Russian Doll (TV series)
A time-loop series about death, rebirth, and family history.
Russian Doll is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on Netflix on February 1, 2019. The show was created by Natasha Lyonne, Leslye Headland, and Amy Poehler. Its central character is Nadia Vulvokov, a software engineer played by Lyonne, who becomes trapped in a time loop: she dies repeatedly and wakes up again at the same moment during her 36th birthday party in New York City. As she tries to break the cycle, she discovers that Alan Zaveri (Charlie Barnett) is experiencing the same phenomenon. The main cast also includes Greta Lee, Yul Vazquez, Elizabeth Ashley, and Chloë Sevigny.
The first season earned fourteen Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Lyonne. In June 2019, the series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on April 20, 2022. The second season finds Nadia, now ten days from her 40th birthday, transported through time by a subway train, visiting years such as 1982, 1944, and 1962. She realizes she is inhabiting the body of her mother, Nora, who is pregnant with her. Nadia then tries to recover gold Krugerrands that Nora lost in 1982, hoping to alter her family's history.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Comedy-drama / Mystery
- Creator
- Natasha Lyonne / Leslye Headland / Amy Poehler
- Starring
- Natasha Lyonne / Greta Lee / Yul Vazquez / Elizabeth Ashley / Charlie Barnett / Chloë Sevigny
- Composer
- Joe Wong
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English / German / Hungarian
- Num Seasons
- 2
- Num Episodes
- 15
- Producer
- John Skidmore / Ryan McCormick / Alice Ju / Ben Poppleton / Isabel Richardson
- Cinematography
- Chris Teague / Ula Pontikos
- Editor
- Todd Downing / Laura Weinberg / Debra F. Simone
- Runtime
- 24–33 minutes
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The series was created by Natasha Lyonne, Amy Poehler, and Leslye Headland, all of whom served as executive producers. Headland was showrunner for the first season, while Lyonne took over for the second. The first season follows Nadia Vulvokov, a software engineer who dies repeatedly at her 36th birthday party and resets in a time loop. She meets Alan Zaveri, who is stuck in a similar loop. The second season, which premiered on April 20, 2022, sees Nadia 10 days from her 40th birthday when a subway train sends her through multiple time periods, including 1982, 1944, and 1962, trapped inside the body of her pregnant mother, Nora. She seeks gold Krugerrands her mother lost in 1982 to change her family's history.
Reader's Guide
Russian Doll received critical acclaim, with the first season holding a 97% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 88 out of 100, indicating universal acclaim. It earned fourteen Primetime Emmy Award nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series and Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for Lyonne. The series is noted for its inventive blend of comedy and drama, with the song 'Gotta Get Up' by Harry Nilsson used as the reset song each time Nadia dies. The second season utilized on-set virtual production for train sequences and filmed its finale at underground cisterns in Budapest. The creators have stated they have ideas for a third season.
Did You Know?
- The reset song for Nadia's deaths in season 1 is 'Gotta Get Up' by Harry Nilsson.
- The second season was renewed in June 2019 and premiered on April 20, 2022.
- Principal photography for season one began on February 22, 2018, in New York City.
- The season 2 finale was filmed at the underground cisterns in Budapest.
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