After Life is a British black comedy-drama web television series created, written, produced and directed by Ricky Gervais, who is also the star. It premiered on 8 March 2019 on Netflix. The second series premiered on 24 April 2020. On 6 May 2020, Netflix and Ricky Gervais reached a new multi-project deal which included the renewal of After Life for a third series.
Premise
After Life follows Tony, whose life is turned upside down after his wife dies from breast cancer. He contemplates suicide, but instead decides to live long enough to punish the world for his wife's death by saying and doing whatever he wants. Although he thinks of this as his "superpower", his plan is undermined when everyone around him tries to make him a better person. It is set in the fictional town of Tambury, where Tony works as a journalist at the local free newspaper, the Tambury Gazette.
Cast and characters
Ricky Gervais as Tony Johnson, head of feature stories at the local newspaper, the Tambury Gazette. Following the death of his wife, he is depressed and suicidal
Tom Basden as Matt, Tony's brother-in-law and boss of the Tambury Gazette
Tony Way as Lenny, photographer at the Tambury Gazette
Diane Morgan as Kath, the newspaper's advertising employee
Thomas Bastable as Robbie, a classmate of George's
Penelope Wilton as Anne, an older lady and widow, who Tony meets at the graveyard
David Earl as Brian Gittins, a hoarder, puppeteer and stand-up comedian, who above all, wants to appear in the local newspaper. Later hired to deliver the paper
Bill Ward as Simon, Emma's new love interest who Tony dislikes
Peter Egan as Paul, the semi-retired local newspaper owner
Colin Hoult as Ken Otley, head of the local amateur dramatics company and a wannabe showbiz superstar
Episodes
Series 1 (2019)
Series 2 (2020)
Production
Development
On 9 May 2018, it was announced that Netflix had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of six episodes. The series was created and directed by Ricky Gervais, who is also executive producer alongside Charlie Hanson. On 14 January 2019, it was announced that the series would premiere on 8 March 2019. It was further announced that Duncan Hayes would serve as an additional executive producer and that Hanson would actually serve as a producer. On 3 April 2019, it was announced that the series was renewed for a second season. On 6 May 2020, the program was renewed for a third season, the first time a series created by Gervais had been extended beyond two seasons.
Casting
Alongside the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Ricky Gervais would star in the series. On 5 July 2018, it was announced that Penelope Wilton, David Bradley, Ashley Jensen, Tom Basden, Tony Way, David Earl, Joe Wilkinson, Kerry Godliman, Mandeep Dhillon, Jo Hartley, Roisin Conaty, and Diane Morgan had joined the cast.
On 22 February 2019, the official trailer for the series was released. On 8 March 2019, Netflix released all six episodes of the series.
Series 2
On 10 April 2020, the official trailer for the series was released. On 24 April, Netflix released all six episodes of the series.
Reception
The first series received positive reviews upon its release. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an overall approval rating of 74% with an average score of 6.29/10 based on 44 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "After Lifes first season teeters tonally between dark comedy and affecting drama, but Ricky Gervais' poignant performance illuminates new sides of the actor's talent". On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the series has a score of 58 based on 19 reviews. Merrill Barr from Forbes said of the series, "Overall, After Life is one hundred percent a series to check out. It's the Ricky Gervais project people have been begging for, for a long time." Josh Modell of AV Club states that After Life is a "dreary, sarcastic self-pity party that also manages—in a magic trick perhaps only Gervais is capable of pulling off—to constantly point out its protagonist's intellectual superiority" and that "as a meaningful meditation on grief, is dead on arrival". The second series received positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an overall approval rating of 75% with an average score of 6.28/10, based on 20 reviews. The BBC reported mixed responses from critics. Ed Cumming from The Independent wrote that "all I see is a series constantly looking for easy solutions" and that "the script has a habit of using swearing where a joke ought to be". In a more positive assessment, the Daily Express deemed that "Ricky Gervais is exceptional in unbeatable comedy".
