Clarice (TV series)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Clarice
Official logo
Genre
Created byJenny Lumet & Alex Kurtzman
Based onThe Silence of the Lambs
by Thomas Harris
Starring
ComposerJeff Russo
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes13
Production
Executive producers
ProducerPaula Devonshire
Production locationsToronto, Ontario, Canada
CinematographyGlen Keenan
EditorJon Dudkowski
Running time42–43 minutes
Production companies
Original release
NetworkCBS
ReleaseFebruary 11 (2021-02-11) –
June 24, 2021 (2021-06-24)

Clarice is a 2021 American

Devyn A. Tyler, Kal Penn, Nick Sandow, Michael Cudlitz, and Marnee Carpenter. The series premiered on February 11, 2021, on CBS
.

In May 2021, CBS entered negotiations to relocate the series to Paramount+ for its second season.[1] By June, the relocation became "unlikely" to happen.[2]

Cast

Main

Recurring

Episodes

No.Title [9]Directed byWritten byOriginal air date [9]U.S. viewers
(millions)
1"The Silence Is Over"Maja VrviloJenny Lumet & Alex KurtzmanFebruary 11, 2021 (2021-02-11)4.00[10]
Trainee
VICAP
task force, a team dedicated to hunting down murderers, serial killers and sexual predators despite Starling's reservations. She is given a cold welcome by the task force commander Paul Krendler, whom she had previously outmaneuvered and shown up in finding Buffalo Bill and who is dismissive of her methods and public stardom. VICAP's first case involves two bodies washed up in the Anacostia river with the hallmarks of a serial killer, but Starling is not convinced. The FBI investigates and are led to a sinister conspiracy involving drug trials and parents with children with special needs though Krendler maintains belief in a serial killer. Ultimately Clarice disregards orders and declares before the news cameras that the murders were not due to a serial killer.
2"Ghosts of Highway 20"Doug AarniokoskiElizabeth J. B. Klaviter & Kenneth LinFebruary 18, 2021 (2021-02-18)4.08[11]
Clarice Starling and the rest of the FBI's VICAP team are sent to Tennessee, where local and federal law enforcement are in a tense standoff at a heavily armed militia compound. Clarice takes a leading role in the negotiations after she bumps into a young boy who's snuck out of the compound. He alerts the leader of the group, named Novak (Tim Guinee), to Clarice's presence. Novak insists he will negotiate with no one but her. Clarice goes into the compound, wearing a wire, and bonds with Novak over their shared Appalachian upbringing. When Clarice excuses herself to the bathroom to pull herself together after he brings up painful memories of her brother, Novak, who spies on her through a one-way mirror, opts to escalate the confrontation. An exchange of gunfire with the agents surrounding the compound ensues, and the local sheriff is brought in to complete the negotiations. Meanwhile, Clarice takes advantage of the confusion to snoop around the compound. She runs into the boy again, and realizes he was the shooter, who pulled the trigger as a cry for help. She also discovers a hidden passage through which Novak can spy on and record the doings of his militia members—specifically the women, whom he chains up and pimps out. The sheriff and many other locals were either on Novak's payroll or customers for his sex trafficking ring. Clarice manages to get Novak to admit to all this on the wire. When he realizes this, he nearly kills her, but Clarice drops down out of the way so her sniper teammate Esquivel can kill the militia leader before he can kill Clarice. Rather than throw the book at the crooked sheriff, Attorney General Martin makes a deal with him: He can spend the next few months firing dirty and abusive cops before resigning himself, or she can blow up his spot and ruin him right then and there.
3"Are You Alright?"Doug AarniokoskiWilliam HarperFebruary 25, 2021 (2021-02-25)3.65[12]
4"You Can't Rule Me"Chloe DomontGabriel Ho & Lydia TefferaMarch 4, 2021 (2021-03-04)3.48[13]
5"Get Right with God"Chloe DomontTess LeibowitzMarch 11, 2021 (2021-03-11)3.01[14]
Clarice awakens in a ward bed to find she has been chemically paralysed from the waist down and fitted to look like one of the patients. Groggy from a massive dose of sedatives and painkillers, she is confronted by Marilyn Felker who threatens to put her in a chemically induced coma and on a ventilator if she misbehaves; Felker then sedates Clarice again with more painkillers. Ardelia, concerned over Clarice's disappearance, meets with Clarice's teammates to try and find out what happened to her. Meanwhile, Felker continues to inject Starling with huge amounts of sedatives and painkillers, causing a series of vivid hallucinations, to get her to divulge what the FBI know about her and the whereabouts of Rebecca Clarke Sherman, but Starling hits back by psychologically targeting Marilyn's childhood trauma. When Starling pushes too hard, Marilyn injects her with a drug that paralyses Starling's lungs, intubates Starling and puts her on a ventilator. When Starling's team show up at the clinic looking for her, Marilyn reinforces Starling's patient disguise and the team fail to spot her before Marilyn insists they leave. Clarice and Marilyn continue to spar verbally during Starling's bouts of lucidity. Back at the FBI, the team finally makes a connection that enables them to thoroughly search the clinic and assemble a strike team. Starling manages to overcome the drugs in her system and makes her escape by forcing Marilyn to save her comatose sister from a drug-induced heart attack. The FBI arrive and rescue Starling and the sister but fail to stop Marilyn from committing suicide via a fatal drug overdose. Starling is reunited with Ardelia but is deeply traumatised by her ordeal.
6"How Does It Feel to Be So Beautiful"Wendey StanzlerKenneth Lin & Celena CipriasoApril 1, 2021 (2021-04-01)2.37[15]
Clarice undergoes hypnosis in an attempt to remember the man she saw with Marilyn Felker during her attempt to escape from captivity, but her memories are intermixed with those of her confrontation with Buffalo Bill. Krendler places her on enforced leave to recover from the ordeal, but Clarice is determined to identify her attacker and goes to see Attorney General Martin to ask her to overrule Krendler. Martin agrees on the condition that Starling join her and Catherine for dinner. Ardelia sends DNA samples from Clarice's fingernail for analysis, but the results are inconclusive. Not satisfied with the outcome, Ardelia retrieves the sample and finds the result was faked. Krendler meets with a lawyer who offers to represent him in his divorce case—he becomes determined to seek full custody after his son pages him and he finds his wife passed out from drinking. Over dinner, Clarice is alarmed when Catherine tells her she has tracked down Buffalo Bill's mother. Catherine also says that after Clarice shot Bill, Clarice cried for ages before calling for help, which Clarice does not remember. Clarice goes under hypnosis again, and finds that Catherine was right—with her memory clear of the Buffalo Bill trauma, she recalls the face of the man with Felker—Krendler's new divorce lawyer.
7"Ugly Truth"Wendey StanzlerWilliam HarperApril 8, 2021 (2021-04-08)2.57[16]
Clarice and Ardelia team up to investigate a deeply twisted cold case after the body of a missing teenager is found entombed in concrete; Clarice wrestles with the knowledge that Krendler may know the man who attacked her while she was held captive.
8"Add-a-Bead"Deborah KampmeierBoo KillebrewMay 6, 2021 (2021-05-06)2.54[17]
9"Silence Is Purgatory"Deborah KampmeierEleanor JeanMay 13, 2021 (2021-05-13)2.26[18]
10"Motherless Child"Chris ByrneWilliam HarperJune 3, 2021 (2021-06-03)1.89[19]
Catherine Martin escapes to Carneys Point, N.J., to confront Buffalo Bill's mother, Lila Gumb; Clarice volunteers to be the one to find Catherine before she commits a vile act and becomes a monster herself.
11"Achilles Heel"Chris ByrneElizabeth Klaviter & Lydia TefferaJune 10, 2021 (2021-06-10)1.85[20]
Clarice zeroes in on the entity behind the River Murders, Alastor Pharmaceuticals; the team rushes to Alastor to prevent the purging of any incriminating evidence; Clarice questions the CEO of Alastor Pharmaceuticals.
12"Father Time"DeMane DavisKenneth LinJune 17, 2021 (2021-06-17)2.19[21]
As the team finally gets the green light to raid Alastor Pharmaceuticals, Clarice punches another FBI agent in a moment of rage, then willingly turns in her badge and gun.
13"Family Is Freedom"DeMane DavisJenny Lumet & Alex KurtzmanJune 24, 2021 (2021-06-24)1.99[22]
On the heels of ViCAP uncovering Alastor's secrets, Clarice is imprisoned in an animal testing facility where she finds trafficked women being held captive. ViCAP and Ardelia team up to locate Clarice as she attempts to break from her captors in a race to rescue the other women.

Production

Development

In January 2020, CBS Studios hired Alex Kurtzman and Jenny Lumet to create a sequel series to the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs.[23]

The series was among the 14 pilot episodes ordered by CBS in February and was fast-tracked to series the following March, as CBS was shut down and unable to film pilot episodes because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[24] CBS picked up the series on May 8[25] and announced in December a premiere of February 11, 2021, alongside a trailer release.[26] Due to complicated rights issues of franchise characters between Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and the Dino de Laurentiis Company, the series cannot feature or make reference to Hannibal Lecter.[27] Kurtzman explained, "I'm still trying to understand how the rights are divided. But it's been quite liberating because we have no interest in writing about Hannibal—not because we didn't love the films and the show, but because it was done so well by so many people that it didn't feel fresh for us."[27]

In May 2021, CBS entered negotiations to relocate the series to Paramount+ for its second season.[1] By June, the relocation became "unlikely" to happen. Negotiations between ViacomCBS and co-producer MGM "stalemated", and since CBS had already committed to a full slate of shows, there was no space for Clarice to continue on network television. Industry veterans described the state of affairs as "crazy", where a show already with a new season pickup is facing demise and the prospect of putting 300 people out of work, even though it involves a recognizable intellectual property and Kurzman, a top producer. As of 2024 the show has not been officially canceled.[2]

Casting

Rebecca Breeds was cast as Clarice Starling in February 2020.[3] Lucca De Oliveira and Devyn A. Tyler were cast in starring roles.[5] Kal Penn, Nick Sandow, and Michael Cudlitz joined the main cast.[4] Marnee Carpenter was cast as a series regular while Jayne Atkinson, Shawn Doyle, and Tim Guinee were cast in recurring roles.[6] Douglas Smith joined the cast in a recurring capacity.[7]

Filming

Principal photography for the series began on September 21, 2020, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.[28][29] Filming of the first season concluded on March 23, 2021.[29]

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 37% based on reviews from 43 critics, with an average rating of 6.11/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Effectively grim, but narratively bland, Clarice is a disturbingly safe procedural that lets down both its talented cast and source material."[30] Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 55 out of 100 based on 32 critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[31]

Ratings

Viewership and ratings per episode of Clarice
No. Title Air date
Rating

(18–49)
Viewers
(millions)
DVR
(18–49)
DVR viewers
(millions)
Total
(18–49)
Total viewers
(millions)
1 "The Silence Is Over" February 11, 2021 0.5 4.00[10] 0.6 3.34 1.1 7.35[32]
2 "Ghosts of Highway 20" February 18, 2021 0.4 4.08[11] 0.6 3.32 1.0 7.40[33]
3 "Are You Alright?" February 25, 2021 0.4 3.65[12] 0.6 3.37 1.0 7.02[34]
4 "You Can't Rule Me" March 4, 2021 0.4 3.48[13] 0.5 3.06 0.9 6.54[35]
5 "Get Right with God" March 11, 2021 0.4 3.01[14] 0.4 2.76 0.8 5.77[36]
6 "How Does It Feel to Be So Beautiful" April 1, 2021 0.2 2.37[15] 0.3 2.14 0.5 4.51[37]
7 "Ugly Truth" April 8, 2021 0.3 2.57[16] 0.4 2.71 0.6 5.28[38]
8 "Add-a-Bead" May 6, 2021 0.3 2.54[17] 0.4 2.45 0.7 4.99[39]
9 "Silence is Purgatory" May 13, 2021 0.3 2.26[18] 0.3 2.20 0.6 4.46[18]
10 "Motherless Child" June 3, 2021 0.2 1.89[19] 0.3 2.12 0.5 4.01[19]
11 "Achilles Heel" June 10, 2021 0.2 1.85[20] 0.2 1.95 0.5 3.80[20]
12 "Father Time" June 17, 2021 0.3 2.19[21] 0.2 1.76 0.5 3.95[21]
13 "Family is Freedom" June 24, 2021 0.2 1.99[22] 0.2 1.89 0.5 3.88[22]

References

  1. ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie (May 18, 2021). "'SEAL Team' & 'Evil' Officially Move To Paramount+; 'Clarice' Remains In Negotiations". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie (June 11, 2021). "'Clarice' Silenced: A Negotiations Stalemate Dooms CBS Series' Move To Paramount+". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
  3. ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie (February 26, 2020). "'Clarice': Rebecca Breeds Cast In the Title Role Of CBS' 'Silence Of The Lambs' Sequel Pilot". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 26, 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d Andreeva, Nellie (May 10, 2020). "'Clarice': Kal Penn Speaks Of "Thoughtful Thriller" CBS Series As He Joins 'Silence Of the Lambs' Sequel". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 29, 2021. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  5. ^ a b c Petski, Denise (March 10, 2020). "'Clarice': Lucca De Oliveira & Devyn A. Tyler To Co-Star In CBS' 'Silence Of The Lambs' Sequel Pilot". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d e Petski, Denise (November 10, 2020). "'Clarice': Marnee Carpenter Among Four Cast In CBS' 'Silence Of The Lambs' Sequel Series". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 25, 2021. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  7. ^ a b Petski, Denise (January 26, 2021). "'Clarice': Douglas Smith Joins CBS' 'Silence Of The Lambs' Sequel Series As Recurring". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 23, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
  8. PopCulture.com. Archived
    from the original on March 9, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Clarice – Listings". The Futon Critic. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  10. ^
    Showbuzz Daily. Archived
    from the original on May 14, 2021. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
  11. ^ from the original on May 14, 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
  12. ^ on February 26, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2021.
  13. ^ on March 5, 2021. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  14. ^ on April 19, 2021. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  15. ^ on April 3, 2021. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  16. ^ on April 9, 2021. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
  17. ^ on May 10, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  18. ^ a b c Berman, Marc (May 14, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: Season High for 'Mom' Series Ender". Programming Insider. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  19. ^ a b c Berman, Marc (June 4, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: ABC and NBC Share Dominance; The 2 Nets Feature a Pair of Season-Enders". Programming Insider. Retrieved June 12, 2021.
  20. ^ a b c Berman, Marc (June 11, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: ABC's Rebel and NBC's Manifest Conclude on Quiet Notes". Programming Insider. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  21. ^ a b c Berman, Marc (June 18, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: Modest Returns for Holey Moley and The Hustler on ABC". Programming Insider. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  22. ^ a b c Berman, Marc (June 25, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: NBC Combination of Making It and Good Girls Left at the Starting Gate". Programming Insider. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
  23. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (January 12, 2020). "'Silence Of The Lambs' Sequel Series 'Clarice' Set At CBS From Alex Kurtzman & Jenny Lumet". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 26, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
  24. ^ "Development Update". The Futon Critic. March 13, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  25. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (May 8, 2020). "Dramas 'The Equalizer' With Queen Latifah & 'Clarice', Chuck Lorre Comedy 'B Positive' Picked Up To Series By CBS". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
  26. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (December 8, 2020). "CBS: 'Silence Of The Lambs' Sequel Series 'Clarice' Gets Premiere Date & First-Look Teaser; 'Tough As Nails' Also Slated As 'Survivor' Return Remains In Limbo". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 19, 2021. Retrieved December 8, 2020.
  27. ^ a b Hibberd, James (December 17, 2020). "Clarice producers break silence on Lambs sequel with 5 major revelations". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
  28. ^ Mitovich, Matt Webb (October 13, 2020). "Clarice EP: CBS' Silence of the Lambs Sequel Will Not Be a Procedural". TVLine. Archived from the original on December 22, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  29. ^ a b "Current Productions & News - Project Title: Clarice (AKA Vicap)". www.toronto.ca. Archived from the original on February 18, 2021. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  30. ^ "Clarice: Season 1 (2021)". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved July 23, 2021.
  31. ^ "Clarice: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
  32. ^ Pucci, Douglas (March 1, 2021). "Live+7 Weekly Ratings: 'Clarice' Series Premiere More Than Doubles its Same-Day Adults 18-49". Programming Insider. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  33. ^ Pucci, Douglas (March 8, 2021). "Live+7 Weekly Ratings: 'Big Sky' the Top Total Viewer Gainer in Each Week of its Winter Run". Programming Insider. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  34. ^ Pucci, Douglas (March 17, 2021). "Live+7 Weekly Ratings: 'The Conners' and 'Young Sheldon' Lead Comedies in Gains". Programming Insider. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
  35. ^ Pucci, Douglas (March 22, 2021). "Live+7 Weekly Ratings: 'New Amsterdam' Third Season Premiere Moves in to Total Viewer Gains Lead Position". Programming Insider. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  36. ^ Pucci, Douglas (April 15, 2021). "Live+ 7 Weekly Ratings: ABC, NBC and Fox Each Have Three Programs Apiece in Top Nine Gainers Among Adults 18-49". Programming Insider. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
  37. ^ Berman, Marc (April 2, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: Solid Start for 'Law & Order: Organized Crime' on NBC; Respectable Sampling for 'The United States of Al' on CBS Thursday Fast Affiliate Ratings". Programming Insider. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  38. ^ Berman, Marc (April 9, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: Soft Start for ABC's 'Rebel'; More Positive Results for 'Law & Order: Organized Crime' on NBC Thursday Fast Affiliate Ratings". Programming Insider. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  39. ^ Berman, Marc (May 7, 2021). "Thursday Ratings: CBS and ABC Lead the Diluted Network Troops". Programming Insider. Retrieved May 22, 2021.

External links