Atlanta (TV series)

Premise

The show centers on Earn, a Princeton dropout living in Atlanta with no money or home, who shuttles between his parents’ place and the home of his ex-girlfriend Van, the mother of his daughter Lottie. He aims to earn back the trust of Van, his parents, and his cousin Alfred—a rapper known as Paper Boi.

When Earn sees Alfred on the verge of hip-hop fame, he tries to reconnect with him to improve his own life and provide for Lottie. While the series tracks Earn and Paper Boi’s rise through the music scene, it avoids heavy multi-episode arcs. Instead, it favors a surreal, episodic style that Donald Glover and some critics have compared to short stories.

Cast and characters

Donald Glover plays Earnest "Earn" Marks, a Princeton dropout who manages the rap career of his cousin Alfred. Earn is sharp but pessimistic and prone to bad decisions, and he starts the series dealing with homelessness and financial hardship. He has a complicated, on-and-off relationship with Vanessa, the mother of his daughter Lottie. In the episode "Teddy Perkins," Glover also appears as the title character, a mentally unstable recluse with pale skin.

He additionally plays Kirkwood Chocolate in "Work Ethic!," a media mogul who makes content that exploits Black people. Brian Tyree Henry portrays Alfred "Paper Boi" Miles, Earn’s cousin and a rapper struggling with depression and ethical questions as his fame grows. LaKeith Stanfield is Darius, Alfred and Earn’s eccentric friend from Nigeria who frequently offers observations about human nature. Zazie Beetz plays Vanessa "Van" Kiefer, Earn’s on-again, off-again girlfriend who is biracial and Afro-German, a former science teacher, and Lottie’s mother, often feeling overwhelmed by parenting.

Harold House Moore appears as Swiff in season one, Khris Davis as Tracy in season two and guesting in season four, RJ Walker as the egotistical rapper Clark County in season two, and Tobias Segal as a white man named Earnest Marks in season three. Guest stars playing fictionalized versions of themselves include Offset, Quavo, Takeoff, Gunna, Jai Paul, Lloyd, Jaleel White, Jane Adams, Michael Vick, Alexander Skarsgård, Liam Neeson, Soulja Boy, Brian McKnight, Sinbad, J Wortham, and Cree Summer.

Production

The show's origins trace back to August 2013, when FX began development. In December 2014, the network ordered a pilot, which was directed by Hiro Murai and filmed in Atlanta. FX picked it up for a ten-episode series in October 2015. Donald Glover, who grew up in Atlanta and also makes music, said the city shaped the show's tone.

A groundbreaking feature was its all-Black writing staff, a rarity in American TV at the time. The writers' room included Glover, his brother Stephen, and members of his rap collective Royalty: manager Fam Udeorji, photographer Ibra Ake, and Jamal Olori. Stefani Robinson, a writer from Man Seeking Woman, and Taofik Kolade completed the team. In a New Yorker interview, Glover explained the characters smoke cannabis because they have PTSD, adding, "every Black person does."

The show is shot in 2K resolution, produced and edited by Kyle Reiter and Isaac Hagy, and broadcast on FX in 720p. FX renewed it for a second season in January 2017, but delayed the premiere to 2018 due to Glover's packed schedule. Glover noted the second season draws inspiration from Tiny Toon Adventures, specifically How I Spent My Vacation. A third season was ordered in June 2018, originally set for 2019, but scheduling conflicts pushed it back.

In August 2019, FX renewed the series for a fourth season, announcing that both the third and fourth seasons would start filming in early 2020, each with eight episodes. By January 2020, the third season's episode count increased to ten, with both seasons planned for a 2021 release—season three in January and season four later that year. The plan was to shoot both seasons together, with one filmed outside the United States. However, production was halted in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Reception

Critics have overwhelmingly praised Atlanta. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds a 98% approval rating from 141 reviews, with an average score of 8.6 out of 10. The site’s consensus calls the show “ambitious and refreshing,” highlighting it as a unique platform for creator and star Donald Glover’s offbeat humor and its sharp, timely observations. Metacritic gives the first season a 90 out of 100 based on 37 critic reviews.

David Wiegand of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote that the scripts are as richly layered as anything on TV or in film, adding that viewers will know the characters after one episode and be hooked. Sonia Saraiya of Variety described it as a “finished, cinematic, and beautiful production” and one of the best new shows of the fall. The second season earned even stronger acclaim. On Rotten Tomatoes, it also has a 98% approval rating, this time from 212 reviews, with an average rating of 9.1 out of 10.

The critical consensus notes that Glover continues to subvert expectations with a sophomore season that is both excellent and eccentric. Metacritic gives the second season a 97 out of 100 from 28 critics. In 2019, The Guardian ranked Atlanta 10th on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century. The Writers Guild Foundation selected the season 1 episode “Streets on Lock” as one of the best scripts of 2010s film and television, praising how it features fully realized supporting characters and miscreants, then turns sour just as the laughter starts, forcing reflection on what is being laughed at.

The third season received a Metacritic score of 93 out of 100 from 24 critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 96% approval rating based on 130 reviews, with an average rating of 8.6 out of 10. The site’s consensus says that taking Paper Boi and his crew out of Georgia proves that the more things change, the more they stay weird.

Did You Know?

• The first season was broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two from May 13, 2018, to June 17, 2018.
• The Complete First Season was released on DVD in Region 1 on March 6, 2018.
• The series has received two Peabody Awards.