drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...
television series created by
Jenji Kohan
Jenji Leslie Kohan (born July 5, 1969) is an American television writer and producer. She is best known as the creator and showrunner of the Showtime comedy-drama series '' Weeds'' and the Netflix comedy-drama series ''Orange Is the New Black''. ...
, which aired on
Showtime
Showtime or Show Time may refer to:
Film
* ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
* ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur
Television Networks and channels
* Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
from August 8, 2005, to September 16, 2012. The series tells of Nancy Botwin (
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...
), a widowed mother of two boys (
Hunter Parrish
Hunter Parrish Tharp (born May 13, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He is known for playing the role of Silas Botwin in the Showtime series '' Weeds'' and for his performances in the Broadway productions of ''Godspell'' in the role of Jesu ...
and
Alexander Gould
Alexander Jerome Gould (born May 4, 1994) is an American actor. He is best known for voicing the title character of the Pixar animated film ''Finding Nemo''. He is also known for playing Shane Botwin on the Showtime (TV network), Showtime drama s ...
) who begins selling
marijuana
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...
to support her family. Other main characters include Nancy's lax brother-in-law (
Justin Kirk
Justin Kirk (born May 28, 1969) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Prior Walter in Mike Nichols's screen adaptation of ''Angels in America'', for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting A ...
); foolish accountant (
Kevin Nealon
Kevin Nealon (; born November 18, 1953) is an American comedian and actor. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1986 to 1995, acted in several of the Happy Madison films, played Doug Wilson on the Showtime series '' Weeds'', and pr ...
); narcissistic neighbor (
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins (born November 18, 1960) is an American actress. Her film roles have included ''About Last Night'' (1986), '' Big'' (1988), ''Avalon'' (1990), and '' He Said, She Said'' (1991), ''The Flintstones'' (1994), ''Miracle on 34th ...
) living with her husband (
Andy Milder
Andy Milder (born August 16, 1969) is an American actor.
Career
He has appeared in such films as ''Apollo 13'', ''Armageddon'', ''Rumor Has It…'', '' Frost/Nixon'', ''Transformers'', and '' Domino''. He was a series regular on ''Fame L.A.'' ...
) and their daughter ( Allie Grant); as well as Nancy's wholesalers (
Tonye Patano
Tonye T. Patano (born October 16, 1961) is an American actress. She may be best known as Heylia James on the television series '' Weeds''.
She has appeared in television shows such as ''Law & Order'', ''Sex and the City'', ''Monk'' and ''Third ...
) and (
Romany Malco Romany relates or may refer to:
*The Romani people or Romany people, also known as Gypsies
*Romani language or Romany language, the language of the Romani people
*"Romany", the pseudonym of a broadcaster and writer of Romani descent, George Bramwel ...
). Over the course of the series, the Botwin family becomes increasingly entangled in illegal activity.
Kohan serves as
showrunner
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
and is executive producer, under her ''Tilted Productions'' label. The first three seasons are set primarily in the fictional town of Agrestic, located in the
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Located to the north of the Los Angeles Basin, it contains a large portion of the City of Los Angeles, as well as unincorporated ar ...
of
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. During seasons 4 and 5, the Botwins reside in the also fictional
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
suburb of Ren Mar. In
season 6
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...
, the family relocates to
Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
and
Dearborn, Michigan
Dearborn is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 109,976. Dearborn is the seventh most-populated city in Michigan and is home to the largest Muslim population in the United States pe ...
. In
season 7
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and po ...
, the family resides in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, living in
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
for the duration of the season, but relocates to
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
in the season 7 finale and throughout
season 8
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In tempera ...
.
When the show debuted on the Showtime cable network, it earned the channel's highest ratings. In 2012,
TV Guide Network
The American cable television, cable and satellite television network Pop (American TV channel), Pop was originally launched in 1981 as a barker channel service providing a display of localized electronic program guide, channel and program listings ...
bought the airing rights and provided an edited version of the show free of charge. The show has received numerous awards, including two
Emmy Awards
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
, two
Satellite Award
The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take place ...
s, one
Golden Globe Award
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...
, a
Writers Guild Award
The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949.
Eligibility
The ...
, and a
Young Artist Award
The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...
.
In November 2019, it was revealed that a sequel series was in development at
Starz
Starz (stylized as STARZ since 2016; pronounced "stars") is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Lions Gate Entertainment, and is the flagship property of parent subsidiary Starz Inc. Programming on Starz consist ...
, titled ''Weeds 4.20''. The series features Mary-Louise Parker and Elizabeth Perkins reprising their roles with the story set 10 years after the conclusion of the original series.
Victoria Morrow
Victoria Morrow is an American television writer and producer. She has been nominated for two Writers Guild of America Awards for her work on '' Deadwood'' and '' Weeds''.
Biography
Morrow joined the crew of HBO Western drama '' Deadwood'' as ...
, who was a producer on the writing team for ''Weeds'', is set to return as writer and executive producer on the spin-off series, while Kohan is not yet confirmed to be involved, along with any other returning cast.
Production
Produced by Tilted Productions, in association with
Lionsgate Television
Lionsgate Television is the television division of Lionsgate, which is a Canadian–American entertainment company.
History
The company was established in July 1997 as Lions Gate Television, Inc. with the establishment of Lionsgate Films. It acq ...
, the show is inspired by crime series, such as ''
The Shield
''The Shield'' is an American crime drama television series starring Michael Chiklis that premiered on March 12, 2002, on FX in the United States, and concluded on November 25, 2008, after seven seasons. Known for its portrayal of corrupt poli ...
'' and ''
The Sopranos
''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...
'', in the sense of an
antihero
An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who may lack conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actions ...
serving as the
protagonist
A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...
while retaining an individual
moral code
Morality () is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper (right) and those that are improper (wrong). Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of cond ...
, which usually goes against the norms of society. The title, according to Kohan, refers "to a lot of things", including marijuana and widow's weeds; however, it mainly alludes to "hardy plants struggling to survive." The basic premise, as illustrated by the lyrics of the opening song from seasons 1-3 and 8, satirizes off-color characters struggling with faux suburban reality, in which everything is "all style, no substance". According to Kohan, she first pitched the series to
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
, which dismissed it.
Robert Greenblatt
Robert Greenblatt (born 1959/1960) is an American television executive, former Chairman of NBC Entertainment and former Chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment. He has since launched his production company, The Green Room
Early life and educatio ...
invested in the show before it was commissioned by Showtime.
Showrunner
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
and
head writer
A head writer is a person who oversees the team of writers on a television or radio series. The title is common in the soap opera genre, as well as with sketch comedies and talk shows that feature monologues and comedy skits. In fictional comedy o ...
Mad About You
''Mad About You'' is an American television sitcom starring Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt as a married couple in New York City. It initially aired on NBC from September 23, 1992, to May 24, 1999, winning numerous awards including four Golden Glob ...
,'' and ''
Sex and the City
''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City (newspaper column), newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the ...
'', is the executive producer of the series, alongside Roberto Benabib, of ''
Little City
''Little City'' is a 1997 romantic comedy film written and directed by Roberto Benabib. The film stars Jon Bon Jovi, Josh Charles, Joanna Going, Penelope Ann Miller, Annabella Sciorra, and JoBeth Williams. The film follows the intersecting lo ...
'' fame. Kohan also explains how she and Benabib "tag team d in running the writers room. Senior writer Matthew Salsberg and director
Craig Zisk
Craig Zisk is an American film director, director and Television producer, producer.
Biography
Zisk grew up in Dallas, where he graduated from the St. Mark's School of Texas. His family was American Jews, Jewish.
After graduating from the Univ ...
also joined as executive producers in later seasons. Following Zisk's departure from the series after five seasons, Mark Burley, director
Scott Ellis
Scott Ellis (born April 19, 1957) is an American stage director, actor, and television director.
Biography
Ellis graduated from Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute of Chicago (now at DePaul University) in Chicago.
, and Lisa Vinnecour were added on as executive producers. During season 7 and 8, senior writers
Victoria Morrow
Victoria Morrow is an American television writer and producer. She has been nominated for two Writers Guild of America Awards for her work on '' Deadwood'' and '' Weeds''.
Biography
Morrow joined the crew of HBO Western drama '' Deadwood'' as ...
and Stephen Falk became co-executive producers.
Exterior scenes for the first two seasons were shot almost exclusively in
Stevenson Ranch
Stevenson Ranch is an unincorporated community in the Santa Clarita Valley of Los Angeles County, California. Stevenson Ranch is set in the foothills of the Santa Susana Mountains and lies west of Interstate 5 and the city of Santa Clarita. Steve ...
, a suburban area of
Santa Clarita Valley
The Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) is part of the upper watershed of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. The valley was part of the Rancho San Francisco Mexican land grant. Located in Los Angeles County, its main population center is th ...
, California. The large fountain and Agrestic sign in the opening credits of the first three seasons was shot at the corner of Stevenson Ranch Parkway and Holmes Place. The name "Stevenson Ranch" was digitally replaced with "Agrestic" (and with "Majestic" and "Regrestic" in later episodes). The overhead satellite view in the beginning of the credits in the first three seasons is of Calabasas Hills, a
gated community
A gated community (or walled community) is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences ...
in
Calabasas, California
Calabasas (from Spanish language, Spanish ''calabazas'' "gourds") is a city in the southwestern region of the San Fernando Valley, between the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains, Santa Monica and Santa Susana Mountains, Santa Susanna mounta ...
. The shot of the It's A Grind coffee shop in the introduction (seasons 1–3) is of an It's A Grind in Castaic, California. The show was originally filmed at Red Studios, previously known as Ren-Mar studios. The show moved to
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...
in Los Angeles for season 7, where it is noted on the studio tour. A version of this Wikipedia page served as the introduction for the season 5 episode titled "
Where the Sidewalk Ends
''Where the Sidewalk Ends'' is a 1974 children's poetry collection written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein. It was published by Harper and Row Publishers. The book's poems address many common childhood concerns and also present purely fancif ...
".
Synopsis
Series opening
Nancy Botwin
This is a list of characters from the television series '' Weeds''.
Nancy Botwin's family
Nancy Botwin
Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louise Parker, leading character)—also known as Lacey LaPlante (season two) and Nathalie Newman (season six)—was a PTA ...
is a single mother who lives in Agrestic—a fictional suburb of Los Angeles—with her two children, 15-year-old
Silas
Silas or Silvanus (; Greek: Σίλας/Σιλουανός; fl. 1st century AD) was a leading member of the Early Christian community, who according to the New Testament accompanied Paul the Apostle on his second missionary journey.
Name and et ...
and 10-year-old
Shane
Shane may refer to:
People
* Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress
* Shane (New Zealand singer) (born 1946)
* iamnotshane (born 1995), formerly known as Shane, American singer
* Shane (name)
Shane is mainly a masculine g ...
, when the series begins. The pilot opens a few months after the untimely death of Nancy's husband Judah, who had a heart attack while jogging with their younger son. Nancy begins selling marijuana to maintain the upper middle-class lifestyle originally provided by her late husband's salary. References to conspicuous consumption are evident from the show's beginning episodes. The opening credits are set to Malvina Reynolds' "Little Boxes" song, which speaks of suburbanites from the same mold, all living the consumerist American dream. Visual and auditory references to designer labels, luxury homes, SUVs, plastic surgery, and expensive sugary drinks point to the consumption habits of the Agrestic characters. Nancy's desire to maintain her comfortable suburban lifestyle is the impetus for her decision to enter the illegal drug business and is another example of extreme consumerism in suburbia. The series follows Nancy's life as she gets drawn into the criminal system, develops a client base, starts a
front
Front may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''The Front'' (1943 film), a 1943 Soviet drama film
* ''The Front'', 1976 film
Music
* The Front (band), an American rock band signed to Columbia Records and active in the 1980s and e ...
to hide her selling, creates her own strain of weed called
MILF
MILF (, as if read as "milf") is an acronym that stands for "Mother I'd Like to Fuck". This abbreviation is used in colloquial English, instead of the whole phrase. It connotes an older woman considered sexually attractive, typically one who has ...
, and relocates her family to stay out of jail and protect her children. Featured in the ensemble cast are her lazy, wisecracking brother-in-law
Andy Botwin
This is a list of characters from the television series '' Weeds''.
Nancy Botwin's family
Nancy Botwin
Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louise Parker, leading character)—also known as Lacey LaPlante (season two) and Nathalie Newman (season six)—was a PTA ...
; foolish acquaintance Doug Wilson; and narcissistic neighbor and PTA mother
Celia Hodes
This is a list of characters from the television series '' Weeds''.
Nancy Botwin's family
Nancy Botwin
Nancy Botwin (Mary-Louise Parker, leading character)—also known as Lacey LaPlante (season two) and Nathalie Newman (season six)—was a PTA ...
.
Cast and characters
The principal character is Nancy Price Botwin (
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...
), a housewife from Southern California who becomes a marijuana dealer after her husband Judah (
Jeffrey Dean Morgan
Jeffrey Dean Morgan (born April 22, 1966) is an American actor of television and film, best known for playing the character Negan in the AMC horror drama series '' The Walking Dead'' (2016–2022), for which he has received critical acclaim. He ...
) dies. Although her drug-dealing career achieves mixed success, she eventually rises to the highest levels of an international drug-smuggling cartel. Nancy remarries three times during the series. First, she has an under-the-radar wedding with Peter Scottson (
Martin Donovan
Martin Donovan (born Martin Paul Smith; August 19, 1957) is an American actor. He has had a long collaboration with director Hal Hartley, appearing in many of his films, such as ''Trust'' (1990), '' Surviving Desire'' (1991), '' Simple Men'' (199 ...
), a DEA agent, who is later killed. In season five, she marries Esteban Reyes (
Demián Bichir
Demián Bichir Nájera (; born 1 August 1963) is a Mexican actor. After starring in telenovelas, he began to appear in Hollywood films. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in ''A Better Life''.
Personal life
Bichi ...
and leader of a cartel, who is murdered by the seventh season. While in prison, Nancy also establishes a long-term relationship with Zoya (
Olga Sosnovska
Olga Sosnovska (born 21 May 1972) is a Polish-born U.K./U.S.-based actress.
Life and career
Sosnovska was born in Wieluń, Poland. Her family emigrated to England when she was eleven. Sosnovska is perhaps best known in the United States for ...
), a woman convicted of murdering her own boyfriend. In the series finale, which leaps forward seven years, viewers come to know that Nancy marries Rabbi David Bloom (
David Julian Hirsh
David Julian Hirsh (born October 26, 1973) is a Canadian actor.
Early life
Born and raised in a Jewish family in Montreal, Hirsh majored in criminology at the University of Toronto. He originally planned to become a lawyer until a summer acting ...
), who later dies in a car accident.
Throughout most of the show, Nancy shares her house with her brother-in-law Andy Botwin (
Justin Kirk
Justin Kirk (born May 28, 1969) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Prior Walter in Mike Nichols's screen adaptation of ''Angels in America'', for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting A ...
). When Andy arrives in Agrestic, he is little more than a fun-loving slacker (albeit a handsome and charming one), and Nancy views him as a burden. Nonetheless, he emerges as the primary father figure in the household; her children adore him and there is the suggestion that Nancy and her sons view Andy as their last link to Judah. Andy falls in love with Nancy during the fourth season but eventually realizes his feelings are unreciprocated. Nancy tries to balance their relationship to keep him "in the family." When he is not helping Nancy run her household, Andy engages in various educational and business ventures, from studying to be a rabbi in Hebrew school, to marijuana dealer, to entrepreneurial bicycle salesman. He also has a passion for cooking, becoming a professional chef by the sixth season.
Nancy begins the series with two sons, who after Judah's death are raised haphazardly. In the fifth season, she has a son, Stevie Ray Botwin (portrayed by uncredited babies and later by Ethan and Gavin Kent), with Esteban Reyes. Her first son, Silas (
Hunter Parrish
Hunter Parrish Tharp (born May 13, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He is known for playing the role of Silas Botwin in the Showtime series '' Weeds'' and for his performances in the Broadway productions of ''Godspell'' in the role of Jesu ...
), who has been sexually active since the show's debut, later follows in his mother's footsteps: he becomes a marijuana dealer, grower, and dispensary operator.
Nancy's younger son, Shane (
Alexander Gould
Alexander Jerome Gould (born May 4, 1994) is an American actor. He is best known for voicing the title character of the Pixar animated film ''Finding Nemo''. He is also known for playing Shane Botwin on the Showtime (TV network), Showtime drama s ...
), is highly intelligent yet poorly socialized and vulgar; he is deeply affected by his father's death and yearns for more attention from his mother. In the first three seasons, Shane was also frequently bullied in school. After his peers harassed him in the bathroom for his sexual inexperience, his uncle pursues his request in taking him for a
handjob
A handjob, also spelled hand job, is a sex act, performed as either foreplay or as non-penetrative sex, that involves the manual stimulation of the penis or scrotum by another person to induce an erection for sexual pleasure, sexual arousal and s ...
at the local
massage parlor
A massage parlor (American English) or massage parlour (Canadian/British English) is a place where massage services are provided for a fee. In the 19th century, the term began to be used in English as a euphemism for a brothel.
Context
In 1894 ...
. He is portrayed as having psychological issues. For instance, just before leaving Agrestic, Shane has conversations with his dead father. Upon moving to Ren Mar, he loses his virginity and becomes a temporary alcoholic. Shane also engages in violence: When he overhears his mother's conversation with Estaban's scornful boss and political consultant Pilar, who threatens his and Silas' life, Shane murders Pilar by abruptly striking her over the head with a croquet mallet before her body collapses into the pool. By the seventh season, he joins the police academy before receiving his criminal justice degree — working for the
New York City Police Department
The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...
in season eight.
Celia Hodes (
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins (born November 18, 1960) is an American actress. Her film roles have included ''About Last Night'' (1986), '' Big'' (1988), ''Avalon'' (1990), and '' He Said, She Said'' (1991), ''The Flintstones'' (1994), ''Miracle on 34th ...
) is Nancy's "
frenemy
"Frenemy" (also spelled "frienemy") is an oxymoron and a portmanteau of "friend" and "enemy" that refers to "a person with whom one is friendly, despite a fundamental dislike or rivalry" or "a person who combines the characteristics of a friend ...
". Obsessed with her personal image, she manipulates those around her who do not fit neatly into that image. She is unhappily married to Dean (
Andy Milder
Andy Milder (born August 16, 1969) is an American actor.
Career
He has appeared in such films as ''Apollo 13'', ''Armageddon'', ''Rumor Has It…'', '' Frost/Nixon'', ''Transformers'', and '' Domino''. He was a series regular on ''Fame L.A.'' ...
) whom she regards as a "loser asshole"; they later divorce. Other characters also dislike her. Celia's older daughter, Quinn (
Haley Hudson
Haley Kaye Hudson (born June 14, 1986) is an American actress. She began her career at age 16 after being cast in Disney's remake of ''Freaky Friday'' opposite Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan. Hudson played the role of Peg, a member of the roc ...
), kidnaps her as revenge for shipping her to a reform school in Mexico. She is also demanding over her younger daughter Isabelle's ( Allie Grant) "weight problem," and disapproves of her being a
lesbian
A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...
. At the end of the first season, Celia is diagnosed with breast cancer and cured with
chemotherapy
Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...
. When interrogated by the police over Nancy's
grow house
A grow house is a property, usually located in a suburban residential neighbourhood, that is primarily used for the black market production of marijuana, it may be used for the cultivation of other drugs such as psilocybin mushrooms.
The house ...
in Celia's home burning down the city, Dean, Doug, and other characters falsely allege that Celia coordinated it, which leads to her arrest. Following her release from prison, she becomes addicted to cocaine, so Isabelle arranges a rehab home intervention. Celia later becomes envious of Nancy; therefore, she dresses like her. After the fifth season, the actress left to pursue other projects.
Doug Wilson (
Kevin Nealon
Kevin Nealon (; born November 18, 1953) is an American comedian and actor. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1986 to 1995, acted in several of the Happy Madison films, played Doug Wilson on the Showtime series '' Weeds'', and pr ...
) begins the series as an accountant and city councilman for the town of Agrestic. Doug is friends with many characters in the series including Andy, Dean, and Sanjay Patel (
Maulik Pancholy
Maulik Navin Pancholy (, born January 18, 1974) is an American actor and author who is best known for his roles as Jonathan on ''30 Rock'', Baljeet Tjinder in ''Phineas and Ferb'', Neal in the first season of ''Whitney'', and as a character named ...
); all four aid Nancy's career as a marijuana dealer. Doug makes mistakes and loses his position; his wife Dana leaves him. He becomes a drifter who follows the Botwins during seasons four through eight. He and the Botwins move to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, where he becomes the chief accountant for a
Ponzi scheme
A Ponzi scheme (, ) is a form of fraud that lures investors and pays profits to earlier investors with funds from more recent investors. Named after Italian businessman Charles Ponzi, the scheme leads victims to believe that profits are comin ...
posing as a hedge fund.
The show has a changing cast of supporting characters. Heylia James (
Tonye Patano
Tonye T. Patano (born October 16, 1961) is an American actress. She may be best known as Heylia James on the television series '' Weeds''.
She has appeared in television shows such as ''Law & Order'', ''Sex and the City'', ''Monk'' and ''Third ...
) and her family — Conrad and Vaneeta, portrayed by
Romany Malco Romany relates or may refer to:
*The Romani people or Romany people, also known as Gypsies
*Romani language or Romany language, the language of the Romani people
*"Romany", the pseudonym of a broadcaster and writer of Romani descent, George Bramwel ...
and
Indigo
Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...
, respectively — play key roles during the first three seasons. They are wholesalers who supply marijuana to Nancy. Conrad later develops his own
strain
Strain may refer to:
Science and technology
* Strain (biology), variants of plants, viruses or bacteria; or an inbred animal used for experimental purposes
* Strain (chemistry), a chemical stress of a molecule
* Strain (injury), an injury to a mu ...
of marijuana, called MILF weed, which Nancy sells.
Season three features Sullivan Groff (
Matthew Modine
Matthew Avery Modine (born March 22, 1959) is an American actor and filmmaker, who rose to prominence through his role as U.S. Marine Private/Sergeant J.T. "Joker" Davis in ''Full Metal Jacket''. His other film roles include the title character ...
), an unethical, womanizing real estate developer with big plans for Agrestic. When Nancy moves to Ren Mar, the characters in Esteban's drug cartel—primarily Cesar (
Enrique Castillo
Enrique () is the Spanish variant of the given name Heinrich of Germanic origin.
Equivalents in other languages are Henry (English), Enric (Catalan), Enrico (Italian), Henrik (Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian), Heinrich (German), Hendrik, Henk (Du ...
), Ignacio (
Hemky Madera
Hemky Madera (born January 26, 1977) is an American actor. He began his acting career in the Dominican Republic television production ''Grandes Series Dominicanas'' in which he took the leading parts of the mini-series ''En La Olla'' and ''Tri ...
), and Guillermo ( Guillermo Díaz), the latter first appearing in the third season—take a leading role. Other key characters include Nancy's housekeeper Lupita ( Renée Victor); rival drug dealers; countless law enforcement officials; the romantic interests of Andy, Silas, and Shane; and the residents of Agrestic and Ren Mar.
In the sixth season, Nancy is on the run, and the new characters only have minor roles and appear for only a few episodes. An exception to this is Warren Schiff (
Richard Dreyfuss
Richard Stephen Dreyfuss (; born Dreyfus; October 29, 1947) is an American actor. He is known for starring in popular films during the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, including ''American Graffiti'' (1973), ''Jaws'' (1975), ''Close Encounters of the T ...
), who she first met when teaching her math in high school; he becomes infatuated with Nancy. When the Botwins and Doug settle in New York City, new supporting characters are introduced. The family later settles in Nancy's estranged sister Jill's (
Jennifer Jason Leigh
Jennifer Jason Leigh (born Jennifer Leigh Morrow; February 5, 1962) is an American actress. She began her career on television during the 1970s before making her film breakthrough as Stacy Hamilton in ''Fast Times at Ridgemont High'' (1982). She ...
) house in Connecticut, becoming a regular guest character by the eighth season.
Other recurring characters include
Albert Brooks
Albert Brooks (born Albert Lawrence Einstein ; July 22, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker.
He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for 1987's '' Broadcast News'' and was widely praised for his performance as a ...
as Nancy's father-in-law Lenny,
Carrie Fisher
Carrie Frances Fisher (October 21, 1956 – December 27, 2016) was an American actress and writer. She played Princess Leia in the ''Star Wars'' films (1977–1983). She reprised the role in'' Star Wars: The Force Awakens'' (2015), ''The Last ...
as Celia's lawyer,
Dave Thomas Dave may refer to:
Film, television, and theater
* Dave (film), ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver
* Dave (musical), ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film
* Dave (TV channel), a digital ...
as a doctor,
Martin Short
Martin Hayter Short (born March 26, 1950) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, and writer. He has received various awards including two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. In 2019 Short became an Officer of the Order of Canada.
He ...
as a lawyer for Nancy's custody battle,
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, Morissette began her career in Canada in the early 1990s with tw ...
as a doctor at an abortion clinic,
Zooey Deschanel
Zooey Claire Deschanel (; born January 17, 1980) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She made her film debut in '' Mumford'' (1999) and had a supporting role in Cameron Crowe's film ''Almost Famous'' (2000). Deschanel is known for he ...
as Andy's estranged girlfriend,
Lee Majors
Lee Majors (born Harvey Lee Yeary; April 23, 1939) is an American actor. Majors portrayed the characters of Heath Barkley in the American television Western series ''The Big Valley'' (1965–1969), Colonel Steve Austin in the American television ...
as a border guard,
Mary-Kate Olsen
Mary-Kate Olsen (born June 13, 1986) is an American businesswoman, fashion designer, equestrian, and former actress. She began her acting career nine months after her birth, sharing the role of Michelle Tanner with her twin sister Ashley Olsen ...
as a student who worships Jesus and sells pot, as well as
Aidan Quinn
Aidan Quinn (born March 8, 1959) is an American actor who made his film debut in '' Reckless'' (1984). He has starred in over 80 feature films, including ''Desperately Seeking Susan'' (1985), '' The Mission'' (1986), ''Stakeout'' (1987), ''Aval ...
, among others.
Episodes
As of September 16, 2012, 102 original episodes have been broadcast. The first season began August 8, 2005, and consisted of 10 episodes. The second season premiered on August 14, 2006, airing 12 episodes. The third season debuted on August 13, 2007, airing 15 episodes. The fourth season began June 16, 2008, the fifth season on June 8, 2009, and the sixth in August 2010, each with 13 episodes. The seventh season began airing on June 27, 2011, and, as of November 10, 2011, Weeds was renewed for an eighth and final season of 13 episodes that premiered Sunday, July 1, 2012.
In 2006, before Season 2 airing, the first few episodes were leaked online. Before the third season began, the first two episodes appeared online on July 22, 2007 (nearly a month before the August 13 premiere date). The third episode appeared online on July 24, 2007, with the fourth appearing just three days later. The fourth episode was, however, an incomplete version—among other things, some dubbed lines were not complete (notably part of a voice mail message by U-Turn is spoken by a distinctly different actor), and a card simply reading "End Credits" was inserted instead of the actual credits. On August 1, 2010, the first episodes of season 6 leaked online. Due to the high quality of the leaked episodes, downloaders of the torrents speculated that they were leaked intentionally to garner interest in the show and to create internet buzz. Episode leaks of other Showtime programs such as ''
Californication Californication may refer to:
*Californication (word)
''Californication'' is a portmanteau of California and fornication, appearing in ''Time'' on May 6, 1966 and written about on August 21, 1972, additionally seen on bumper stickers in the U.S. ...
'' and ''
Dexter
Dexter may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Dexter, the main character of the American animated series ''Dexter's Laboratory'' that aired from 1996 to 2003
* Dexter, a fictional character in the British Diary of a Bad Man#Main, web series ''Diar ...
'' were seen as giving weight to this theory.
Jenji Kohan
Jenji Leslie Kohan (born July 5, 1969) is an American television writer and producer. She is best known as the creator and showrunner of the Showtime comedy-drama series '' Weeds'' and the Netflix comedy-drama series ''Orange Is the New Black''. ...
has stated that she does not mind episodes being distributed on the internet in this way, saying, "Revenue aside, I don't expect to get rich on ''Weeds''. I'm excited it's out there. Showtime is great, but it does have a limited audience." The show is rated
TV-MA
The TV Parental Guidelines are a television content rating system in the United States that was first proposed on December 19, 1996, by the United States Congress, the television industry and the Federal Communications Commission, federal commun ...
for drug content, profanity, nudity, brief violence, and other adult content.
Media
Opening music
"
Little Boxes
"Little Boxes" is a song written and composed by Malvina Reynolds in 1962, which became a hit for her friend Pete Seeger in 1963, when he released his cover version.
The song is a social satire about the development of suburbia, and associat ...
" is the opening song for the first three seasons. The first season uses the version recorded by its composer
Malvina Reynolds
Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...
."Little Boxes", Copyright 1949 Schroder Music Company, renewed 1990. In seasons 2 and 3, the song is performed by various artists. In season 4, the Malvina Reynolds version opens the first episode. Thereafter, the original titles and music are replaced by a short clip, different for each episode, that relates to the plot or some scene in the episode. The song is also subtly referenced in the eighth episode of the fourth season when a sleepy Nancy tells Shane that he's going to "...become a doctor or a lawyer or a business executive." In the opening credits of the eighth episode of season seven, a woman is heard humming the tune to "Little Boxes" as she arranges knickknacks on a shelf. In Season 8, the show returns to "Little Boxes" for the opening sequence.
;Season 1
*
Malvina Reynolds
Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...
;Season 2
#
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...
#
Death Cab for Cutie
Death Cab for Cutie is an American rock band formed in Bellingham, Washington, in 1997. The band is currently composed of Ben Gibbard (vocals, guitar, piano), Nick Harmer (bass), Dave Depper (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Zac Rae (keyboar ...
Kate & Anna McGarrigle
Kate McGarrigle (February 6, 1946 – January 18, 2010) and Anna McGarrigle (born December 4, 1944) were a duo of Canadian singer-songwriters (and sisters) from Quebec, who performed until Kate McGarrigle's death on January 18, 2010.
Music ca ...
(in French)
# Charlie (Charles Phelps) Barnett Jr
# Aidan Hawken
#
Ozomatli
Ozomatli is an American rock band, formed in 1995 in Los Angeles. They are known both for their vocal activist viewpoints and incorporating a wide array of musical styles – including salsa, jazz, funk, reggae, hip hop, and others. The group ...
#
The Submarines
The Submarines are an American indie rock band from Los Angeles formed in 2006.
Band history
Working as solo artists in Boston, the two members of the band, John Dragonetti and Blake Hazard, were introduced through a mutual friend, Joe Klompus ...
#
Tim DeLaughter
Tim DeLaughter (born November 18, 1965) is an American rock musician. He is the frontman of the bands Tripping Daisy, The Polyphonic Spree, and Preteen Zenith.
At the 61st Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, DeLaughter was nominated for Ou ...
of
Polyphonic Spree
Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice, monophony, or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords, ho ...
#
Regina Spektor
Regina Ilyinichna Spektor (russian: Регинa Ильинична Спектор, ; born February 18, 1980) is a Russian–born American singer, songwriter, and pianist.
After self-releasing her first three records and gaining popularity in ...
#
Jenny Lewis
Jennifer Diane Lewis (born January 8, 1976) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and actress. She was the lead singer, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist for the indie rock band Rilo Kiley.
Lewis gained prominence in the 1980s as a child a ...
and
Johnathan Rice
Johnathan Rice (born May 27, 1983) is a Scottish-American singer-songwriter. He used to frequently collaborate with Jenny Lewis. His first album, ''Trouble is Real'', was released on Reprise Records on April 26, 2005. His follow-up, ''Furthe ...
#
Malvina Reynolds
Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...
;Season 3
#
Randy Newman
Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist known for his Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early Americana (music), Americana-influenced songs (often ...
#
Angelique Kidjo
Angelique or Angélique may refer to:
* Angélique (given name), a French feminine name
Arts and entertainment Music
* Angélique (instrument), a string instrument of the lute family
* ''Angélique'', a 1927 opéra bouffe by Jacques Ibert
* ...
Donovan
Donovan Phillips Leitch (born 10 May 1946), known mononymously as Donovan, is a Scottish musician, songwriter, and record producer. He developed an eclectic and distinctive style that blended folk, jazz, pop, psychedelic rock and world mus ...
#
Billy Bob Thornton
Billy Bob Thornton (born August 4, 1955) is an American actor, filmmaker and musician. He had his first break when he co-wrote and starred in the 1992 thriller ''One False Move'', and received international attention after writing, directing, a ...
#
The Shins
The Shins is an American indie rock band formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1996. The band is the project of singer-songwriter James Mercer, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The band's cu ...
Man Man
Man Man is an American experimental rock band from Philadelphia currently based in Los Angeles. Their multi-instrumental style is centered on the piano playing of lead singer, songwriter, and lyricist Honus (Ryan Kattner). Honus is accompanied ...
#
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...
#
The Decemberists
The Decemberists are an American indie rock band from Portland, Oregon. The band consists of Colin Meloy ( lead vocals, guitar, principal songwriter), Chris Funk (guitar, multi-instrumentalist), Jenny Conlee (piano, keyboards, accordion), Nate ...
#
Michael Franti
Michael Franti (born April 21, 1966) is an American rapper, musician, poet, activist, documentarian, and singer-songwriter, known for his participation in many musical projects, most with a political and social emphasis, including the Beatnigs ...
#
Persephone's Bees
Persephone's Bees is an Oakland-based pop/rock/ electropop music group, whose members are Angelina Moyson (vocals), Tom Ayres (who plays guitar), Paul Bertolino (drums), and Bart Davenport (bass). Bass players have included Mike Ferrel and Ethan ...
(partly in Russian)
#
Laurie Berkner
Laurissa Ann "Laurie" Berkner (born March 15, 1969) is a French-born American musician and singer best known for her work as a children's musical artist. She plays guitar and sings lead vocals in The Laurie Berkner Band, along with pianist Susie ...
#
Linkin Park
Linkin Park is an American rock band from Agoura Hills, California. The band's current lineup comprises vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, bassist Dave Farrell, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn and drummer ...
#
Malvina Reynolds
Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...
(opening) &
Pete Seeger
Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, Seeger also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of the Weavers, notably ...
(closing)
;Season 8
#
Malvina Reynolds
Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...
#
Ben Folds
Benjamin Scott Folds (born September 12, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and composer, who is the first artistic advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., since May 2017. Folds was th ...
#
Steve Martin
Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominated ...
&
Kevin Nealon
Kevin Nealon (; born November 18, 1953) is an American comedian and actor. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1986 to 1995, acted in several of the Happy Madison films, played Doug Wilson on the Showtime series '' Weeds'', and pr ...
#
The Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
#
The Mountain Goats
The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Durham, North Carolina. For many years, the sole member of the Mountain Goats was Darnielle, despite the ...
#
Bomb the Music Industry!
Bomb the Music Industry! (commonly abbreviated as Bomb or BtMI!) were an American punk rock musical collective from Baldwin, Nassau County, New York, United States, led by singer-songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Jeff Rosenstock.
...
#
The Womenfolk The Womenfolk were an American folk band from Los Angeles, California.
The Womenfolk were active from 1963 to 1966 and were signed to RCA Records during the folk revival boom of the 1960s. They released several albums, the most successful of which ...
#
The Thermals
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
#
Dierks Bentley
Frederick Dierks Bentley (; born November 20, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. In 2003, he signed to Capitol Nashville and released his eponymous debut album. Both it and its follow-up, 2005's ''Modern Day Drifter'', ar ...
#
Hunter Parrish
Hunter Parrish Tharp (born May 13, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He is known for playing the role of Silas Botwin in the Showtime series '' Weeds'' and for his performances in the Broadway productions of ''Godspell'' in the role of Jesu ...
#
Aimee Mann
Aimee Elizabeth Mann (born September 8, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released more than a dozen albums as a solo artist and with other musicians. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyr ...
#
Malvina Reynolds
Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...
(Cut Chemist Remix)
Soundtracks
The music supervisors for the show include
Gary Calamar Gary Calamar is a five-time Grammy Award-nominated film and television music supervisor whose credits include: ''The Man In The High Castle','' '' Six Feet Under'', ''True Blood'', ''House'', ''Weeds'', ''Entourage'', ''Dexter'', and '' Varsit ...
(along with music coordinator Alyson Vidoli) (27 episodes), Amine Ramer (4 episodes), and Bruce Gilbert (3 episodes). The original score is provided by composers Brandon Jay and
Gwendolyn Sanford
Gwendolyn Sanford is an American singer-songwriter and composer. She is best known for her performances with Gwendolyn and the Good Time Gang and for her contributions to the scores for '' Weeds'', ''Orange Is the New Black,'' and other films and ...
.
;''Weeds'': Music from the Original Series
*Released September 13, 2005
#
Malvina Reynolds
Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...
– "
Little Boxes
"Little Boxes" is a song written and composed by Malvina Reynolds in 1962, which became a hit for her friend Pete Seeger in 1963, when he released his cover version.
The song is a social satire about the development of suburbia, and associat ...
"
#
Nellie McKay
Nell Marie McKay (born April 13, 1982) is a singer and songwriter. She made her Broadway debut in ''The Threepenny Opera'' (2006).
Early life and education
McKay was born in London to an English father, writer-director Malcolm McKay, and an ...
– "David"
#
Peggy Lee
Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress, over a career spanning seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalis ...
– "A Doodlin' Song"
#
Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens ( ; born July 1, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has released nine solo studio albums and multiple collaborative albums with other artists. Stevens has received Grammy and Academy Award nomi ...
– "All the Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands"
#
Michael Franti & Spearhead
Michael Franti (born April 21, 1966) is an American rapper, musician, poet, activist, documentarian, and singer-songwriter, known for his participation in many musical projects, most with a political and social emphasis, including the Beatnigs ...
– "Ganja Babe"
# All Too Much – "More Than a Friend"
# Sons & Daughters – "Blood"
#
The New Pornographers
The New Pornographers are a Canadian indie rock band, formed in 1997 in Vancouver. Presented as a musical collective of singer-songwriters and musicians from multiple projects, the band has released eight studio albums to critical acclaim for th ...
– "The Laws Have Changed"
#
Joey Santiago
Joseph Alberto Santiago (born June 10, 1965) is a Filipino-American guitarist and composer. Active since 1986, Santiago is best known as the lead guitarist for the American alternative rock band Pixies. After the band's breakup in 1993, Santiag ...
– "Fake Purse"
#
NRBQ
NRBQ is an American rock band founded by Terry Adams (piano), Steve Ferguson (guitar) and Joey Spampinato (bass). Originally the "New Rhythm and Blues Quintet", the group was formed around 1965. Adams disbanded it for a time, and the group re-f ...
– "Wacky Tobacky"
#
Marion Black Marion Black is an American Soul music, soul singing, singer and songwriter from Columbus, Ohio, best known for his 1970 song "Who Knows".
Career
Black's career began in 1969, when he approached local music operator Bill Moss, with his self-penned ...
– "Who Knows"
#
Martin Creed
Martin Creed (born 21 October 1968) is a British artist, composer and performer. He won the Turner Prize in 2001 for exhibitions during the preceding year, with the jury praising his audacity for exhibiting a single installation, '' Work No. 2 ...
– "I Can't Move"
#
The Mountain Goats
The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Durham, North Carolina. For many years, the sole member of the Mountain Goats was Darnielle, despite the ...
– "Cotton"
#
Joey Santiago
Joseph Alberto Santiago (born June 10, 1965) is a Filipino-American guitarist and composer. Active since 1986, Santiago is best known as the lead guitarist for the American alternative rock band Pixies. After the band's breakup in 1993, Santiag ...
– "Birthday Video"
#
Flogging Molly
Flogging Molly is an Irish-American seven-piece Celtic punk bandLife Is Good Out Now Floggingmolly. ...
– "If I Ever Leave This World Alive"
#
The Be Good Tanyas
The Be Good Tanyas are a Canadian folk music group formed in Vancouver in 1999. Their influences include folk, country, and bluegrass. The style of music they perform can be referred to as alt-country or Americana.
History
The Be Good Tanya ...
– "The Littlest Birds"
# Hill Of Beans – "Satan Lend Me a Dollar"
;''Weeds'': Music from the Original Series, Volume 2
*Released October 17, 2006
#
Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...
– "Little Boxes"
# Zeroleen – "All Good"
# Of Montreal – "Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games"
#
Jenny Owen Youngs
Jenny Owen Youngs (born November 22, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter. She has released three albums and a handful of EPs both independently and via Nettwerk Records, and has toured worldwide. Youngs is also a songwriting collaborator whos ...
– "
Fuck Was I
"Fuck Was I" is a song by Jenny Owen Youngs, from her 2005 album '' Batten the Hatches''. Its name refers to the phrase "What the fuck was I thinking?"(The Real) Tuesday Weld – "Bathtime in Clerkenwell"
#
Gwendolyn Sanford
Gwendolyn Sanford is an American singer-songwriter and composer. She is best known for her performances with Gwendolyn and the Good Time Gang and for her contributions to the scores for '' Weeds'', ''Orange Is the New Black,'' and other films and ...
& Brandon Jay – "Shane Digs Gretchen"
#
Rogue Wave
Rogue waves (also known as freak waves, monster waves, episodic waves, killer waves, extreme waves, and abnormal waves) are unusually large, unpredictable, and suddenly appearing surface waves that can be extremely dangerous to ships, even to lar ...
– "Kicking the Heart Out"
#
Regina Spektor
Regina Ilyinichna Spektor (russian: Регинa Ильинична Спектор, ; born February 18, 1980) is a Russian–born American singer, songwriter, and pianist.
After self-releasing her first three records and gaining popularity in ...
– "The Ghost of Corporate Future"
#
Dengue Fever
Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. Symptoms typically begin three to fourteen days after infection. These may include a high fever, headache, vomiting, muscle and joint pains, and a characterist ...
– "One Thousand Tears of a Tarantula"
# Aidan Hawken – "Neighborhood"
#
Squirrel Nut Zippers
Squirrel Nut Zippers is an American swing and jazz band formed in 1993 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, by Jimbo Mathus, James "Jimbo" Mathus (vocals and guitar), Tom Maxwell (singer), Tom Maxwell (vocals and guitar), ...
– "It Ain't You"
#
Gwendolyn Sanford
Gwendolyn Sanford is an American singer-songwriter and composer. She is best known for her performances with Gwendolyn and the Good Time Gang and for her contributions to the scores for '' Weeds'', ''Orange Is the New Black,'' and other films and ...
& Brandon Jay – "From Agrestic to Las Vegas"
#
The 88
The 88 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. The group consists of Keith Slettedahl (vocals and guitar), Adam Merrin (keyboards and vocals), Anthony Zimmitti (drums and percussion), and Todd O'Keefe (bass and vocals). Meeti ...
– "Not Enough"
#
Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens ( ; born July 1, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has released nine solo studio albums and multiple collaborative albums with other artists. Stevens has received Grammy and Academy Award nomi ...
– "Holland"
#
Gwendolyn Sanford
Gwendolyn Sanford is an American singer-songwriter and composer. She is best known for her performances with Gwendolyn and the Good Time Gang and for her contributions to the scores for '' Weeds'', ''Orange Is the New Black,'' and other films and ...
& Brandon Jay – "Huskaroo TV Spot"
# The Mopes – "You Look Like a Gorilla"
;''Weeds'': Music from the Original Series, Volume 3
*Released June 3, 2008 as digital-only release, retail release July 8.
#
Randy Newman
Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist known for his Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early Americana (music), Americana-influenced songs (often ...
– "Little Boxes"
#
Page France
Page France was an American indie folk-pop band, fronted by Michael Nau. Active between 2004 and 2008, the band played mainly emotional melodic music.
History
The band was started as a solo project in 2004 by Michael Nau, but quickly evolved in ...
– "Chariot"
#
That 1 Guy
Mike Silverman, better known as That 1 Guy, is an American musician based in Las Vegas, Nevada. He frequently performs and records as a one-man band, singing and using a variety of homemade musical instruments.
Career
Early career
Silverman is ...
– "Buttmachine"
#
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
– "Scenic World"
#
The Dresden Dolls
The Dresden Dolls are an American musical duo from Boston, Massachusetts. Formed in 2000, the group consists of Amanda Palmer (lead vocals and piano; additional: keyboards, harmonica, ukulele) and Brian Viglione (drums and backing vocals; ad ...
– "Girl Anachronism"
#
Ween
Ween is an American rock band from New Hope, Pennsylvania, formed in 1984 by Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo, better known by their respective stage names, Gene and Dean Ween. Generally categorized as an alternative rock band, the band are ...
– "You Fucked Up"
# Oh No! Oh My! – "Walk in the Park"
#
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
– "Nosebleed"
#
Great Lake Swimmers
Great Lake Swimmers is a Canadian folk rock band from Wainfleet, Ontario, and currently based in Toronto.
The current touring line-up includes Tony Dekker on lead vocals, acoustic guitar and harmonica, Erik Arnesen on banjo, electric guitar and ...
– "Your Rocky Spine"
# Mr. Smolin – "The Earth Keeps Turning On"
#
Kevin Nealon
Kevin Nealon (; born November 18, 1953) is an American comedian and actor. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1986 to 1995, acted in several of the Happy Madison films, played Doug Wilson on the Showtime series '' Weeds'', and pr ...
– "Just Like The Superdome"
#
State Radio
State Radio is a Boston-based rock trio comprising singer and primary songwriter Chad Stokes Urmston (also a member of Dispatch), bassist Chuck Fay, and, formerly, drummer Michael Najarian. The band's songs focus on social and political issues ...
– "Keepsake"
#
Eleni Mandell
Eleni Mandell is an American singer-songwriter. Since 2000, she has published albums through Zedtone Records in Toronto, Ontario, which in 2012 began licensing her releases to Yep Roc in the United States, and Make My Day in Europe. She is also ...
– "Let's Drive Away"
#
The Shins
The Shins is an American indie rock band formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1996. The band is the project of singer-songwriter James Mercer, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The band's cu ...
– "Little Boxes" (
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
Exclusive)
;''Weeds'': Music from the Original Series, Volume 4
*Released June 9, 2009
# DeVotchKa – "A New World"
#
Nortec Collective
Nortec Collective was a musical ensemble formed by various individual one- or two-man production projects. The group came together in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. Their genre mixes electronic music with musical elements and instrumentation o ...
– "Tengo La Voz"
#
Greg Weeks
Greg Weeks is an American singer-songwriter based in Philadelphia. His music has been described as folk, acoustic, psychedelic and experimental. He is best known as a founding member of the Psychedelic folk, psychedelic folk-rock band Espers (ba ...
– "Made"
#
The Free Design
The Free Design was a Delevan, New York-based vocal group, whose music can be described as sunshine pop and baroque pop. Though they did not achieve much commercial recognition during their main recording career, their work later influenced ba ...
– "Love You"
#
That Handsome Devil
That Handsome Devil, often shortened to THD, is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, by way of Boston, Massachusetts.
The band mixes genres such as rock, funk, jazz, jive, blues, surf, rhythm and blues, reggae, rockabilly, rap, ...
– "Mexico"
#
Miss Li
Linda Karlsson (born 21 July 1982), better known by her stage name Miss Li, is a Swedish singer and songwriter. Since beginning her career in the early-2000s, she has released a total of eight studio albums, and several of her songs have been feat ...
– "Don't Try to Fool Me"
#
Tunng
Tunng are an English folk music band. They are often associated with the folktronica genre, due to the electronic influences evident in some of their work. Tunng are often noted for their use of unconventional instruments, including seashells a ...
– "Bullets"
#
Mucca Pazza
Mucca Pazza is an interdisciplinary instrumental music and performance ensemble based in Chicago, USA.
Mucca Pazza consists of approximately thirty active members and performs instrumental music; their mode of performance is informed by physical ...
– "Borino Oro"
# Los Mono – "Se Puede"
# Linus of Hollywood – "Thank You for Making Me Feel Better"
#
The Mountain Goats
The Mountain Goats are an American band formed in Claremont, California, by singer-songwriter John Darnielle. The band is currently based in Durham, North Carolina. For many years, the sole member of the Mountain Goats was Darnielle, despite the ...
– "International Small Arms Traffic Blues"
#
Toots & The Maytals
The Maytals, known from 1972 to 2020 as Toots and the Maytals, are a Jamaican musical group, one of the best known ska and rocksteady vocal groups. The Maytals were formed in the early 1960s and were key figures in popularizing reggae music.
...
– "Celia"
# Soul Swingers – "Brighter Tomorrow"
Home media
The Region 1 Season One DVD is only available in 4:3 pan and scan format. The Region 2 and 4 releases are all in
anamorphic widescreen
Anamorphic widescreen (also called Full height anamorphic or FHA) is a process by which a comparatively wide widescreen image is horizontally compressed to fit into a storage medium (photographic film or MPEG-2 standard-definition frame, for exam ...
. Season one was released on
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
on May 29, 2007, and Season two was released on July 24, 2007. Both seasons include all episodes in 1080p widescreen with
Dolby Digital EX
Dolby Digital, originally synonymous with Dolby AC-3, is the name for what has now become a family of audio compression (data), audio compression technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories. Formerly named Dolby Stereo Digital until 1995 in film, ...
sound and either
DTS-HD
DTS-HD Master Audio (DTS-HD MA; known as DTS++ before 2004) is a multi-channel, lossless audio codec developed by DTS as an extension of the lossy DTS Coherent Acoustics codec (DTS CA; usually itself referred to as just DTS). Rather than being ...
(season one) or
LPCM
Pulse-code modulation (PCM) is a method used to digitally represent sampled analog signals. It is the standard form of digital audio in computers, compact discs, digital telephony and other digital audio applications. In a PCM stream, the amp ...
(season two), as well as extras exclusive to the Blu-ray release. Season three was released on Blu-ray on June 3, 2008. Seasons one to three on Blu-ray are multi-region discs; however, season four has been region-locked to region A only.
In late 2009, ''Weeds'' seasons four and five have been aired in at least one region B country, namely The Netherlands. Subsequently, a region 2 DVD of Season 4 has indeed been released. However, the region 2 DVD release was not accompanied by a region B Blu-ray. Showtime has not commented on whether they ever anticipate releasing a region B Blu-ray version, or if any further non-US transmission rights are agreed. The same region locking has been applied to Blu-ray for season five. In November 2011, Seasons 2–5 were released on Region B Blu-ray in Australia with Season 6 Region B Blu-ray released December 16, 2011. Blu-ray season seven is now available.
An extra feature on the Season Two DVD (a marijuana-based cooking show parody) was rejected by the
British Board of Film Classification
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of f ...
since it was regarded as "likely ..to promote and encourage the use of illegal drugs".
Books
On August 7, 2007, Simon Spotlight, a division of Simon and Schuster, published ''In the Weeds: The Official Guide to the Showtime Series'' by Kera Bolonik, which features interviews with the series creator/
showrunner
A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...
, its other writer-producers, and the entire cast. It also features detailed character and plot descriptions, recipes, trivia and behind-the-scenes information.
Reception
In its first year, ''Weeds'' was Showtime's highest rated series. The season 4 premiere attracted 1.3 million viewers to Showtime, the channel's then-highest-ever viewership; the season as a whole averaged 962,000 viewers.
As the
season 3
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pola ...
began in fall 2007, ''
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
'' named Nancy Botwin as one of the best characters on television. ''TIME'' magazine's James Poniewozik ranked ''Weeds'' #9 among the Top 10 Returning Series of 2007. ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' opined the show is "transforming for Showtime."
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 ...
scored season 2 78 out of 100, season 4 67 out of 100, and season 5 73 out of 100.
Critical reception
The first season received mostly positive reviews from critics.
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 ...
rated it 70 out of 100, based on the opinions of 29 critics. The second season achieved a Metacritic rating of 78 out of 100, based on 16 critics, and the third season reached a series-high score of 82 out of 100, based on 12 critics. The critical reviews dipped after season 3, reaching a low Metacritic rating of 55 out of 100 (based on 4 critics) for season 6.
Awards and nominations
Nominations
Emmy Awards
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
* Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins (born November 18, 1960) is an American actress. Her film roles have included ''About Last Night'' (1986), '' Big'' (1988), ''Avalon'' (1990), and '' He Said, She Said'' (1991), ''The Flintstones'' (1994), ''Miracle on 34th ...
(2006, 2007, 2009)
* Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series
Craig Zisk
Craig Zisk is an American film director, director and Television producer, producer.
Biography
Zisk grew up in Dallas, where he graduated from the St. Mark's School of Texas. His family was American Jews, Jewish.
After graduating from the Univ ...
, for the episode "Good Shit Lollipop" (2006)
* Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series (2006, 2007)
* Outstanding Main Title Design (2006)
* Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series, for the episode "Good Shit Lollipop" (2006)
* Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...
(2007, 2008, 2009)
* Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series, for the episode "Mrs. Botwin's Neighborhood" (2007)
* Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series, for the episode "Crush Girl Love Panic" (2007)
* Outstanding Comedy Series (2009)
Golden Globes
The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...
* Best TV Series-Comedy (2006, 2007, 2009)
* Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-series, or TV Movie
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins (born November 18, 1960) is an American actress. Her film roles have included ''About Last Night'' (1986), '' Big'' (1988), ''Avalon'' (1990), and '' He Said, She Said'' (1991), ''The Flintstones'' (1994), ''Miracle on 34th ...
(2006): Best Performance by a TV Supporting Actress
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins (born November 18, 1960) is an American actress. Her film roles have included ''About Last Night'' (1986), '' Big'' (1988), ''Avalon'' (1990), and '' He Said, She Said'' (1991), ''The Flintstones'' (1994), ''Miracle on 34th ...
(2006, 2007)
* Best Performance by a TV Actress in a Musical or Comedy
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...
(2005, 2007, 2008)
* Best Performance by a TV Supporting Actor
Justin Kirk
Justin Kirk (born May 28, 1969) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Prior Walter in Mike Nichols's screen adaptation of ''Angels in America'', for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting A ...
(2007)
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) was an American labor union which represented over 100,000 film and television principal and background performers worldwide. On March 30, 2012, the union leadership announced that the SAG membership voted to m ...
* Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...
(2006, 2007, 2008, 2009)
* Ensemble In A Comedy Series (2007, 2009)
Satellite Awards
The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take place ...
* Outstanding Actress in a Series-Comedy
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins (born November 18, 1960) is an American actress. Her film roles have included ''About Last Night'' (1986), '' Big'' (1988), ''Avalon'' (1990), and '' He Said, She Said'' (1991), ''The Flintstones'' (1994), ''Miracle on 34th ...
(2005)
* Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-series, or TV Movie
Elizabeth Perkins
Elizabeth Ann Perkins (born November 18, 1960) is an American actress. Her film roles have included ''About Last Night'' (1986), '' Big'' (1988), ''Avalon'' (1990), and '' He Said, She Said'' (1991), ''The Flintstones'' (1994), ''Miracle on 34th ...
(2006)
* Best Actress in a Series, Comedy or Musical
Mary-Louise Parker
Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...
(2006, 2008)
* Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series, or TV Movie
Justin Kirk
Justin Kirk (born May 28, 1969) is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Prior Walter in Mike Nichols's screen adaptation of ''Angels in America'', for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting A ...
(2007)
* Best Television Series, Comedy or Musical (2007, 2008)
See also
*''
Breaking Bad
''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited hig ...
Top Buzzer
''Top Buzzer'' is a British sitcom written by Johnny Vaughan and Ed Allen, styled as television's first ever "dope opera". It was shown on MTV in 2004 and later repeated on Five. It revolves around two small-time cannabis dealers, Lee ( Stephen ...