Brand New Cherry Flavor

Lore & Background

The series was announced on November 15, 2019, when Netflix ordered an 8-episode series. It was created, written, and executive produced by Nick Antosca and Lenore Zion, with Arkasha Stevenson directing the first episode. Production companies included Eat the Cat and Universal Content Productions. The main cast features Rosa Salazar as Lisa Nova, Catherine Keener as Boro/Jennifer Nathans, Eric Lange as Lou Burke, Jeff Ward as Roy Hardaway, and Manny Jacinto as Chris/Code. Principal photography took place on location in Vancouver and Los Angeles from November 2019 to March 2020.

Reader's Guide

Brand New Cherry Flavor is significant as a horror drama that blends supernatural elements with a critique of Hollywood power dynamics. The series received generally favorable reviews, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 78% positive from 37 reviews and a Metacritic weighted average of 62 out of 100. The critics consensus noted it as 'a delightfully deranged trip anchored by another incredible performance from Rosa Salazar.' Its legacy lies in its adaptation of Todd Grimson's novel and its exploration of revenge and witchcraft within a 1990s film industry setting. The series was released on Netflix on August 13, 2021.

Did You Know?

• The series is based on a novel of the same name by Todd Grimson.
• Rotten Tomatoes reported 78% positive reviews from 37 critics.

A Young Filmmaker's Descent into Vengeance

The miniseries follows Lisa Nova, a young filmmaker who arrives in 1990s Hollywood carrying a short horror film that has caught the eye of a well-connected producer. What begins as a promising opportunity quickly curdles when Lisa signs a contract predicated on the producer's assurance that she would be allowed to direct. After she rebuffs his sexual advances, he drops her from the project entirely. Stripped of agency and left feeling powerless in an industry that has just demonstrated its capacity to discard her, Lisa turns to an unlikely ally—a witch—to help her mount a quest for revenge. The narrative, adapted from Todd Grimson's novel of the same name, uses the supernatural as a vehicle to explore themes of exploitation, power imbalance, and the lengths to which a person will go when the systems meant to protect them have failed. The 1990s setting grounds the story in a specific era of Hollywood culture, lending the horror elements a distinctly period-flavored texture.

The Ensemble and Creative Leadership

The series was created, written, and executive produced by Nick Antosca and Lenore Zion, who brought Todd Grimson's novel to the screen. At the center of the cast is Rosa Salazar as Lisa Nova, the young filmmaker whose story drives the entire narrative. Catherine Keener plays Boro, also known as Jennifer Nathans, while Eric Lange portrays Lou Burke and Jeff Ward takes on the role of Roy Hardaway. The recurring cast includes Manny Jacinto as Chris/Code, Hannah Levien as Christine Woods, Siena Werber as Mary Gray/Boro, Daniel Doheny as Jonathan Burke, Darcy Laurie as Ralph, and Sean Owen Roberts as James. Guest appearances were made by Leland Orser as Mike Nathans, Patrick Fischler as Alvin Sender, and Gabriel LaBelle as Tim Nathans. Arkasha Stevenson directed the first episode, and the production was a collaboration between Eat the Cat and Universal Content Productions.

From Greenlight to Screen

The path from announcement to release spanned nearly two years. On November 15, 2019, Netflix confirmed a full eight-episode series order, simultaneously locking in the principal cast of Salazar, Keener, Lange, Jacinto, and Ward. Principal photography then proceeded on location across Vancouver and Los Angeles, running from November 2019 through March 2020. Additional cast members—Hannah Levien, Leland Orser, and Patrick Fischler—were formally announced as recurring participants on December 17, 2020, well after filming had wrapped. The miniseries ultimately premiered on Netflix on August 14, 2021. The production's dual-city approach, splitting shooting between Vancouver and Los Angeles, allowed the show to capture both the specific geography of 1990s Hollywood and the broader atmospheric backdrops that the supernatural elements of the story demanded.

Critical Response

Upon its 2021 release, the miniseries drew generally positive but not universally enthusiastic reviews. Rotten Tomatoes aggregated 37 critic reviews, finding that 78 percent of them were favorable, with the series averaging a 6.9 out of 10. The site's consensus noted that while the show was not for every palate, it delivered a delightfully unhinged ride and singled out Rosa Salazar's performance as another standout entry in her body of work. Metacritic, drawing on 13 reviews, assigned a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, categorizing the overall reception as generally favorable. The critical response suggests a series that polarized somewhat—its horror-comedy tone and supernatural revenge plot were not for every viewer—yet those who engaged with its vision found it inventive and well-acted, with Salazar's portrayal of Lisa serving as the consistent anchor across reviews.

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