Dispatches from Elsewhere is an American drama television series created by and starring Jason Segel that premiered on March 1, 2020, on AMC.
Premise
The series, set in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, follows "a group of ordinary people who stumble onto a puzzle hiding just behind the veil of everyday life. They will come to find that the mystery winds far deeper than they ever imagined."
Cast
Main
Jason Segel as Peter, a data worker struggling to find meaning in his life
Andre Benjamin as Fredwynn, an intelligent yet paranoid man dedicated to figuring out the truth
Eve Lindley as Simone, a trans woman seeking an escape from her feelings of isolation
Richard E. Grant as Octavio Coleman, Esq., the enigmatic head of the Jejune Institute
Sally Field as Janice Foster, an optimistic empty-nester trying to reclaim her sense of identity
On July 28, 2018, it was announced that AMC had given the production a series order. The series was created by Jason Segel who also directed the pilot and serves as executive producer alongside Scott Rudin, Eli Bush, and Garrett Basch. The series is based on the 2013 documentary filmThe Institute, which is the story of "Jejune Institute", an alternate reality game set in San Francisco. Segel said that he chose to shoot in Philadelphia because during location scouting he was surprised to learn that the city is full of colorful public art; he said seeing the Magic Gardensfor the first time was the moment he knew Philly was the right location for the show. Early versions of the script were set in an unspecified city, and then were rewritten to be about specific Philadelphia locations.
Casting
Alongside the series order announcement in July 2018, it was announced that Jason Segel would star in the series. In April 2019, Richard E. Grant, Sally Field and Eve Lindley were added to the cast, with Andre Benjamin joining in July.
Filming
Principal photography for the series commenced in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in July 2019.
Future
In an interview in April 2020 after the first-season finale, Jason Segel commented on the possibility of a second season: "t can be either an anthology or a limited , depending on how we decide to proceed. But the idea is that each season is stand-alone—and without giving too much away, each season would profile a specific thing, as the Institute was profiled in the first season."
Episodes
Broadcast
Outside the US where the show is broadcast on AMC, in the UK it premiered on April 29, 2020, on BT TV.
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an 86% rating with an average score of 7.18 out of 10 based on 36 reviews. The website's critical consensus is, "A weird and whimsical journey into the unknown, Dispatches from Elsewheres experimental approach doesn't always coalesce, but committed performances and a genuine sense of wonder make it a trip worth taking." On Metacritic, it has a score of 66 out of 100 based on 16 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Keith Phipps of TV Guide gave it a 4/5 rating and wrote, "What is going on is no clearer at the end of the first four episodes. That also doesn't really matter all that much. The series is as intriguing as it is heartfelt thanks to stylishly imaginative storytelling and richly developed characters." Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone gave it a 3/5 star review and wrote, "Does Dispatches From Elsewhere earn its quirkiness? It's hard to tell based on the limited sample of episodes AMC made available to critics. But it's not boring, and its optimism is appealing in and of itself."
