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The Last Man on Earth (TV series)

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The Last Man on Earth
Genre
Created byWill Forte
Starring
ComposerMark Mothersbaugh
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes23 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
ProducerChris Plourde
CinematographyChristian Sprenger
Camera setupSingle-camera
Running time22 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkFox
ReleaseMarch 1, 2015 (2015-03-01) –
present

The Last Man on Earth is an American post-apocalyptic comedy television series created by and starring Will Forte.[2] The series premiered on Fox on March 1, 2015.[2] The pilot episode was written by Forte and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.[2] On April 8, 2015, the show was renewed for a second season,[3] which premiered on September 27, 2015.[4]

Plot

Main article: List of The Last Man on Earth episodes

In 2020, Phil Miller (Will Forte) is seemingly the only human left on Earth after a deadly virus swept the planet one year earlier.[5] An average man "who likes Star Wars, Twinkies, and sex",[6] Phil searches North America in his RV for other survivors. After a long journey, Phil returns to his hometown of Tucson, Arizona believing that he is Earth's last surviving human. Just before he attempts suicide out of loneliness and a desire for a female companion, his prayers are answered, and he meets Carol Pilbasian (Kristen Schaal), a quirky and unusual woman.[7]

Carol insists that she and Phil marry in order to repopulate the Earth, only for Phil to learn a day later that there is another woman alive named Melissa, a very attractive woman for whom he can barely restrain his longing. Phil, Carol, and Melissa then meet another surviving man named Todd, but Phil grows jealous after Todd and Melissa develop a romantic relationship.[7] Soon after, Phil runs into two women named Gail and Erica but does not tell them about the others. However, his secret is exposed when the other survivors find him sneaking around with Gail and Erica. Phil is then kicked out of his home by Carol, but, after telling the truth, Carol allows him to rejoin the group and agrees to a divorce.

Happy to be a bachelor again, Phil arranges individual dates with Gail and Erica, but his plans are interrupted when he finds himself stranded atop a billboard that he hopes to repaint so other possible survivors will not come to Tucson. He is then brought back to the community by another man who is also named Phil Miller, whose masculinity, know-how and implicit dominance upsets the other two men. The original Phil then must go by his middle name, Tandy, after having lost a competition to the new Phil, who upon discovering Tandy's plot to leave him in the desert to die, becomes enraged and leaves him to the very same fate. However, Carol finds him and they decide to move somewhere other than Tucson. Tandy reveals to Carol that he grew up with one brother, and the final scene in the season 1 finale shows Tandy's brother, who is stranded in the International Space Station and does not know that there are still some remaining humans on Earth.

At the start of season 2, Tandy and Carol are happily remarried. Carol misses the other survivors in Tucson, so they revisit the town but discover that everyone else had moved to Malibu. They drive to Malibu and reunite with the rest of the group. Over the season, Tandy tries to improve his reputation with the other survivors with difficulty. He mends his friendship with Todd when he discovers and then shares Todd's secret bacon stash and with most of the other survivors when Phil punches him and later confesses his love for Carol, causing Phil to replace Tandy as the new scapegoat. In the process, Erica discovers that she is pregnant with Phil's baby. Tandy then tries to reestablish trust between the two but, in the second season's mid-season finale, Phil flatlines during an appendectomy.

Meanwhile, in space, Tandy's estranged brother Mike continues his long search for human life and loses his companion worms one by one. After all his worms perish, he attempts suicide by launching himself into space through the station's airlock, but he sees a newborn worm at the last moment and tries to abort the opening of the airlock. His attempt fails, and he is launched into space. He succeeds in reentering the space station via his spacesuit's tether. Mike then attempts to return to Earth with his new worm in the station's descent module, but his capsule is shown tumbling during reentry in the mid-season 2 finale.

It is established in the season two episode "Dead Man Walking", that the episode is set in 2023.[8]

Cast

Main

  • Will Forte as Philip Tandy[9] "Phil" Miller, who is living on Earth after a virus wiped out nearly the entire population in 2019, believing he is the last person left. He lives in his hometown of Tucson, Arizona, having already searched North America for signs of other living people. Out of loneliness, he talks to various sports balls on which he has drawn faces and adopted as "buddies." He paints "Alive in Tucson" on billboards during his trip in the hope that others might see the message. Forte describes him as "a selfish person who sometimes borders on being a flat-out sociopath".[10]
  • Kristen Schaal as Carol Andrew Pilbasian, an eccentric woman from Delaware who sees Phil's "Alive in Tucson" sign and travels to Tucson. She pressures Phil to marry her so they can work towards repopulating the Earth with "legitimate" children. Carol is shown to be compassionate and is good friends with Melissa and Todd but can hold grudges.[11]
  • January Jones as Melissa Chartres,[12] a former real estate agent who meets Phil and Carol after they crash their pickup truck into her limousine. Like Carol, she has seen the original Phil's "Alive in Tucson" sign and travels to Tucson. Phil is initially very attracted to her and frequently vies for her affection, despite the fact that he has just married Carol and Melissa does not like or trust him. She begins a romantic relationship with Todd after he joins the group.[13]
  • Mel Rodriguez as Todd. While on his way to Mexico, Todd spots some fireworks set off by Phil and is able to find him and the rest of the group. Kind and selfless, Todd's nature leads to him becoming the most likable member of the group, much to Phil's increasing annoyance. He and Melissa become very close and begin a romantic relationship shortly after they meet.[13]
  • Cleopatra Coleman as Erica, an Australian woman and self-described "political nerd". After the outbreak of the virus, she met Gail at the White House, and the two became traveling companions. They later discover Phil after spotting a fire he started. After Phil and Carol divorce, Erica and Gail move in with the rest of the survivors. Erica later becomes pregnant with Phil II's child, but becomes upset with him when he openly flirts with Carol and decides that she does not want him involved with their child's life.
  • Mary Steenburgen as Gail Klosterman (recurring season 1; starring season 2), a chef and former restaurant owner from North Carolina. After the outbreak of the virus, she met another woman named Erica, and the two became traveling companions. Gail mentions having had a husband but does not reveal what happened to him.[14]

Recurring

  • Boris Kodjoe as another Phil Miller, a former member of the Special Forces from North Carolina. He discovers the rest of the survivors after finding the original Phil sunburnt and unconscious on a billboard. Also a former contractor, his skills with construction – as well as his good looks – soon make him a favorite among the women in the group. He and the original Phil become rivals shortly after meeting.[15] In the season 2 mid-season finale, after a botched appendectomy performed by Gail, he flatlines.
  • Jason Sudeikis as Mike Miller,[16] the last man in space and a scientist who survives in Earth's orbit aboard the International Space Station. He is the brother of Phil Tandy Miller and, like Phil and his sports balls, talks to worms in containment jars out of loneliness.[17] He also appears in a still photograph in the premiere episode with his brother and parents.[18] In the season 2 mid-season finale, Mike attempts to return to Earth with a newborn companion worm.

Special guests

  • Alexandra Daddario as Victoria, an attractive woman that Phil (Tandy) hallucinates.[19]
  • Will Ferrell as Gordon Vanderkruik[8] (season 2), a survivor living in Malibu, who dies from a heart attack from the shock of Carol's sudden appearance. When Gordon first met the other survivors, he developed a relationship with Gail. His grave reveals that he was born in 1978 and died in 2023.[8]
  • Jacob Tremblay as young Tandy,[20] who appears to Mike in a dream during the second half of season 2.[21]

Background and production

The show originated from the writing team of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who had the idea initially for a feature film. They approached longtime collaborator and former Saturday Night Live cast member Will Forte with the premise, who "took a spark to it and took it in his own direction", according to Miller.[22] He was partially inspired by the series Life After People. "I love comedy where there's a lot of tension and even though it's very far-fetched, it seems very relatable", said Forte of the premise.[23] Forte's treatment for the series, crafted over a weekend, was pitched around Hollywood to positive responses. They mainly pitched to cable and Internet services, as Forte believed a broadcast network would be stricter on content.[22] In their pitch, much of the outline of the series' first season was formulated.[24] Fox, the show's eventual distributor, was instead doing "something different" and specific to his vision, according to Miller.[22]

Forte spoke on the show's creative freedom in a 2015 interview:

I think we always saw this as more of a cable show, to be honest. They claimed from the get-go that they didn't want to change the tone of the show, and I think I went in with an eyebrow raised, thinking, okay, well when's it going to come out that we have to change it around? And they were great. They stuck by their pledge and let us make this different type of show. We're so happy to have had this experience. It was just a great, great experience with Fox.[24]

Filming the series was challenging. For example, maintaining silence and not picking up sounds of cars in the distance made it difficult.[23] In addition to Forte's fascination with Life After People, similar films bandied about while writing the show included The Omega Man, I Am Legend, and 28 Days Later.[24] Fox particularly appreciated the heart of the story, with its universal theme. According to Lord, "We always talked about that this is a person who is very flawed, and a person who maybe needed the entire world to end in order for him to become his best self. [...] That was our big thought, well here's a guy who maybe he wasn't the best guy in the regular world, but if you took the regular world away, could he eventually get back to being the person that all of us hope that we can be."[24]

The name of the main character, Phil Miller, is based on the names of the two executive producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.[6] According to Miller, "there are no zombies" in the series.[25]

For the second season, Dan Sterling joined as executive producer and took over the role of showrunner from Forte, who was the showrunner for the first season.[26]

The main recording location for the series is a 20th Century Fox studio in Chatsworth, California.[27][28][29]

Episodes

Main article: List of The Last Man on Earth episodes
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
113March 1, 2015 (2015-03-01)May 3, 2015 (2015-05-03)
218September 27, 2015 (2015-09-27)May 15, 2016 (2016-05-15)
318September 25, 2016 (2016-09-25)May 7, 2017 (2017-05-07)
418October 1, 2017 (2017-10-01)May 6, 2018 (2018-05-06)

Reception

Ratings

For its one-hour premiere, The Last Man on Earth received 5.75 million viewers with an average 2.4 rating among adults 18–49, making it the highest-rated broadcast series of the evening in that demographic.[30] While ratings declined overall, the show did well enough with young men to justify renewal.[31]

Season Timeslot (ET) Episodes Premiered Ended TV season Rank Viewers
(in millions,
including DVR)
Date Premiere viewers
(in millions) 		Date Finale viewers
(in millions)
1 Sunday 9:30 pm 13 March 1, 2015 5.75[30] May 3, 2015 3.51[32] 2014–15 93[33] 6.07[33]
2 18[34] September 27, 2015 3.14[35] TBA TBA 2015–16 TBA TBA

Critical reception

My recommendation comes with a caveat: there is no roadmap for this kind of show, and it could easily fall apart quickly. But I will say this for The Last Man on Earth: it does not seem like the sort of thing that would be a primetime network sitcom. And that's precisely why it should be one.

James Poniewozik of Time[36]

The Last Man on Earth has received generally positive reviews from critics. On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 based on reviews from critics, the show has a score of 72, based on 30 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[37] Tim Goodman of The Hollywood Reporter called the show "a genre-busting breakout that's creative, nuanced and inspired".[38] Robert Bianco of USA Today praised Forte's "audacity, inventiveness and achievement".[39] Hank Stuever of The Washington Post called it "a charming and intelligent sendup of pop culture's obsession with the end of everything".[40] Slate's Willa Paskin called the program "well-made, polished, odd, surprisingly funny".[41] "For a show that shouldn't really work at all, Last Man works pretty well", remarked Margaret Lyons of Vulture.[42]

Entertainment Weekly's Jeff Jensen called it "profoundly funny", and sustainable if it continues the "ingenuity, surprises, and craftsmanship".[6] "I was impressed by The Last Man on Earth, and hope it can continue to spin stories and character development out of its somewhat narrow premise", wrote Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe.[43]

However, several critics, such as Maureen Ryan of The Huffington Post[11] and David Hinckley of the New York Daily News, have questioned the show's future.[44] Mike Hale of The New York Times deemed the show "well made, meticulous in its comic details and pleasantly acted", though noting that part of the show's appeal "dissipates" past the pilot episode.[45] Brian Lowry of Variety opined that "the premise calls for a level of creativity from the producers that these episodes don't consistently deliver. That's not to say 'I wouldn't watch him if he were the last man on Earth.' But like the fate of humanity within the series, while the future certainly isn't hopeless, neither does it look particularly bright."[46]

Accolades

Year Award Category Recipients Result
2015 Critics' Choice Television Award[47] Best Actor in a Comedy Series Will Forte Nominated
Primetime Emmy Award[48] Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series Will Forte Nominated
Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series Will Forte for "Alive in Tucson" Nominated
Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series Phil Lord and Christopher Miller for "Alive in Tucson" Nominated
Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series Stacey Schroeder Nominated
EWwy Award Outstanding Comedy Series[49] The Last Man on Earth Nominated
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series[50] Kristen Schaal Nominated
68th Writers Guild of America Awards[51] New Series The Last Man on Earth Nominated
Episodic Comedy Will Forte ("Alive in Tucson”") Nominated
2016 6th Critics' Choice Television Awards[52] Best Comedy Series The Last Man on Earth Nominated
Best Actor in a Comedy Series Will Forte Nominated

Home media

The first season was released on DVD in region 1 on September 22, 2015. The set contains audio commentaries for "The Elephant in the Room" and "Screw the Moon"; The Last Man on Earth Q&A Panel; "Survival of the Funniest: Creating The Last Man on Earth" featurette; deleted scenes; and a gag reel.[53]

References

  1. ^ "Shows A-Z – last man on earth, the on fox". the Futon Critic. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c Andreeva, Nellie (February 12, 2014). "Fox Orders Will Forte Comedy 'Last Man On Earth' To Series For Midseason 2015". Deadline.com. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
  3. ^ Ausiello, Michael (April 8, 2015). "Last Man on Earth Scores Super-Quick Season 2 Renewal at Fox". TVLine. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  4. ^ Ausiello, Michael (June 25, 2015). "Fox Premiere Dates: Scream Queens' Big Bow, Bones/Sleepy Combo Lands October Launch and More". TVLine. Retrieved June 25, 2015.
  5. ^ "The Last Man on Earth". TV Guide. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  6. ^ a b c Jensen, Jeff (February 25, 2015). "The Last Man on Earth: EW review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  7. ^ a b Lowry, Brian (March 22, 2015). "Why 'The Last Man on Earth' Is a Comedy Dinosaur (SPOILERS)". Variety. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  8. ^ a b c "Dead Man Walking". The Last Man on Earth. Season 2. Episode 3. October 11, 2015. 00:27 minutes in. Fox. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |episodelink= ignored (|episode-link= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "Moved to Tampa". The Last Man on Earth. Season 1. Episode 11. April 19, 2015. 17:39 minutes in. Fox. {{cite episode}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |serieslink= (help); Unknown parameter |episodelink= ignored (|episode-link= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ Philips, Ian (May 4, 2015). "Why you should be watching Fox's excellent 'The Last Man on Earth'". Business Insider. Retrieved May 12, 2015.
  11. ^ a b Ryan, Maureen (March 2, 2015). "The Problem With 'Last Man On Earth' No One Is Talking About". The Huffington Post. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  12. ^ "The Boo". The Last Man on Earth. Season 2. Episode 2. October 4, 2015. 09:54 minutes in. Fox. {{cite episode}}: Unknown parameter |episodelink= ignored (|episode-link= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ a b O'Connell, Michael; Goldberg, Lesley (December 1, 2014). "January Jones Joins Fox Comedy 'The Last Man on Earth'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  14. ^ Keveney, Bill (January 17, 2015). "Will Forte is Fox's 'Last Man on Earth'". USA Today. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  15. ^ Prudom, Laura (February 5, 2015). "Boris Kodjoe Joins Fox's 'The Last Man on Earth'". Variety. Retrieved March 31, 2015.
  16. ^ Fox (August 10, 2015). "You heard right. Jason Sudeikis will be appearing in season 2 as Mike Miller!". Twitter. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  17. ^ Snierson, Dan (May 4, 2015). "The Last Man on Earth finale: Will Forte on that 'bonkers' twist ending—and what happens next". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  18. ^ Schwartz, Ryan (March 2, 2015). "Last Man on Earth: Will Forte Weighs In on That Cameo You Might've Missed". TVLine. Retrieved May 4, 2015.
  19. ^ Framke, Caroline. ""The Elephant In The Room"". The A.V. Club. The Onion. Retrieved December 13, 2015.
  20. ^ Snierson, Dan (January 20, 2016). "Room star Jacob Tremblay to guest on Last Man on Earth". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 20, 2016.
  21. ^ "THE LAST MAN ON EARTH - Fart Face from "Pitch Black" - FOX BROADCASTING". YouTube. March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  22. ^ a b c Murphy, Mekado (March 1, 2015). "Phil Lord and Chris Miller on Maintaining Mystery in 'The Last Man on Earth'". The New York Times. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  23. ^ a b Owen, Rob (February 26, 2015). "Making Fox's 'Last Man on Earth'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  24. ^ a b c d Terrones, Terry (February 26, 2015). "Q&A: Will Forte and show producers discuss "The Last Man on Earth"". The Gazette. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  25. ^ Bricker, Tierney (January 17, 2015). "The Last Man on Earth Just Cast Another Human Being...and Zombies?!". E! News. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  26. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (May 6, 2015). "Dan Sterling Inks Overall Deal At 20th TV, Joins 'Last Man On Earth' As Showrunner". Deadline.com. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
  27. ^ "Kristen Schaal Loves Filming In The Porn Capital Of The World". Team Coco. Conaco. September 24, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2016. CONAN: You shoot that show in Chatsworth, is that right? Kristen: Yeah. CONAN: Is that a fun place to be shooting, Chatsworth, California?
  28. ^ Miller, Chris (October 15, 2014). "Fun fact: #TheLastManOnEarth stages are in Chatsworth down the street from a dildo factory called Pipedreams". Twitter. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  29. ^ Last Man Writers (March 17, 2015). "We shot the series in Chatsworth". Twitter. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  30. ^ a b Bibel, Sara (March 3, 2015). "Sunday Final Ratings: 'The Last Man on Earth' & 'Dateline' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  31. ^ Owen, Rob (August 7, 2015). "TV Q&A: 'America's Got Talent,' 'Mythbusters' and 'Life Below Zero'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  32. ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (May 5, 2015). "Sunday Final Ratings: 'Family Guy' & 'Secrets and Lies' Adjusted Up". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  33. ^ a b "Full 2014-2015 TV Season Series Rankings". Deadline. August 23, 2014.
  34. ^ Cite error: The named reference S2 epcount was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  35. ^ Dixon, Dani (September 29, 2015). "Sunday Final Ratings: 'Bob's Burgers' Adjusted Down, '60 Minutes' Adjusted Up + 'Sunday Night Football'". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved September 29, 2015.
  36. ^ Poniewozik, James (February 27, 2015). "Review: The Last Man on Earth Is One of a Kind". Time. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  37. ^ "The Last Man on Earth Reviews". Metacritic (CBS Interactive). Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  38. ^ Goodman, Tim (February 27, 2015). "'The Last Man on Earth': TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  39. ^ Bianco, Robert (February 26, 2015). "'Last Man on Earth' stands alone". USA Today. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  40. ^ Stuever, Hank (February 27, 2015). "Fox's 'Last Man on Earth': A guy who is truly in his own element". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  41. ^ Paskin, Willa (February 26, 2015). "Last Man on Earth". Slate. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  42. ^ Lyons, Margaret (February 27, 2015). "TV Review: The Last Man on Earth Makes a Lasting Impression". Vulture. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  43. ^ Gilbert, Matthew (February 26, 2015). "In 'Last Man', nothing to do, no one to do it with". Boston Globe. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  44. ^ Hinkley, David (February 28, 2015). "'The Last Man on Earth' review: TV series starring Will Forte makes you wish you were dead". Daily News. New York. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
  45. ^ Hale, Mike (February 27, 2015). "Review: Fox's 'The Last Man on Earth' Stars Will Forte". The New York Times. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  46. ^ Lowry, Brian (February 27, 2015). "TV Review: 'The Last Man On Earth'". Variety. Retrieved March 1, 2015.
  47. ^ Li, Shirley (May 6, 2014). "The Critics' Choice TV Awards 2015: And the nominees are..." Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 7, 2015.
  48. ^ Hipes, Patrick (July 16, 2015). "Emmy Nominations 2015 – Full List". Deadline.com. Retrieved July 16, 2015.
  49. ^ "EWwy Awards 2015: Meet Your Winners". Entertainment Weekly. August 11, 2015. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
  50. ^ "EWwy Awards 2015: Meet Your Winners". Entertainment Weekly. August 11, 2015. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
  51. ^ McNary, Dave (February 13, 2016). "WGA Honors 'Big Short,' 'Spotlight,' 'Mad Men' at 68th Awards". Variety. Retrieved February 13, 2016.
  52. ^ Mitovich, Matt Webb (January 17, 2016). "Critics' Choice Awards: TV Winners Include Fargo, Mr. Robot, Master of None, Rachel Bloom and Carrie Coon". TVLine. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  53. ^ Lambert, David (August 3, 2015). "The Last Man on Earth - 'The Complete 1st Season' on DVD: Date, Cost, Extras, More!". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved August 4, 2015.
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