American Auto
A workplace comedy set in the upper management of an auto company.
American Auto is an American television sitcom created by Justin Spitzer that aired on NBC from December 13, 2021 to April 18, 2023. The series follows the employees of Detroit-based Payne Motors, and explores the company's struggles after a new CEO who knows little about cars is hired from the pharmaceutical industry. In May 2022, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on January 24, 2023. In June 2023, American Auto was canceled after two seasons.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Sitcom; Workplace comedy
- Creator
- Justin Spitzer
- Starring
- Ana Gasteyer
- Harriet Dyer
- Jon Barinholtz
- Tye White
- Michael Benjamin Washington
- Humphrey Ker
- X Mayo
- Music
- Jeff Cardoni; Hal Rosenfeld
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
- Seasons
- 2
- Episodes
- 23
Facts from the source article.
Cast and characters
Ana Gasteyer plays Katherine Hastings, Payne Motors' new CEO, a classic corporate shark who jumps from one company to another. Before that she was in a pharmacology company and often tries to make a parallel between that and the car industry, but she knows nothing about cars. Harriet Dyer plays Sadie Ryan, Payne Motors' CCO. Jon Barinholtz plays Wesley Payne, grandson of Payne Motors' retired CEO and a brat-type who doesn't really have a job but shows at headquarters every day. Tye White plays Jack Fordham, a former assembly-line employee brought in to help in the C-suite who is like a counselor to Hastings. Michael Benjamin Washington plays Cyrus Knight, Payne's chief product designer. Humphrey Ker plays Elliot Chisholm, Payne's general counsel. X Mayo plays Dorothy "Dori" Otis, Hastings' assistant and a social media addict. Recurring cast includes Brad Hall as Richard, Katherine's husband and a math teacher in a primary school who is very supportive of her job until the charity dinner; Elizabeth Hinkler as Chloe; and Matthew Moy as Dale (season 2). Guest stars include Jeff Meacham as Brent (season 1); Christopher Chen as Jin Tao-Kang, Payne Motors' CFO who dislikes Hastings and wants to leave for Volkswagen (seasons 1-2); Jerry Minor as Steve (season 1); Tom McGowan as Ed (season 1); Joshua Malina as Ted (seasons 1-2); Jim O'Heir as Governor Tom Harper (season 1); Andy Daly as Frank (season 1); Matt Murray as Bennett (season 1); Lombardo Boyar as Robin (season 1); Betsy Sodaro as Alex (season 1); Martha Kelly as Barb, a desk worker who starts to stalk Hastings (season 1); Ike Barinholtz as Landon Payne, who is in politics (seasons 1-2); Ian Roberts as Charlie Altman (season 1); Jim Meskimen as Soren McGarry (seasons 1-2); Tom Bergeron as himself, roasting celebrities at the Payne charity dinner (season 1); Marc Evan Jackson as Alan Strong (season 1); Eric Stonestreet as Ian (season 2); Seth Meyers as himself (season 2); Jim Cramer as himself (season 2); Ryan Reynolds as himself (season 2); Andy Richter as himself (season 2); Ben Feldman as Chase (season 2); Gilles Marini as Jules Durand (season 2); Blaire Erskine as Christina (season 2); and Kaliko Kauahi as Tammy (season 2).
Production
American Auto has been in development since August 2013. TV writer Justin Spitzer, fresh off the success of The Office, wanted to produce a workplace comedy of his own, but would instead be set in the upper-management world. Spitzer sold his pitch to NBC, who put the idea as a put-pilot. The script did not go forward as a pilot, and Spitzer instead went to work on Superstore. After stepping down as showrunner in April 2019 and signing an overall deal with Universal Television, Spitzer went back and redeveloped the American Auto script. On January 23, 2020, it was given a pilot order by NBC. The pilot was directed by Jeffrey Blitz and written by Spitzer who was expected to executive produce alongside Aaron Kaplan and Dana Honor. Production companies involved with the series include Spitzer Holding Company, Kapital Entertainment and Universal Television. On January 12, 2021, it was announced that NBC had ordered the series. On May 12, 2022, NBC renewed the series for a second season. On June 16, 2023, NBC canceled the series after two seasons. In February 2020, Deadline reported Harriet Dyer had joined the cast as Sadie and later that Ana Gasteyer had also joined the cast as Katherine Hastings. In March, X Mayo joined the cast as Dori. In July, Tye White joined the cast as Jack, Michael B. Washington joined the cast as Cyrus, Humphrey Ker joined the cast as Elliot, and Jon Barinholtz joined the cast as Wesley. The series premiered on December 13, 2021, at 10 p.m., with two 'sneak [peek] episodes' and returned on January 4, 2022, in its regular time slot at 8 p.m. on Tuesdays. The second season premiered on January 24, 2023, in its new time slot, 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. The series finale aired on April 18, 2023.
Reception
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating with an average rating of 6.1/10, based on 11 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, 'While American Autos hijinks don't bode well for the future of Payne Motors, they promise a hilarious sitcom with a solid foundation.' Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 68 out of 100 based on 11 critics, indicating 'generally favorable reviews'. The series was nominated for Best Broadcast Network Series, Comedy, and Albertina Rizzo was nominated for Best Writing in a Broadcast Network or Cable Series, Comedy for the episode 'Commercial' at the 2022 Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards.
More in Television Series by Universal Television
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced