written by Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire
A White House-set whodunnit from Shonda Rhimes? We’re seated.
The latest Netflix series from mega-producer Rhimes is a mix of “Only Murders in the Building” meets “Knives Out,” with Rhimes and executive producing partner Betsy Beers reuniting with “Scandal” alum Paul William Davies to go back to D.C.
The screwball crime comedy stars Uzo Aduba as Metropolitan Police Department consulting detective Cordelia Cupp, who is tasked with solving a murder alongside FBI Special Agent Edwin Park (Randall Park). The duo are billed as a modern-day Sherlock and Watson and ”Odd Couple” team, as Aduba’s Cupp is the most sought-after detective in the world but Park remains skeptical about her unconventional methods.
As the character description teases for Aduba’s role, Cupp is “an astute observer of human behavior, with a distinctive and – to some, unsettling – conversational style. As she dives deeper into the evening’s events and key suspects, trying to unknot the mystery and identify the killer, the more tangled the web becomes.”
The ensemble cast includes Giancarlo Esposito as White House Chief Usher, A.B. Wynter, and Susan Kelechi Watson as Jasmine Haney, a young and rising White House Assistant Usher.
Ken Marino, Edwina Findley, Molly Griggs, Jason Lee, Al Mitchell, Dan Perrault, Bronson Pinchot, Julieth Restrepo, Mel Rodriguez, Isiah Whitlock Jr., and Mary Wiseman also star. Eliza Coupe, Jane Curtin, Paul Fitzgerald, Barrett Foa, Al Franken, Spencer Garrett, Taran Killam, Julian McMahon, Matt Oberg, Brett Tucker, and Kylie Minogue guest star.
The official synopsis reads: “132 rooms. 157 suspects. One dead body. One wildly eccentric detective. One disastrous State Dinner. ‘The Residence’ is a screwball whodunnit set in the upstairs, downstairs, and backstairs of the White House, among the eclectic staff of the world’s most famous mansion.”
The series is inspired by Kate Andersen Brower’s book of the same name.
Paul William Davies (“Scandal,” “For the People”) is the creator, showrunner, writer, and executive producer. Rhimes and Beers also executive produce.
As Susan Kelechi Watson stars in “The Residence,” her fellow former “This Is Us” co-star (and onscreen husband) Sterling K. Brown is leading another White House-centric murder mystery. Brown teamed up again with “This Is Us” creator Dan Fogelman for “Paradise,” about a Secret Service agent who is accused of killing the President.
Featuring Costume Design from Lyn Paolo
