The Plot Against America (miniseries)


The Plot Against America is an American alternate history drama television miniseries created and written by David Simon and Ed Burns, based on the 2004 novel of the same name by Philip Roth, that premiered on HBO on March 16, 2020.

Premise

The Plot Against America imagines "an alternate American history told through the eyes of a working-class Jewish family in Newark, New Jersey, as they watch the political rise of Charles Lindbergh, an aviator-hero and xenophobic populist, who becomes president and turns the nation toward fascism."

Cast and characters

Main

Production

HBO announced on November 8, 2018, that it had ordered a six-episode miniseries based on Philip Roth's novel The Plot Against America to be written by David Simon and Ed Burns and executive produced by Simon, Burns, Roth, alongside Joe Roth, Jeffrey Kirschenbaum, Nina Noble, Megan Ellison, Sue Naegle, Susan Goldberg, and Dennis Stratton. Production companies involved with the series include Annapurna Pictures and Blown Deadline Productions. In April 2019, Winona Ryder, Zoe Kazan, Morgan Spector, John Turturro, Anthony Boyle, Azhy Robertson, and Caleb Malis joined the cast of the series.

Filming

Filming took place in 2019 at a number of locations, including:
In New Zealand, the series is distributed by Neon streaming service and SkyGo, which are owned by satellite television company Sky Network.

Reception

The miniseries has received critical acclaim. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has an 87% "certified fresh" rating with an average score of 8.26 out of 10 based on 70 reviews. The website's critical consensus is, "A cautionary tale that hits close to home, The Plot Against Americas handsomely realized revisionist history is disturbingly relevant, making it difficult, but essential viewing." On Metacritic, it has a score of 81 out of 100 based on 35 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".
Meghan O'Keefe of Decider wrote that it "is a bleak watch, but full of spectacular performances and masterful craftsmanship." Darren Franich of Entertainment Weekly stated that "Simon and Burns craft their story with remarkable texture" and that "the final hour is one of the most breathtakingly tense episodes of television I've ever seen, carrying you on a dark journey through a country on fire."