Home Economics became a rare beast when it premiered in April: a broadcast network comedy that rose in ratings over its lead-in. The series, which stars Topher Grace and comes from Lionsgate and ABC Signature, was quickly renewed for a second season in May.
Inspired by the real-life experiences of writer and executive producer Michael Colton, the show, developed by Colton and John Aboud, documents the uncomfortable yet heartwarming relationships of three siblings in very different situations: one ultra-rich, one in the middle class, and one scraping by.
In the pilot episode — written by Colton and Aboud and directed by Dean Holland — Tom (played by Grace), a struggling middle-class author, debates whether to risk embarrassment to ask his brother Connor (Jimmy Tatro), who runs a private equity company, for a loan when he needs it.
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Fresh from moving to own, the siblings get together and immediately began fighting over Tom’s new book, which Sarah, played by Caitlin McGee, believes is sexist, but Connor hasn’t read yet. Marina (Karla Souza), Tom’s wife, persuades her husband to ask his brother for the money, when their parents (Nora Dunn and Phil Reeves) reveal Connor was taking them away for Thanksgiving. It then emerges that Connor’s wife has left him and he was keeping it from them, prompting the siblings to get through their problems together, helped by a ride in toy cars.
Sasheer Zamata, Shiloh Bearman, Jordyn Curet, Chloe Jo Rountree and JeCobi Swain also star.
Colton and Aboud serve as executive producers alongside Grace and Eric and Kim Tannenbaum of the Tannenbaum Company, whose Jason Wang co-executive produces along with Tucker Cawler and Julieanne Smolinski.
You can read the script as the latest installment in Deadline’s It Starts On the Page, a series highlighting the scripts that serve as the creative backbones of the now-underway TV awards season. These scripts are being submitted for Emmy Awards consideration this year and have been selected using criteria that includes critical acclaim, selecting from a wide range of networks and platforms, and a mix of established and lesser-known shows.
Given the challenges of launching broadcast comedies, check it out below.
