True Lies is an American action television series created by Matt Nix, based on the 1994 film of the same name by James Cameron, itself based on the 1991 French film La Totale! by Claude Zidi, Simon Michaël, and Didier Kaminka. It premiered on March 1, 2023 and ended on May 17, 2023 on CBS. In May 2023, the series was canceled after one season.
Premise
The series revolves around a suburban housewife who discovers her computer consultant husband is a skilled international spy, which leads them to saving the world and their marriage.[1]
Harry Tasker has spent years away from home as a computer salesman for Telonyx Solutions, while in reality, he's been moonlighting as a top-tier government operative for a clandestine U.S. counter-terrorism unit, Omega Sector. When his wife, Helen Tasker suspects he's been cheating, Harry invites her to Paris, France, for a date to prove he isn't cheating on her until unexpected circumstances force him to reveal his spy life.
Now aware of her husband's double life, Helen is automatically recruited to Omega Sector and soon deployed on her first mission: finding a female cryptographer or codebreaker who can decode encrypted information about a planned bio-terrorist attack, and who turns out to be Harry's former fling.
On February 10, 2021, CBS announced a pilot order for the second attempt at a True Lies series adaptation, with Matt Nix writing the pilot and producing with Josh Levy via Flying Glass of Milk Productions. Mary Viola of Wonderland Sound and Vision executive produced, with Corey Marsh of Wonderland co-executive producing. McG was set to direct the pilot and executive produce via Wonderland.[22] In March 2021, CBS moved the pilot "off cycle" to give the series producers more time to film the pilot later in the year.[23]
By May 2022, the series was revived, with Anthony Hemingway replacing McG as the director of the pilot and subsequent episodes, before CBS picked up the series to air in the 2022–2023 broadcast season.[1]Steve Howey and Ginger Gonzaga were cast in the lead roles, while Erica Hernandez, Omar Miller, Mike O'Gorman, Annabella Didion, and Lucas Jaye round out the supporting roles.[1]
On May 8, 2023, CBS canceled the series after one season.[25]
Release
Promotional poster for the first season.
True Lies premiered on March 1, 2023 and ended on May 17, 2023 on CBS.[26][27] It was previously set to premiere on February 23, 2023.[28] It aired in Canada on CTV the same day as its US release.[29]
Overseas, True Lies was released on Disney+.[30][21]
Reception
Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 42% approval rating with an average rating of 4.3/10, based on 19 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Bland as gruel, True Lies might borrow the name of a cinematic blockbuster but retains none of the personality that would differentiate it from the crowded field of espionage romances."[31]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 49 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[32]
Tania Hussain of Collider gave the series a negative review, writing "CBS is no stranger to adapting previous material for success, but True Lies falls flat in carving out its own identity".[33] Tim Surette of TV Guide also gave a negative review, summarizing that "CBS's commitment to making True Lies such an easy-breezy, network-friendly series means that it will have to face some hard truths: The idea that we want everything adapted into a TV show is a lie."[34] Fred Topel of United Press International similarly gave a negative review, concluding that the series "skips over some of the best parts of the True Lies story. The creative decision to make Helen a spy right away deprives the viewer of the fun of Helen figuring it out and Harry desperately trying to cover up his missions."[35] Neal Justin of Star Tribune gave the series a lukewarm review, speculating that "those who crave their action without the blood will be tempted to give it a try. And they'll be back."[36]
.png){kind=small}
