Blunt Talk Explained

Genre:Sitcom
Creator:Jonathan Ames
Theme Music Composer:Moby
Opentheme:"Blunt Talk Theme"
Country:United States
Language:English
Num Seasons:2
Num Episodes:20
Runtime:27–30 minutes

Blunt Talk is an American television sitcom on the Starz cable network starring Patrick Stewart, created by Jonathan Ames, and executive produced by Seth MacFarlane.[1] [2] The series' first two episodes were released online on August 15, 2015,[3] and premiered on Starz on August 22, 2015. The first season concluded on October 24, 2015.[4]

Starz ordered 20 episodes, which were split into two seasons.[1] The second season premiered on October 2, 2016, and concluded on December 11, 2016.[5] On December 20, 2016, the show was cancelled after two seasons.[6]

Premise

The show follows British newscaster Walter Blunt who moves to Los Angeles with the intention of conquering American nightly cable news. His misguided decisions on and off the air prove that his ultimate ambitions will be difficult to achieve.

Blunt's name was taken from the minor character Sir Walter Blunt in William Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 1, which was Stewart's first role with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Guest stars

Episodes

Season 2 (2016)

Ratings

Season 2

Reception

Critical response

Blunt Talk received generally mixed reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the first season of the show a rating of 53%, based on 34 reviews, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The site's consensus states, "Blunt Talk squanders Sir Patrick Stewart's considerable gifts on a show that too often mistakes forced vulgarity for wit."[18] Metacritic gives the show a score of 54 out of 100, based on reviews from 24 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[19]

Dominic Patten of Deadline Hollywood states in his review, "If the new series from creator Jonathan Ames and executive producer Seth MacFarlane was just a mix between another Network-inspired show about journalism and some very consistently bad behavior on the part of Patrick Stewart’s cable news host Walter Blunt, it would be hard to recommend giving such a collection of clichés much of your time. However, Blunt Talk, which debuts August 22 on Starz, is more than that and worth going along for the ride."[20]

TV Columnist Brian Lowry of Variety states in his review, "The premiere starts with a rambunctious energy that temporarily promotes a sense of good will. Stewart’s Walter Blunt goes on a bender, sings rap and picks up a transgender prostitute. When the hooker politely asks if he’s troubled at all by who she is, he replies cheerfully, “No, I’m English.” The adventure ends fantastically badly, at least for Blunt's reputation. But from there, the series—which Ames produced with the seemingly ubiquitous Seth MacFarlane — pretty rapidly disintegrates, relying too heavily on Stewart's madcap antics and an assortment of not particularly distinctive supporting players, including Walter's sycophantic producers, Richard Lewis as his therapist and Romany Malco as the harried network boss."[21]

The Guardians Brian Moylan states in his review, "Blunt Talk is an odd bird. It's sort of like if The Newsroom and Veep had a love child and it was raised by Nanny McPhee in the Royal Shakespeare Company. It takes a close look at cable news and the personalities and celebrity involved, but it's essentially about one man who is trying to change himself and do the right thing, but is incredibly bad at it. A crew as colorfully inept as Selina Meyer's also surrounds him, but they don't have the stinging bile of Veep's crew.[22]

Mike Hale of The New York Times states in his review, "It’s not accurate to say that Patrick Stewart hasn’t done comedy. He was funny playing himself as a poker-faced pervert in an episode of Extras, or dancing with Kelsey Grammer and telling him how sexy he looked in a tux on Frasier. And he’s lent his plummy voice to a raft of animated shows from Family Guy to Robot Chicken. But it’s fair to say that Blunt Talk, a new sitcom beginning on Saturday night on Starz, offers Patrick Stewart as we haven’t seen him before. Shuffling around an airport men’s room stall with his pants around his ankles, for instance, losing his patience as he tries unsuccessfully to cover the toilet seat, or gravely asking a transgender prostitute whether he can feed at her breasts."[23]

Accolades

For the 73rd Golden Globe Awards, Patrick Stewart was nominated for Best Actor in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy.[24]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Starz Gives 20-Episode Order to Seth MacFarlane-Patrick Stewart Comedy 'Blunt Talk' | Variety. 29 April 2014 . variety.com. 2014-04-30. 2016-03-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20160311012159/http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/starz-gives-20-episode-order-to-seth-macfarlane-patrick-stewart-comedy-blunt-talk-1201166712/. live.
  2. Web site: Starz Orders Two Seasons of Seth MacFarlane Comedy 'Blunt Talk'. 29 April 2014. Lesley. Goldberg. . 30 April 2014. 2 May 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140502013416/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/starz-orders-two-seasons-seth-699691. live.
  3. News: Bibel. Sara. Starz Streaming Premiere Episodes of 'Survivor's Remorse' Season 2 & 'Blunt Talk' for Free on Facebook. https://web.archive.org/web/20150819231345/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2015/08/17/starz-streaming-premiere-episodes-of-survivors-remorse-season-2-blunt-talk-for-free-on-facebook/448985/. dead. August 19, 2015. August 17, 2015. TV by the Numbers. August 17, 2015.
  4. News: Petski. Denise. Seth MacFarlane's 'Blunt Talk' & 'Survivor's Remorse' Get August Premiere Date On Starz. Deadline Hollywood. May 13, 2015. May 13, 2015. May 16, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150516002709/http://deadline.com/2015/05/seth-macfarlane-blunt-talk-survivors-remorse-august-premiere-starz-1201426092/. live.
  5. News: Dornbush. Jonathon. Ash vs Evil Dead, Blunt Talk Season 2 Premiere Dates Revealed. IGN. August 1, 2016. August 2, 2016. November 25, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201125033007/https://www.ign.com/articles/2016/08/01/ash-vs-evil-dead-blunt-talk-season-2-premiere-dates-revealed. live.
  6. Web site: Blunt Talk Cancelled at Starz. TVLine. Kimberly. Roots. December 20, 2016. December 20, 2016. September 27, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180927140141/https://tvline.com/2016/12/20/blunt-talk-cancelled-no-season-3-starz/. live.
  7. Web site: Jacki Weaver To Co-Star In Seth MacFarlane's Blunt Talk Series On Starz. Deadline Hollywood. 22 September 2014 . September 23, 2014. September 24, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140924042009/http://deadline.com/2014/09/jacki-weaver-cast-seth-macfarlane-blunt-talk-starz-838786/. live.
  8. Web site: Dolly Wells Joins Starz Comedy Blunt Talk; Joel De La Fuente & Michael Rispoli Cast In Amazon Pilot The Man In The High Castle. 7 October 2014. Deadline Hollywood. 6 October 2014. 8 October 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141008055958/http://deadline.com/2014/10/dolly-wells-blunt-talk-joel-de-la-fuente-michael-rispoli-the-man-in-the-high-castle-846936/. live.
  9. Web site: Blunt Talk: First Look At Patrick Stewart In Starz's Scripted Comedy. 28 January 2015 . Variety. May 27, 2015. May 27, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150527201946/http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/blunt-talk-patrick-stewart-starz-comedy-pics-1201417393/. live.
  10. Web site: Ed Begley Jr., Mary Holland Join Seth MacFarlane's Starz Comedy 'Blunt Talk'. The Hollywood Reporter. 24 February 2015 . May 27, 2015. May 27, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150527231213/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/ed-begley-jr-mary-holland-777416. live.
  11. Web site: Writing takes the brunt of blame in 'Blunt Talk' starring Patrick Stewart. August 22, 2015. Cleveland.com. Advance Publications. Mark. Dawidziak. August 15, 2015. August 17, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150817143400/http://www.cleveland.com/tv-blog/index.ssf/2015/08/writing_takes_the_brunt_of_blame_in_blunt_talk_starring_patrick_stewart.html. live.
  12. Web site: 'Blunt Talk' Creator Reveals 'Star Trek' Actors He Will Cast, Why He Stopped Watching 'Game of Thrones'. August 23, 2015. August 22, 2015. Daniel. Holloway. TheWrap. The Wrap News Inc.. August 23, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150823170322/http://www.thewrap.com/blunt-talk-creator-reveals-star-trek-actors-he-will-cast-why-he-stopped-watching-game-of-thrones/. live.
  13. Web site: Production Underway for Season 2 of Starz's BLUNT TALK; Lesley Ann Warren Joins Cast. February 2, 2016. Broadway World. October 9, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161009065444/http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwtv/article/Production-Underway-for-Season-2-of-Starzs-BLUNT-TALK-Lesley-Ann-Warren-Joins-Cast-20160202. live.
  14. Logan, Michael (September 29, 2016). Web site: Blunt Talk: Walter Tries to Be a Journalist Again in Season 2. 29 September 2016 . 2017-07-13. 2020-08-10. https://web.archive.org/web/20200810084725/https://www.tvinsider.com/98525/blunt-talk-walter-tries-to-be-a-journalist-again-in-season-2/. live. TVInsider.com. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
  15. Web site: Wagmeister. Elizabeth. Elisabeth Shue & Jason Schwartzman to Guest Star on Starz's Blunt Talk. Variety. 5 August 2015. March 5, 2015. 18 July 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150718001230/http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/elisabeth-shue-jason-schwartzman-blunt-talk-starz-1201447155/. live.
  16. Web site: Moby on 'Blunt Talk,' His New Restaurant, and His Sixth Sense. 11 September 2015 . 2018-08-23. 2018-08-23. https://web.archive.org/web/20180823174900/https://www.maxim.com/entertainment/moby-blunt-talk-2015-9. live.
  17. Web site: Patrick Stewart gets 'Blunt' with his son. 26 August 2015. USA TODAY. 24 August 2017. 8 March 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170308033655/http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2015/08/26/patrick-stewart-gets-blunt-his-son/32270113/. live.
  18. Web site: Blunt Talk: Season 1. Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. August 22, 2015. August 25, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150825055940/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/blunt-talk/s01. live.
  19. Web site: Blunt Talk: Season 1. CBS Interactive (CBS Corporation). Metacritic. August 22, 2015. August 21, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150821233047/http://www.metacritic.com/tv/blunt-talk. live.
  20. Web site: 'Blunt Talk' Review: Patrick Stewart's Starz Comedy Nails Pitfalls Of Celebrity. Penske Media Corporation. Deadline Hollywood. August 22, 2015. Dominic. Patten. August 19, 2015. August 21, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150821233504/http://deadline.com/2015/08/blunt-talk-review-patrick-stewarts-starz-comedy-1201501816/. live.
  21. Web site: TV Review: 'Blunt Talk'. Variety. Penske Media Corporation. August 22, 2015. August 19, 2015. Brian. Lowry. November 25, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201125033007/https://variety.com/2015/tv/reviews/blunt-talk-patrick-stewart-comedy-review-starz-1201569988/. live.
  22. Web site: Blunt Talk: Patrick Stewart's new show is duller than it should be. August 22, 2015. The Guardian. Brian. Moylan. August 21, 2015. August 21, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150821204630/http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2015/aug/21/blunt-talk-patrick-stewart-review. live.
  23. Web site: Review: On 'Blunt Talk,' Patrick Stewart Is Far From Home and Caught With His Pants Down. August 22, 2015. August 21, 2015. Mike. Hale. The New York Times. August 24, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150824174441/http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/22/arts/television/review-on-blunt-talk-patrick-stewart-is-far-from-home-and-caught-with-his-pants-down.html?_r=0. live.
  24. Web site: Golden Globe Awards 2016 Nominations - Full List. Rotten Tomatoes. December 10, 2015. December 10, 2015. December 16, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151216104552/http://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/golden-globes-2015-nominations/. live.

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