''About a Boy'' is an American

single-camera The single-camera setup, or single-camera mode of production, also known as portable single camera, is a method of filmmaking and video production. The single-camera setup originally developed during the birth of the classical Hollywood cinema ...

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

that aired on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

from February 22, 2014, to July 20, 2015. The show was developed by

Jason Katims Jason Katims (born November 30, 1960) is an American television writer, producer, and playwright. He is best known as the creator of several television series, including '' Relativity'' (1996), '' Roswell'' (1999–2002), '' Friday Night Lights' ...

and premiered as a midseason replacement following the

2014 Winter Olympics , ''Zharkie. Zimnie. Tvoi'') , nations = 88 , events = 98 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , athletes = 2,873 , opening = 7 February 2014 , closing = 23 February 2014 , opened_by = President Vladimir Putin , cauldron = , stadium = Fisht Olympi ...

. It was the second adaptation based on the 1998 novel of the same title by

Nick Hornby Nicholas Peter John Hornby (born 17 April 1957) is an English writer and lyricist. He is best known for his memoir '' Fever Pitch'' and novels '' High Fidelity'' and '' About a Boy'', all of which were adapted into feature films. Hornby's work ...

, preceded by the 2002 theatrical film. The series starred David Walton,

Minnie Driver Amelia Fiona Jessica "Minnie" Driver (born 31 January 1970) is an English actress. She rose to prominence with her break-out role in 1995's '' Circle of Friends''. She went on to star in a wide range of films including the cult classic '' Grosse ...

and

Benjamin Stockham Benjamin James Stockham (born July 8, 2000) is an American television and film actor, known for his role of Robby Gunderson in the 2010 ''Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox'' sitcom ''Sons of Tucson'', and previously starred as Xander Gilchrist in the ...

, and used "Comeback Kid (That's My Dog)" by

Brett Dennen Brett Michael Dennen (born October 28, 1979) is an American folk/pop singer-songwriter from Central California. His seventh studio album, ''See the World'' was released in July 2021. Early life Dennen grew up in Central Valley, California in a s ...

as its theme song. On May 9, 2014, NBC renewed the series for a second season. Season 2 premiered on October 16, 2014, and contained 20 episodes. The fourteenth episode of season 2 aired on February 17, 2015, before the show went on hiatus to accommodate the return of ''The Voice''. On May 8, 2015, NBC canceled the series after two seasons. On July 20, 2015, the remaining six episodes were released via

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, and

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Premise

Successful songwriter and bachelor Will Freeman lives a carefree life in San Francisco as the "ultimate man-child". His perfect world is turned upside down when single mother Fiona and her 11-year-old son Marcus move in next door.

Cast

Main

* David Walton as Will Freeman, a successful songwriter and bachelor. After he wrote a hit song he was granted a life of free time, free love and freedom from financial woes. He's single, unemployed and loves it. When Fiona and Marcus move in next door, he starts to bond with them. *

as Fiona Bowa, a vegan hippie and an overbearing mother to her only child, Marcus, whom she is raising by herself. She was once married and then got divorced. Fiona likes to meditate, take care of flowers, and doesn't like her new neighbor, Will. *

as Marcus Bowa, an 11-year-old only child. He is possibly too close to his mother, since she has been raising him by herself. He is not very popular at school, so he is often teased by popular boys. When he and his mom move to a new house, he meets his new neighbor Will in whom he finds a new best friend. *

Al Madrigal Alessandro Liborio Madrigal (born July 4, 1971)"'W ...

as Andy. He is Will's best friend. He has four children and his wife is Laurie. He thinks that raising a child is the greatest honor that person can have. He is more mature than Will, since he has children that he needs to take care of. He was once a DJ. *

Annie Mumolo Anne Marie Mumolo (born July 10, 1973) is an American actress, screenwriter, comedian, and producer, best known for co-writing the 2011 film ''Bridesmaids'' with Kristen Wiig, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA for Best ...

as Laurie (season 2, recurring in season 1). She is Andy's wife, with whom she has four children. Laurie and Will tend to not get along even with Andy's persistence.

Recurring

Adrianne Palicki Adrianne Lee Palicki ( ; born May 6, 1983) is an American actress and model. She is best known for her starring roles as Tyra Collette in the NBC sports drama series '' Friday Night Lights'' (2006–2011), as Barbara "Bobbi" Morse/Mockingbird ...

as Dr. Samantha Lake, Will's love interest in seasons 1 and 2. *

Chris Diamantopoulos Chris Diamantopoulos (born May 9, 1975) is a Canadian actor. He played Russ Hanneman in the HBO series '' Silicon Valley'' and starred in the film '' The Three Stooges'', and the TV series ''Good Girls Revolt''. He currently voices Mickey Mouse ...

as Mr. Chris, Marcus's teacher * Izabela Vidovic as Shea Garcia-Miller, Marcus' friend and love interest in season 2. She is loosely based on the character Ellie from the book and movie. *

Andrea Anders Andrea Anders (born May 10, 1975) is an American actress. She is best known for her work on television, notably through her main roles on five anticipated but short-lived sitcoms, ''Joey'', '' The Class'', ''Better Off Ted'', '' Mr. Sunshine'' and ...

as Joanne * Cricket Wampler as Hannah Bickleman *

Dax Shepard Dax Randall Shepard (born January 2, 1975) is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker and podcast host. Since 2018, he has hosted ''Armchair Expert'', a podcast that interviews celebrities, journalists, and academics about their lives. Shepard ha ...

as Crosby Braverman (along with Crosby's infant daughter Aida Braverman) * Dusan Brown as Jackson * Keith Powell as Richard *

Leslie Bibb Leslie Louise Bibb (born November 17, 1974) is an American actress and model. Bibb first appeared on television in 1996 with minor roles in a few series, and on film in 1997 with a small role in '' Private Parts''. Her first recurring TV role wa ...

as Dakota * Rachel Breitag as Shasta *

Zach Cregger Zachary Michael Cregger (born March 1, 1981) is an American actor, comedian, writer, director, producer, and Twitch streamer. He first came to prominence as one of the three founding members, alongside Trevor Moore and Sam Brown, of the New Yo ...

as TJ *

Christine Woods Christine Woods (born September 3, 1983) is an American actress who notably appeared in the HBO series ''Hello Ladies''. She previously portrayed FBI Special Agent Janis Hawk in the ABC series ''FlashForward''. Early life Woods was b ...

as Liz

Episodes

Production

On January 10, 2014, NBC announced that ''About a Boy'' would premiere following the

on February 21, 2014, at 10:30 pm EST (later revised by the network to Saturday, February 22, at 11:05 pm EST). It then moved to its regular timeslot on Tuesday, March 4, 2014, 9:00 pm EST following ''

The Voice The Voice may refer to: Fictional entities * The Voice or Presence, a fictional representation of God in DC Comics * The Voice (''Dune''), a fictional ability in the ''Dune'' universe * The Voice, a character in the American TV series ''Cleo ...

''. On May 9, 2014, NBC renewed ''About a Boy'' for a second season. On May 11, 2015, NBC officially cancelled ''About a Boy'' after two seasons. A total of 33 episodes were produced over two seasons.

Broadcast

''About a Boy'' aired on

Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

in Canada shortly after the original broadcast. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the series premiered on

Sky 1 Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non- terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...

on March 31, 2014. The second season premiered on February 22, 2015. In South Africa, it airs on

M-net M-Net (an abbreviation of Electronic Media Network) is a South African pay television channel established by Naspers in 1986. The channel broadcasts both local and international programming, including general entertainment, children's series, ...

. In Brazil, it airs on HBO Family and on Germany, Austria and Switzerland, it airs on

Comedy Central Germany Comedy Central is a German free-to-air channel owned by Paramount Networks EMEAA. It is distributed in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and broadcasts many American and British imported television series as well as original programming. It ...

. The second season debuted on October 16, 2014. The show used to air everyday from Monday to Friday at 9:30 pm on

Comedy Central India Comedy Central is an Indian pay television channel owned by Viacom18. The channel is geared for mature audiences and carries comedy programming in the form of both original and syndicated series, as well as stand-up comedy specials. Despite t ...

. It premiered in Australia on June 1, 2015, on FOX8.

Ratings

References

External links

* * {{Nick Hornby 2010s American single-camera sitcoms 2014 American television series debuts 2015 American television series endings English-language television shows NBC original programming Television shows based on British novels Television series by Working Title Television Television series by Universal Television Television shows set in San Francisco