Candy (miniseries) explained

Composer:Ariel Marx
Country:United States
Language:English
Num Episodes:5
Producer:Mitch Engel
Cinematography:Simon Dennis
Runtime:46–55 minutes
Network:Hulu

Candy (released internationally as Candy: A Death in Texas) is an American biopic crime drama miniseries created by Nick Antosca and Robin Veith.[1] The series stars Jessica Biel as Candy Montgomery, who was accused of the axe murder of her neighbor, Betty Gore (played by Melanie Lynskey) in 1980, in Texas. It premiered on May 9, 2022, on Hulu, with a new episode for five nights until May 13.[2]

Premise

In Wylie, Texas, 1980s suburban housewife Candy Montgomery is accused of murdering her neighbor Betty Gore, after having an affair with Gore's husband Allan.

Cast

Main

Recurring

Production

Development

In July 2020, it was announced UCP was developing a series revolving around Candy Montgomery, with Robin Veith writing the pilot for the series, and Nick Antosca set to executive produce under his Eat the Cat banner, with no network attached.[3] In December 2020, it was announced Hulu had landed the series.[4] In October 2021, it was announced Elisabeth Moss, who was originally set to star as Candy, had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts and would be replaced by Jessica Biel.[5]

Filming

Principal photography began in December 2021[6] and continued through February 2022,[7] and took place in Austell, Georgia.[8]

Release

Candy premiered on the streaming service Hulu in the United States on May 9, 2022, with new episodes airing for five subsequent nights until May 13.[2] Hulu majority-owner Disney also confirmed that Candy would be coming to its Disney+ Hotstar service in India on July 15.[9]

Candy was released on Disney+ in Canada, Australia and New Zealand on July 27 and for Singapore on August 10 and in the UK and Ireland on October 12 as a Star Original.[10] [11] In Latin America, the series debuted on July 27, 2022, on Star+.[12] [13]

Internationally, the show's main title is Candy: A Death In Texas despite the thumbnail on Disney+ simply listing it as Candy.

Reception

Audience viewership

According to Whip Media's viewership tracking app TV Time, Candy was the fifth most anticipated new television series of May 2022.[14] According to the streaming aggregator JustWatch, Candy was the most streamed television series across all platforms in the U.S., during the week of May 9, 2022 to May 15, 2022.[15] According to the streaming aggregator Reelgood, Candy was the eighth most streamed television series across all platforms, during the week of May 14, 2022,[16] and the third during the week of May 21, 2022.[17] Media play news

Critical response

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the limited series holds a 72% approval rating based on 46 critic reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Candys sour aftertaste is counterbalanced by uniformly terrific performances, but it only takes a couple licks before this true crime drama loses its flavor."[18] On Metacritic, the series has a score of 61 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[19]

Josh Bell of CBR.com stated that the series manages to provide a late 1970s aesthetic through its decor and costumes, complimented how the miniseries succeeds to depict the struggles of the main characters through its dark tone and praised Biel's performance as Candy Montgomery, while complimenting the rest of the supporting actors.[20] Brian Lowry of CNN found that Candy manages to be more effective than most true crime drama series, stating that Biel and Lynskey's performances are convincing and well-rendered, while complimenting how the miniseries manages to provide solid additional scripted elements compared to other contemporary series of the same genre.[21]

Joel Keller of Decider praised the performances of the cast, especially Biel and Lynskey's, and found interesting the choice to start the miniseries with Betty Gore's death, followed by the reconstitution of what has occurred between the characters in the later episodes.[22] Matt Fowler of IGN rated the miniseries seven out of ten and complimented the performances of the cast members, while praising how the show manages to keep an atmosphere of tension without providing too much information during its first episodes.[23]

Maggie Boccella of Collider gave the miniseries a C+ rating and claimed that the show manages to be a satisfactory true crime drama, while praising the performances of the actors, but criticized the lack of development of the characters.[24]

Accolades

AwardYearCategoryRecipient(s)Result
Critics' Choice Television Awards2023Best Supporting Actress in a Movie/MiniseriesMelanie Lynskey[25]
Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards2022Best Actress in a Streaming Limited or Anthology Series or MovieJessica Biel[26]
Best Supporting Actress in a Streaming Limited or Anthology Series or MovieMelanie Lynskey
Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards2022Outstanding Main Title DesignRonnie Koff, Peter Frankfurt, Lexi Gunvaldson,
Rob Slychuk, Nader Husseini, and Elizabeth Steinberg
[27]
Satellite Awards2023Best Actress – Miniseries or Television FilmJessica Biel[28]
Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television FilmMelanie Lynskey

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Candy. Writers Guild of America West. January 31, 2022. April 18, 2022.
  2. Web site: Grobar . Matt . March 17, 2022 . 'Candy' Teaser, First-Look Photos: Jessica Biel Stars As Housewife Turned Murderess Candy Montgomery In Hulu Limited Series From 'The Act' EPs . April 7, 2022 . Deadline Hollywood.
  3. Web site: Elisabeth Moss to Play Killer Candy Montgomery in Limited Series for UCP. Variety. Joe. Otterson. July 7, 2020. April 7, 2022.
  4. Web site: Hulu Lands Elisabeth Moss True Crime Drama Series 'Candy' From UCP. Deadline Hollywood. Peter. White. December 2, 2020. April 7, 2022.
  5. Web site: Porter . Rick . October 5, 2021 . Jessica Biel Replaces Elisabeth Moss in Hulu True-Crime Drama 'Candy' . May 19, 2022 . The Hollywood Reporter . en-US.
  6. Web site: Ho . Rodney . January 15, 2022 . What's filming in Georgia in January 2022? . June 17, 2022 . Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
  7. Web site: Crowley . James . February 16, 2022 . Jessica Biel Looks Unrecognizable As Killer Candy Montgomery While Filming New Miniseries . April 7, 2022 . Hollywood Life.
  8. Web site: Here's where two shows about D-FW ax killer Candy Montgomery are filming. Singer. Dan. The Dallas Morning News. February 24, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220225004712/https://www.dallasnews.com/arts-entertainment/tv/2022/02/24/heres-where-two-shows-about-d-fw-ax-killer-candy-montgomery-are-filming/. February 25, 2022. April 18, 2022.
  9. Web site: Escaype Live, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Home Shanti, and More on Hotstar in May . May 3, 2022 .
  10. Web site: Watch Candy | Full episodes | Disney+ .
  11. Web site: July 7, 2022 . 'Candy' Disney+ Release Date Announced (Australia/New Zealand) . July 7, 2022 . Disney Plus Informer . en-US.
  12. Star+ Brasil . StarPlusBR . 1552317676504158209 . July 27, 2022 . Jessica Biel faz tudo muito bem, até o que não deve. #Candy, já disponível, só no #StarPlusBR https://t.co/zfD8kV4ZMN . Jessica Biel does everything very well, even what she shouldn't. #Candy, now available, only on #StarPlusBR . pt . March 25, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220727212658/https://twitter.com/StarPlusBR/status/1552317676504158209 . July 27, 2022 . live.
  13. Star+ Latinoamérica . StarPlusLA . 1552315843882663939 . July 27, 2022 . Jessica Biel hace todo bien, hasta matar gente. #Candy disponible ahora, solo en #StarPlusLA. https://t.co/NFPbMmDGwU . Jessica Biel does everything right, even killing people. #Candy available now, only at #StarPlusLA. . es . March 25, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220728190312/https://twitter.com/StarPlusLA/status/1552315843882663939 . July 28, 2022 . live.
  14. Web site: Prange . Stephanie . April 28, 2022 . Disney+'s 'Obi-Wan Kenobi' Top New Show, Netflix's 'Stranger Things' Top Returning Show Anticipated in May . October 29, 2022 . Media Play News . en-US.
  15. Web site: Gruenwedel . Erik . May 17, 2022 . JustWatch: 'The Lost City,' 'Candy' Top Weekly Streamed Content . October 31, 2022 . Media Play News . en-US.
  16. Web site: Edwards . Belen . May 14, 2022 . The top 10 most streamed TV shows of the week feature a lot of true crime . October 5, 2022 . Mashable . en.
  17. Web site: Edwards . Belen . May 21, 2022 . 10 most streamed TV shows of the week: True crime and sci-fi reign supreme . October 5, 2022 . Mashable . en.
  18. candy. Candy. tv. 1. April 29, 2023.
  19. candy. Candy. tv. 1. April 29, 2023.
  20. Web site: Josh. Bell. May 6, 2022. REVIEW: Hulu's Candy Delivers a Familiar But Effective True-Crime Drama . May 9, 2022 . . en-US.
  21. Web site: Brian. Lowry. 'Candy' turns infidelity and death into an old-fashioned true crime treat . May 9, 2022. May 9, 2022 . CNN.
  22. Web site: Joel. Keller. Stream It Or Skip It: 'Candy' On Hulu, Where Jessica Biel And Melanie Lynskey Star In A Dramatization Of The Candy Montgomery Case . Decider. May 9, 2022. May 9, 2022 . en-US.
  23. Web site: Fowler . Matt . May 9, 2022 . Hulu's Candy Premiere Review - "Friday the 13th" . May 9, 2022 . . en.
  24. Web site: Maggie. Boccella. May 4, 2022 . 'Candy': Hulu's True Crime Drama Is Bittersweet at Best Review . May 9, 2022 . . en-US.
  25. Web site: Nordyke . Kimberly . January 15, 2023 . Critics Choice Awards: Full List of Winners . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230116052049/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/critics-choice-awards-winners-list-full-2023-1235300137/ . January 16, 2023 . January 16, 2023 . The Hollywood Reporter.
  26. Nordyke . Kimberly . August 14, 2022 . HCA TV Awards: 'Severance,' 'Ted Lasso,' 'Dopesick' Win Top Streaming Awards on Night 2 . live . . https://web.archive.org/web/20220815063017/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/hca-tv-awards-severance-ted-lasso-dopesick-winners-night-2-1235198782/ . August 15, 2022 . August 15, 2022.
  27. September 4, 2022 . 2022 Creative Arts Emmys: See full winners list . live . . https://web.archive.org/web/20220905072515/https://ew.com/awards/emmys/2022-creative-arts-emmys-winners-list/ . September 5, 2022 . January 11, 2023.
  28. Web site: December 1, 2021 . 2021 nominees . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20211207044744/https://www.pressacademy.com/2021-nominees/ . December 7, 2021 . December 1, 2021 . International Press Academy.