Why Women Kill
Why Women Kill is an American dark comedy-drama web television series created by Marc Cherry for CBS All Access. Set in multiple time periods, the series depicts the events leading to a death that occurs after the respective husbands of three married women commit adultery. It premiered on August 15, 2019, and its first season consisted of 10 episodes. Shortly before the first season concluded, the series was renewed for a second season.
Premise
Why Women Kill follows three women from different decades who are connected through having all lived in the same Pasadena mansion and experiencing infidelity in their marriages. Beth Ann Stanton remains content as a housewife in 1963 until she learns of her husband's unfaithfulness, socialite Simone Grove discovers her third husband's homosexuality and begins her own affair with a younger man in 1984, and although in an open marriage in 2019, attorney Taylor Harding finds her relationship tested when she and her husband become attracted to the same woman. The infidelity in each marriage sets off a chain of events that ends with a woman taking the life of another person.Cast and characters
1963
Main- Ginnifer Goodwin as Beth Ann Stanton, Rob's subservient wife.
- * Hartlyn Hilsman as a young Beth Ann.
- Sam Jaeger as Rob Stanton, an aerospace engineer married to Beth Ann.
- Sadie Calvano as April Warner, a waitress having an affair with Rob.
- Alicia Coppola as Sheila Mosconi, Rob and Beth Ann's neighbor and Leo's wife who befriends Beth Ann.
- Adam Ferrara as Leo Mosconi, Rob and Beth Ann's neighbor and Sheila's husband.
- Lindsey Kraft as Claire, Rob's secretary.
- Spencer Garrett as Hal Burke, Rob's boss.
- Peri Gilpin as Vivian Burke, Hal's wife.
- Analeigh Tipton as Mary Vlasin, Rob and Beth Ann's neighbor and Ralph's abused wife.
- Scott Porter as Ralph Vlasin, Rob and Beth Ann's neighbor and Mary's abusive husband.
- Ava Scarola as Emily Stanton, Rob and Beth Ann's deceased daughter.
- Catherine Curry as Elsie Warner, April and Rob's daughter who is under the care of Beth Ann.
1984
- Lucy Liu as Simone Grove, a twice-divorced socialite married to Karl.
- * Harmonie He as a young Simone Grove.
- Jack Davenport as Karl Grove, Simone's third husband who is using their relationship to conceal his homosexuality.
- Katie Finneran as Naomi Harte, a wealthy friend of Simone and Tommy's widowed mother.
- Leo Howard as Tommy Harte, Naomi's son who harbors romantic feelings for Simone.
- Li Jun Li as Amy Lin, Simone's daughter from her first marriage.
- Charlie DePew as Brad Jenkins, Amy's fiancé.
- Ken Garito as the police officer who mistakes Simone for a prostitute.
- Christine Estabrook as Joyce Dubner, a hypochondriac neighbor of Simone.
- Philip Anthony-Rodriguez as Hector, Simone's former hairdresser and Karl's gay lover.
- Dale Dickey as Ruby Jenkins, Brad's mother.
- Robert Craighead as Dwight Jenkins, Brad's father.
- Hayley Hasselhoff as Patt Jenkins, Brad's lesbian sister.
2019
- Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Taylor Harding, a bisexual, feminist attorney in an open marriage with Eli.
- * Kendall Denise Clark as a young Taylor Harding.
- Alexandra Daddario as Jade / Irene Tabatchnick, the bisexual mistress of Taylor.
- Reid Scott as Eli Cohen, a screenwriter in an open marriage with Taylor.
- Kevin Daniels as Lamar, Eli's agent.
- Kevin McNamara as Duke, Jade's ex-boyfriend.
- Saidha Arrika Ekulona as Taylor's sister.
- Christina Anthony as Velma, Taylor's sister.
- Odelya Halevi as Willow, an Instagram model working with Mischa and friend of Jade.
- Kevin William Paul as Mischa, Willow's fellow Instagram model, who is friends with Jade.
Episodes
Title parodies
Each episode title plays on a catchphrase, all but two from American movies. Three of them were voted into AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes.Production
Development
On September 24, 2018, it was announced that CBS All Access had given the production a straight-to-series order. The series was created by Marc Cherry who was also expected to executive produce alongside Brian Grazer, Francie Calfo, Michael Hanel, and Mindy Schultheis. Production companies involved with the series were slated to consist of Imagine Entertainment and CBS Television Studios. On December 10, 2018, it was reported that the series would receive $8.4 million in tax credits from the state of California.Cherry stated at the 2019 Television Critics Association that there will be "three deaths at the end of the series, and they will all be committed by women. But it's not necessarily the three women on this stage. The victims are not necessarily the men on this stage, and interesting enough, not one person will be killed because of infidelity. Infidelity is just the starting point for these journeys of self‑discovery."
On October 16, 2019, the day before the season 1 finale, it was announced that the series was renewed for a second season that would focus on a new set of characters. Julie McNamara, CBS All Access’ EVP of Original Content, stated that, "Under the creative direction of Marc Cherry and the incredible performances of the cast, the series has become one of our most streamed original series. We look forward to bringing fans even more of this wonderfully soapy dramedy in its second season and can’t wait to see what themes Marc explores next."
Casting
In February 2019, it was announced that Ginnifer Goodwin and Lucy Liu had been cast in starring roles. On February 27, 2019, it was reported that Reid Scott had joined the cast. On March 4, 2019, it was announced that Sam Jaeger had joined the cast. On March 7, 2019, it was announced that Alexandra Daddario had joined the cast. On March 11, 2019, Kirby Howell-Baptiste had been cast. On March 19, 2019, Sadie Calvano joined cast as a series regular. On April 5, 2019, Katie Finneran has been cast in a recurring role. On April 17, 2019, Adam Ferrara joined the cast in a recurring capacity. On August 7, 2019, Li Jun Li was cast in a recurring role.''Why Women Kill: Truth, Lies and Labels''
On September 20, 2019, CBS All Access released the first episode of a six episode podcast, entitled Why Women Kill: Truth, Lies and Labels, to help advertise for Why Women Kill. The final episode was released on October 25. Each episode, released weekly on Friday, shared the details of a woman who became a murderer. The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher Radio. Tori Telfer, a true crime writer, narrated each episode.Reception
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 63% based on 24 reviews, with an average rating of 7.78/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Though Why Women Kill falls short of its ambitious premise, fans of Marc Cherry and his impressive cast will find much to like it its darkly soapy and stylish delights." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, based on 15 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".While the aesthetic of the series received praise, critics found that Why Women Kill lacked character development. Robyn Bahr of The Hollywood Reporter wrote, "We're supposed to marvel at the changing roles of women over time, but it's hard to get there, intellectually, when none of the three leads feels like a semblance of a real person. Instead, Why Women Kill comes off as an ungainly fantasy of women's emotional lives, where the threat of infidelity could be the only fuel of marital unhappiness." Vulture reviewer Angelica Jade Bastién agreed with the focus on aesthetics more than plot, stating, "Why Women Kill is akin to an overly complicated craft cocktail, boasting an intriguing brightness, namely in the form of Goodwin's performance, but lacking balance in its competing flavors. It's full of baffling tonal and narrative decisions that undermine what does work about the show—a handful of the performances, the over-the-top, nearly camp production design, the costuming—and undercuts its dramatic potential with broad, nearly slapstick humor that distances us from the characters rather than illuminating who they are."