''Bull'' is an American
legal drama
Legal drama, also called courtroom drama, is a genre of film and television that generally focuses on narratives regarding legal practice and the justice system. The American Film Institute (AFI) defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in wh ...
television series created by
Phil McGraw
Phillip Calvin McGraw (born September 1, 1950), also known as Dr. Phil, is an American television personality and author who is best known for hosting the talk show '' Dr. Phil''. He holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, though he ceased ...
and
Paul Attanasio
Paul Albert Attanasio (born November 14, 1959) is an American screenwriter and producer. He has twice been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, once for '' Quiz Show'' (1994) and once for '' Donnie Brasco'' (1997).
Earl ...
and starring
Michael Weatherly.
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
ordered the pilot to series on May 13, 2016, and ran for six seasons on from September 20, 2016, to May 26, 2022.
In April 2021, the series was renewed for a sixth season which premiered on October 7, 2021;
it was announced in January 2022 that the sixth season would be the show's last. The two-part series finale aired on May 19 and 26.
Premise
The series follows the employees at Trial Analysis Corporation (TAC), a
jury consulting firm headed by Dr. Jason Bull, who is a
psychologist
A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...
and trial-science expert. Bull uses his skills and those of his team not only to
select the right jurors for his clients, but also to help his clients' lawyers decide which type of argument will win over jurors best. ''Bull'' is inspired by the early career of Dr.
Phil McGraw
Phillip Calvin McGraw (born September 1, 1950), also known as Dr. Phil, is an American television personality and author who is best known for hosting the talk show '' Dr. Phil''. He holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, though he ceased ...
, who also serves as an executive producer.
Cast and characters
Main
*
Michael Weatherly as Dr. Jason Bull, a psychologist and holder of three
Ph.D.s in
psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
, as well as a pilot's license,
who now owns and operates Trial Analysis Corporation (TAC). He hates lawyers himself
[ due to failing the ]bar exam
A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction.
Australia
Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associat ...
twice, crushing his dream of becoming a lawyer, and he had a difficult childhood.
* Freddy Rodriguez as Benjamin "Benny" Colón (seasons 1–5), Bull's former brother-in-law, Izzy's younger brother, a former NYC prosecutor, and TAC's in-house counsel. In season 5, he leaves TAC to run for District Attorney, only to halt his campaign when he discovers the incumbent DA is being framed. Between seasons 5 and 6, Benny leaves New York to marry a woman he has only dated a month, and moves to Rome, Italy with her.
* Geneva Carr
Geneva Carr (born May 6, 1971) is an American television and stage actress with an extensive acting résumé. She is best known for her portrayal of Marissa Morgan on the CBS television series ''Bull'' and for her performance as Margery in the ...
as Marissa Morgan, a psychologist, neurolinguistics
Neurolinguistics is the study of Nervous system, neural mechanisms in the human brain that control the comprehension, production, and acquisition of language. As an interdisciplinary field, neurolinguistics draws methods and theories from fie ...
expert, second-in-command of Bull's team, and licensed sex therapist, who formerly worked at Homeland Security
Homeland security is an American national security term for "the national effort to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards where American interests, aspirations, and ways of life can thrive" to ...
. She developed the predictive algorithm that TAC uses to select jurors and mirror jurors. In the season 2 finale, Marissa begins to question her dependency on Bull. In season 6, Marissa accepts an offer to become a partner in a rival company, and briefly leaves TAC.
* Christopher Jackson as Chester "Chunk" Palmer, a fashion stylist
Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into outfits that depict distinctive ways of dressing ( style ...
who formerly worked at ''Vogue
Vogue may refer to:
Business
* ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine
** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine
** '' Vogue Adria'', a fashion magazine for former Yugoslav countries
** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine
** ' ...
''[ and who, at the ]University of Georgia
The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...
,[ was an ]All-American
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...
football defensive lineman.[ He prepares TAC's clients for court. From Season 2, he begins attending law school and establishes an unsteady connection with his previously unknown daughter, Anna. He passes the bar exam between seasons 4 and 5, and tries his first case with TAC in season 5. In season 6, he becomes lead attorney after Benny's departure.
* Jaime Lee Kirchner as Danielle "Danny" James, the team's lead investigator, who used to work as an ]NYPD
The City of New York Police Department, also referred to as New York City Police Department (NYPD), is the primary law enforcement agency within New York City. Established on May 23, 1845, the NYPD is the largest, and one of the oldest, munic ...
detective in narcotics[ and for the ]FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
.[
* Annabelle Attanasio as Cable McCrory (seasons 1–2), the team's computer expert who is also a skilled hacker.] In the middle of season 2, Cable is briefly fired after breaking the law. However, when Cable secretly helps TAC obtain information relating to a case without telling them, Bull deduces this and works up the courage to offer her her job back. She is killed off-screen in the season 3 premiere when a bridge she is driving on collapses below her.[
* MacKenzie Meehan as Taylor Rentzel (seasons 3–6), a cyber expert and Marissa's old colleague from Homeland Security. After Cable's death, Taylor is hired to fill her position. A divorced mother, Taylor insists to Bull before accepting the position that her son's needs will always come before TAC's. In Season 6, she undergoes a custody battle with her ex-husband, Erik, and Mauricio ends up entirely in her custody.
* ]Yara Martinez
Yara Martínez is an American television actress, born in Puerto Rico, who is best known for her roles as Kelly in '' Hollywood Heights,'' as Dr. Luisa Alver on The CW series '' Jane the Virgin,'' and as Bull's wife Isabella on ''Bull.''
Early ...
as Isabella "Izzy" Colón (recurring seasons 1–4; main seasons 5–6), Benny's sister who is also Bull's ex-wife. Bull and Izzy have a tryst while her second marriage is falling apart, which leads to Izzy getting pregnant and later giving birth to a daughter, Astrid. Subsequently, she and Bull remarry in the Season 5 finale.
Recurring
* Dena Tyler as Liberty Davis, a new lawyer who occasionally works with Bull's team on trials. With Bull's help, she gains respect and experience as a lawyer.
* Jill Flint as Diana Lindsay, a prominent lawyer from Texas with whom Bull has history, both professional and romantic.[
* Gary Wilmes as Kyle Anderson/Robert Allen, Marissa's love interest in Season 2.
* Jazzy Williams (later billed as Jazzy Kae) as Anna Baker, Chunk's teenage daughter, whom we learn about in Season 2.
* David Furr as Greg Valerian, Marissa's ex-husband whom she remarries prior to Season 3. They split up again in Season 4, and finalize their divorce in season 5.
* Donovan Christie Jr. as Kenneth Kiehl, the ADA who convinces Benny to run for New York District Attorney in season 5, later assisting with Benny's campaign.
* Matt Dellapina as Erik Rentzel
* Ollie Robinson as Mauricio Rentzel
* Erich Bergen as ADA Robert Jones, Chunk's boyfriend in Season 6 who works at the DA's office.
]
Episodes
Production
Development
On February 2, 2016, it was announced that CBS had given the production a pilot order. The episode was written by Dr. Phil McGraw and Paul Attanasio
Paul Albert Attanasio (born November 14, 1959) is an American screenwriter and producer. He has twice been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, once for '' Quiz Show'' (1994) and once for '' Donnie Brasco'' (1997).
Earl ...
, who executive produced alongside Jay McGraw
Jay Phillip McGraw (born September 12, 1979) is an American television producer and author. He is the son of television therapist Phil McGraw, and has appeared on and served as executive producer on his father's television show ''Dr. Phil''. He ...
, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Mark Goffman
Mark Goffman is an American television writer and producer. He currently serves as an executive producer for the Netflix series ''The Umbrella Academy''. Prior to that, Goffman worked as the showrunner and an executive producer for CBS's ''Bul ...
, Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg ( ; born December 18, 1946) is an American filmmaker. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, Spielberg is widely regarded as one of the greatest film directors of all time and is ...
, and Rodrigo Garcia. Production companies involved with the pilot include Amblin Television
Storyteller TV Distribution Co., LLC, doing business as Amblin Television, is the television production division of Amblin Partners. It was established in 1984 by Amblin Entertainment as a small-screen production arm for Steven Spielberg's ''Am ...
, Atelier Paul Attanasio, Stage 29 Productions
Jay Phillip McGraw (born September 12, 1979) is an American television producer and author. He is the son of television therapist Phil McGraw, and has appeared on and served as executive producer on his father's television show ''Dr. Phil''. He ...
and CBS Television Studios
CBS Studios, Inc. is an American television production company which is a subsidiary of the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global. It was formed on January 17, 2006, by CBS Corporation as CBS Paramount (Network) Television, as a re ...
. On May 13, 2016, CBS officially ordered the pilot to series. A few days later, it was announced that the series, would premiere in the fall of 2016 and air on Tuesdays at 9:00 P.M. On November 4, 2016, CBS picked up the series for a full season of 22 episodes. An additional episode was ordered in November. On March 23, 2017, CBS renewed the series for a second season. which premiered on September 26, 2017. On April 18, 2018, CBS renewed the series for a third season which is set to premiere on September 24, 2018. On May 9, 2019, it was announced that CBS renewed the series for a fourth season. On May 9, 2019, following the renewal, it was announced that executive producers Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, and Steven Spielberg, along with his production company Amblin Television, would be departing the series after the third season following the harassment controversy surrounding series star Michael Weatherly. In May 2020, ''Bull'' was renewed for a fifth season, with the further announcement in October 2020 that the season would be trimmed to 16 episodes due to production schedules being shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. On April 15, 2021, CBS renewed the series for a sixth season which premiered in October 2021. On January 18, 2022, it was reported that the sixth season will be the series' final season.
Casting
Michael Weatherly, Geneva Carr
Geneva Carr (born May 6, 1971) is an American television and stage actress with an extensive acting résumé. She is best known for her portrayal of Marissa Morgan on the CBS television series ''Bull'' and for her performance as Margery in the ...
, Freddy Rodriguez, Chris Jackson and Jaime Lee Kirchner were part of the pilot's main cast. Annabelle Attanasio, a main cast member for the first two seasons, did not return for Season 3 in order to direct an independent film. MacKenzie Meehan was added to the Season 3 main cast, with her character filling a role very similar to the one previously played by Attanasio.
Eliza Dushku
Eliza Patricia Dushku (; born December 30, 1980) is an American former actress. Dushku starred as Faith (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Faith in the supernatural Drama (film and television), drama series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (1998–2003) an ...
appeared in the final three episodes of the first season in a recurring role that was intended to become a regular role in Season 2. However, following a complaint Dushku made about Weatherly making sexually suggestive comments, she was fired. In December 2018, ''The New York Times'' reported that CBS reached a confidential settlement with Dushku which would pay her $9.5 million, her anticipated salary over four seasons as a regular cast member.
In May 2019, Amblin Television
Storyteller TV Distribution Co., LLC, doing business as Amblin Television, is the television production division of Amblin Partners. It was established in 1984 by Amblin Entertainment as a small-screen production arm for Steven Spielberg's ''Am ...
announced they will no longer produce the series, with Spielberg, Falvey, and Frank no longer serving as executive producers.
After appearing as a recurring character in the first four seasons, Yara Martinez
Yara Martínez is an American television actress, born in Puerto Rico, who is best known for her roles as Kelly in '' Hollywood Heights,'' as Dr. Luisa Alver on The CW series '' Jane the Virgin,'' and as Bull's wife Isabella on ''Bull.''
Early ...
was upgraded to series regular for season 5.
On May 21, 2021, it was announced that Freddy Rodriguez would depart the series along with series producer and showrunner Glenn Gordon Caron. Two of the show's writers, Kathryn Price and Nichole Millard, took over as co-showrunners for season 6.
Release
Broadcast
''Bull'' aired on CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
from September 20, 2016[ until May 26, 2022.][
]
Syndication
Reruns of ''Bull'' aired on Ion Television
Ion Television (referred to on-air as simply Ion) is an American broadcast television network and FAST television channel owned by the Scripps Networks subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company. The network first began broadcasting on August ...
since January 26, 2024.
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
website Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, 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 ...
, the show's first season has an approval rating of 22% based on 27 reviews, with an average rating of 4/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Michael Weatherly's performance is top-notch, but not enough to save a show that relies too heavily on a well-worn series of legal show tropes and an off-putting premise." Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, which uses a weighted average
The weighted arithmetic mean is similar to an ordinary arithmetic mean (the most common type of average), except that instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others. The ...
, assigned the season a score of 40 out of 100 based on 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
Ratings
Accolades
In 2021, the season 4 episode "Off the Rails" was awarded the Epiphany Prize for Most Inspiring TV or Streaming Movie or Program at the MovieGuide Awards.
References
External links
*
*
*
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2016 American television series debuts
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2020s American comedy-drama television series
American English-language television shows
Fictional portrayals of the New York City Police Department
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Television productions suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Television series by Amblin Entertainment
Television series by CBS Studios
Television series created by Paul Attanasio
Television shows set in New York City
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