the month, Sam Straley had joined the cast as Lawrence, along with Caleb Foote as Eddie, Christopher Paul Richards as Joey, and Jack Gore as Timmy. In early March 2018, Sawyer Barth was cast as Frank. That month, it was also revealed that Andy Walken and Santino Barnard had also joined the series. With the series order in May, the family name was changed from the Dwyers to the Clearys.

Music

Siddhartha Khosla Goldspot is a New York-based band. Founded by singer/songwriter/producer and television and film composer Siddhartha Khosla, the group has since received critical acclaim for its debut album ''Tally of the Yes Men'' (''Tally''), and second alb ...

served as the primary composer for the series.

Broadcast

The series premiered on October 16, 2018, on ABC in the United States, and on CTV in Canada.

Reception

Ratings

Critical response

The

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

reported an 82% approval rating with an average rating of 6.62/10 based on 17 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "''The Kids are Alright'' is a surprisingly poignant, thoughtful show with a classic sitcom feel."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, 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 arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 71 out of 100 based on 7 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."

Accolades

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kids Are Alright, The 2010s American single-camera sitcoms 2018 American television series debuts 2019 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming English-language television shows Television series by ABC Studios Television series set in 1972 Television series set in 1973 Television series about families Television shows set in Los Angeles