Prodigal Son is an American crime drama television series created by Chris Fedak and Sam Sklaver for the Fox Broadcasting Company, that premiered on September 23, 2019. In October 2019, the series was picked up for a full season. In May 2020, the series was renewed for a second season.
Premise
The series centers on Malcolm Bright, whose father, Martin Whitly, is the infamous serial killer known as "The Surgeon". As a child, Malcolm was responsible for enabling the police to arrest his father, and has not seen his father in ten years after joining Quantico. Now a profiler, formerly with the FBI and currently consulting for the New York Police Department, Malcolm is forced to confront his father after a copycat serial killer uses Whitly's methods of killing. He finds himself drawn back into constant contact with his father as he must both use Whitly's insights to help the police solve particularly horrible crimes and battle his own inner demons.
Cast
Main
Tom Payne as Malcolm Bright, a disgraced former FBI profiler who now works for the NYPD. He possesses the unique ability to view crimes from the perspective of the killer, allowing him to pick up on things that other cops might miss. However, this gift also haunts him, causing him to live in a perpetual state of fear that he will one day succumb to the same sociopathic tendencies as his father.
Lou Diamond Phillips as Gil Arroyo, a lieutenant with Major Crimes in the NYPD. He was the arresting officer of Martin Whitly and, since then, has acted as a surrogate father to his son, Malcolm; Gil hires Malcolm as his new consultant after the latter is fired from the FBI.
Halston Sage as Ainsley Whitly, Malcolm's ambitious younger sister; a TV news reporter.
Aurora Perrineau as Det. Dani Powell, an officer under Arroyo's command who is sympathetic to Malcolm's personal issues.
Frank Harts as Det. JT Tarmel, an officer under Arroyo's command.
Keiko Agena as Dr. Edrisa Tanaka, an NYPD medical examiner with an interest in Malcolm.
Bellamy Young as Jessica Whitly, Malcolm's mother and a successful businesswoman from an old moneyhigh society family who suffers from alcoholism, as a result of her drinking to cope with her husband's crimes.
Michael Sheen as Dr. Martin Whitly, Malcolm's father who is currently incarcerated in an asylum after committing twenty-three murders as "The Surgeon".
Recurring
Esau Pritchett as Mr. David, a worker at the Claremont Psychiatric Hospital who is in charge of Dr. Whitly.
Charlayne Woodard as Dr. Gabrielle Le Deux, Malcolm's psychologist since his father's arrest.
Molly Griggs as Eve Blanchard, a lawyer who has an interest in fighting human trafficking and Malcolm's deceased girlfriend
Dermot Mulroney as Nicholas Endicott, a pharmaceutical tycoon who has a secret association with Dr. Whitly.
Production
Development
On January 28, 2019, it was announced that Fox had given the production a pilot order. The pilot was written by Chris Fedak and Sam Sklaver, who executive produces alongside Lee Toland Krieger, Greg Berlanti and Sarah Schechter. Production companies involved with the pilot include Berlanti Productions and Warner Bros. Television.On March 12, 2019, it was announced that Lee Toland Krieger would be directing the series. On May 9, 2019, it was announced that the production had been given a series order. A day after that, it was announced that the series would premiere in the fall of 2019 and air on Mondays at 9:00 p.m. The series debuted on September 23, 2019. On October 7, 2019, the series was picked up for a full season of 22 episodes. In March 2020, Warner Bros. Television shut down production due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in April 2020, it was revealed that episode 20 will be the season one finale. On May 21, 2020, Fox renewed the series for a second season.
Casting
In February 2019, it was announced that Lou Diamond Phillips, Aurora Perrineau and Frank Harts had been cast in the pilot's lead roles. Alongside the pilot's order announcement, in March 2019, it was reported that Michael Sheen, Bellamy Young, Finn Jones, Keiko Agena and Halston Sage had joined the cast. Four days later, on March 12, 2019, it was announced that Tom Payne would replace Jones in the role during first table readings. On February 10, 2020, Dermot Mulroney was cast in a recurring role.
Episodes
Release
On May 13, 2019, Fox released the first official trailer for the series.
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 54% approval rating with an average rating of 6.29/10, based on 26 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Though it shows promise, Prodigal Son sidelines a spectacular Michael Sheen in favor of a more pedestrian procedural storyline that often drifts too deeply into the grotesque." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 59 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
