Avenue 5

Avenue 5 is a science fiction comedy television series created by Armando Iannucci consisting of two seasons. It starred Hugh Laurie and Josh Gad in lead roles as captain and owner of a fictional interplanetary cruise ship Avenue 5. HBO produced the series in the United States and Sky UK in the United Kingdom. The first season premiered on HBO in the United States on January 19, 2020. The second season was released on October 10, 2022. In February 2023, the series was cancelled.

Premise

On board the interplanetary cruise ship, the Avenue 5, a momentary loss of artificial gravity and accidental death of its chief engineer sends the vessel 0.21 degrees off course. It is estimated it will take the ship three years to return to Earth, and with only enough supplies to sustain her many passengers for the intended eight-week long cruise, the crew of the Avenue 5 must struggle to maintain order and return the craft safely.
Armando Iannucci described the train of thought behind Avenue 5 during an interview in Vanity Fair:

Cast and characters

Main

Hugh Laurie as Ryan Clark, the captain of the Avenue 5
Josh Gad as Herman Judd, billionaire owner of the Avenue 5
Zach Woods as Matt Spencer, Head of Customer Relations for the Avenue 5
Rebecca Front as Karen Kelly, a passenger aboard the Avenue 5
Suzy Nakamura as Iris Kimura, an associate owner of the Avenue 5
Lenora Crichlow as Billie McEvoy, second engineer on the Avenue 5
Nikki Amuka-Bird as Rav Mulcair, head of mission control for the Avenue 5 back on Earth, later is onboard the Avenue 5
Ethan Phillips as Spike Martin, a former astronaut and first Canadian on Mars, who is now a womanizing alcoholic on the ''Avenue 5''
Recurring

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2020)

Season 2 (2022)

Production

Development

On September 25, 2017, it was announced that HBO had given a pilot order to a new comedy series created by Armando Iannucci, who was also set to serve as writer and executive producer. In addition to the pilot order, the network also reportedly ordered backup scripts. In April 2019, a series pickup was commissioned by HBO for nine episodes. On February 13, 2020, the series was renewed for a second season, which would also consist of nine episodes. In October 2022, Iannucci told Entertainment Weekly that there are plans for a third season, saying that HBO was "very keen". On February 10, 2023, HBO canceled the series after two seasons.

Casting

In August 2018, it was announced that Hugh Laurie and Suzy Nakamura had been cast in the pilot's lead roles as Captain Ryan Clark and Iris Kimura. On November 7, 2018, it was reported that Rebecca Front had joined the pilot's cast in another leading role as Karen Kelly. In February 2019, Zach Woods, Josh Gad, Nikki Amuka-Bird and Lenora Crichlow were cast as series regulars Matt Spencer, Herman Judd, Rav Mulclair, and Billie McEvoy. Himesh Patel was added in June as comedian on the ship Jordan Hatwal. The main cast members were returned for the second season by the time of its announcement.

Writing

By July 2021, the first six episodes of the second season were plotted out, leaving only the final three to be outlined "next month". Iannucci added: "It's basically about people in isolation. So, we're just waiting to see what the mood might be as to how we pitch. Is it going to be bleak despair, or is it going to be very, very silly? Or maybe silly despair? I don't know. We tried to make season one as silly as possible, but it seems to have strangely become a kind of documentary about present-day conditions."

Filming

Principal photography for the pilot took place in 2018 in London, England. While filming was taking place at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden in July 2019, a fire damaged one of the show's sets. Production for the second season was halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic; filming ultimately began in August 2021 and ended in November.

Release

The series premiered on January 19, 2020, on HBO. In New Zealand, the series is distributed by Sky satellite television provider's SOHO2 channel and Neon streaming service. The second season premiered on October 10, 2022, on HBO.

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has an approval rating of 67% based on 52 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3/10. The website's critical consensus states: "If Avenue 5 maiden voyage isn't as smooth as its creative clout implies, it's still a hilarious step in a completely new—while still enjoyably caustic—direction for creator Armando Iannucci." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 64 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season has an approval rating of 89% based on 9 reviews, with an average rating of 7.4/10.