Lessons in Chemistry (miniseries)

Lessons in Chemistry is an American period drama miniseries created by Lee Eisenberg, based on the novel of the same name by Bonnie Garmus. It stars Brie Larson as chemist Elizabeth Zott who begins hosting her own feminist cooking show in 1950s America.
The series began streaming on Apple TV on October 13, 2023 and ended November 22, 2023. It received positive reviews from critics, and received nominations for two Golden Globe Awards, Best Limited or Anthology Series and Best Actress – Miniseries for Larson. In 2024 Sarah Adina Smith won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television and Limited Series for directing the second episode "Her and Him".

Premise

After being fired from her job as a lab tech, chemist Elizabeth Zott uses her new job hosting a 1950s television cooking show titled Supper at Six to educate housewives on scientific topics.

Cast

Main

Brie Larson as Elizabeth Zott
Lewis Pullman as Calvin Evans
Aja Naomi King as Harriet Sloane
Stephanie Koenig as Fran Frask
Patrick Walker as Reverend Curtis Wakely

Recurring

Derek Cecil as Dr. Robert Donatti
Thomas Mann as Boryweitz
Andy Daly as Dr. Richard Price
Alice Halsey as Madeline Zott
Amentii Sledge as Linda Sloane
Yasir Hashim Lafond as James "Junior" Sloane
Joshua Hoover as Anthony Powers
Kevin Sussman as Walter Pine
Marc Evan Jackson as Dr. Leland Mason
Paul James as Charlie Sloane
Rainn Wilson as Phil Lebensmal

Guest

Adam Bartley as Scientist
Tate Ellington as Dr. Bates
B. J. Novak as Six-Thirty
Beau Bridges as Harry Wilson
Jake Short as Ralph Bailey
Ashley Monique Clark as Martha Wakely
Rosemarie DeWitt as Avery Parker
Shoo Shoo Parsells as Amanda Pine

Production

It was announced in January 2021 that Apple TV+ had issued a straight-to-series order for the show, with Brie Larson set to star and executive produce. The series began production by August 2022, with Lewis Pullman, Aja Naomi King, Stephanie Koenig, Patrick Walker, Thomas Mann, Kevin Sussman and Beau Bridges added to the cast.

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 86% approval rating with an average rating of 7.4/10, based on 69 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Touching on several hot button issues while benefiting immensely from a perfect pinch of Brie Larson, Lessons in Chemistry ambitious ingredients add up to satisfying entertainment." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 68 out of 100 based on 30 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.