Ray Donovan
| Ray Donovan | |
|---|---|
.png) | |
| Genre |
Crime drama Family drama |
| Created by | Ann Biderman |
| Starring | |
| Composer(s) | Marcelo Zarvos |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 36 (list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producer(s) |
|
| Producer(s) | Allen Coulter |
| Running time | 45–60 minutes |
| Production company(s) |
|
| Distributor | CBS Television Distribution |
| Release | |
| Original network | Showtime |
| Original release | June 30, 2013 – present |
| External links | |
| Official website | |
Ray Donovan is an American television crime drama series created by Ann Biderman for Showtime. The twelve-episode first season premiered on June 30, 2013.[1][2][3] The pilot episode broke records of viewership, becoming the biggest premiere of all time on Showtime.[4] A third season premiered on July 12, 2015.[5] Showtime renewed the show for a fourth season.[6]
Plot
The show takes place in Los Angeles, California, where Irish-American Ray Donovan (Liev Schreiber), originally from South Boston, works for the powerful law firm Goldman & Drexler, representing the rich and famous. Donovan is a "Fixer": in criminal slang, a person who arranges bribes/payoffs/threats etc to enable a criminal to avoid punishment. Ray experiences his own problems when his father, Mickey Donovan (Jon Voight), is unexpectedly released from prison, and the FBI attempts to bring down Ray and his associates.
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 12 | June 30, 2013 | September 22, 2013 | |
| 2 | 12 | July 13, 2014 | September 28, 2014 | |
| 3 | 12 | July 12, 2015 | September 27, 2015 | |
| 4 | 12 | June 26, 2016[7] | TBA | |
Cast and characters
Main cast
- Liev Schreiber as Raymond "Ray" Donovan.
- Paula Malcomson as Abby Donovan, Ray's wife.
- Eddie Marsan as Terrence "Terry" Donovan, Ray's older brother. A former boxer, suffers from Parkinson's disease.
- Dash Mihok as Brendan "Bunchy" Donovan, Ray's younger brother. Identifies himself as an alcoholic and a sexual anorexic.
- Pooch Hall as Daryll Donovan, Ray's younger half-brother (via Mickey and Claudette). A professional boxer, trained by Terry, he also drives limos.
- Steven Bauer as Avi Rudin, Ray's right-hand man. Former IDF soldier and ex-Mossad agent.
- Katherine Moennig as Lena Barnum, Ray's investigative assistant.
- Kerris Dorsey as Bridget Donovan, Ray's daughter.
- Devon Bagby as Conor Donovan, Ray's son.
- Jon Voight as Mickey Donovan, Ray's father.
Recurring cast
- Elliott Gould as Ezra Goldman, Ray's mentor and boss (seasons 1-3)
- Peter Jacobson as Lee Drexler, Ezra's business partner
- Denise Crosby as Deb Goldman
- William Stanford Davis as Potato Pie
- Ambyr Childers as Ashley Rucker
- Josh Pais as Stu Feldman
- Sheryl Lee Ralph as Claudette
- Austin Nichols as Tommy Wheeler
- Brooke Smith as Frances Simpson
- Michael McGrady as Frank Barnes
- Craig Ricci Shaynak as Kenneth "Tiny" Benson, Sully's nephew (seasons 1–2)
- Octavius J. Johnson as Marvin Gaye Washington (seasons 1–2)
- Frank Whaley as Van Miller (season 1)
- Johnathon Schaech as Sean Walker (season 1)
- James Woods as Patrick "Sully" Sullivan (season 1)
- Rosanna Arquette as Linda (season 1)
- Hank Azaria as Ed Cochran (season 2-3)
- Sherilyn Fenn as Donna Cochran (season 2)
- Ann-Margret as June Wilson (season 2)
- Kip Pardue as FBI Agent Thomas Volcheck (season 2)
- Wendell Pierce as Ronald Keith (seasons 2-3)
- Crispin Alapag as Pablo Ramirez (season 2)
- Vinessa Shaw as Kate McPherson (season 2)
- Jeryl Prescott as Cherry (season 2)
- Omar Dorsey as Cookie Brown (season 2)
- Jamie Donnelly as Peggy Shaugnessy (season 2)
- Eion Bailey as Steve Knight (season 2)
- Brian Geraghty as Detective Jim Halloran (season 2)
- Steph DuVall as Shorty (season 2)
- Ian McShane as Andrew Finney (season 3)[8]
- Katie Holmes as Paige Finney (season 3)[9]
- Guy Burnet as Casey Finney (season 3)
- Jason Butler Harner as Varick Strauss (season 3)
- Leland Orser as Father Romero (season 3)
- Christy Williams as Michelle (season 3)
- Aaron Staton as Greg Donellen (season 3)
- Alyssa Diaz as Teresa (season 3)
- Fairuza Balk as Ginger (season 3)
- Richard Brake as Vlad (season 4)
- Ted Levine as Little Bill Primm (season 4)[10]
- Gabriel Mann as Jacob Waller (Season 4)[11]
Reception
Ray Donovan has met with positive reviews from critics. The first season holds a rating of 76% on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus reading: "Ray Donovan moves quickly between genres and tones, with Liev Schreiber and Jon Voight's performances making the whiplash worth it".[12] On Metacritic, the show has a score of 75 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "generally positive reviews".[13] Tim Goodman, writing for The Hollywood Reporter, said that "Showtime has another gem on their hands" and the casting of Liev Schreiber and Jon Voight was "gold".[14]
Awards and nominations
In June 2013, the series was honored, along with five others, with the Critics' Choice Television Award for Most Exciting New Series.[15]
In December 2013, the series earned two Golden Globe Award nominations, both for acting. Liev Schreiber was nominated for Best Actor in a Television Series — Drama and Jon Voight won for Best Supporting Actor – Series, Miniseries, or Television Film. In July 2014, Voight was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series at the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards.
Home media release
The first season was released on DVD and Blu-ray on June 10, 2014.[16] The second season was released on both media on May 26, 2015. The third season was released on both media on December 29, 2015.
References
- ↑ "Showtime(R) 2013 Original Series Premiere Slate". The Futon Critic. Retrieved January 12, 2013.
- ↑ Sara Bibel (June 11, 2012). "Showtime Orders Twelve Episodes of Two New Dramas, 'Ray Donovan' and 'Masters of Sex'". Tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com. Retrieved July 16, 2012.
- ↑ Littleton, Cynthia (June 11, 2012). "Showtime gives series orders to 'Donovan,' 'Sex'". Variety. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
- ↑ O'Connell, Michael. "TV Ratings: 'Ray Donovan' Premiere Tops 'Homeland' With Showtime Record". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 1, 2013.
- ↑ Hibberd, James (August 20, 2014). "'Masters of Sex,' 'Ray Donovan' renewed for season 3". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
- ↑ Abrams, Natalie (August 11, 2015). "'Showtime renews Masters of Sex, Ray Donovan'". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 11, 2015.
- ↑ "Ray Donovan - Series Official Site". Showtime. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
- ↑ "Ian McShane Joins Showtime’s ‘Ray Donovan’". Deadline Hollywood. January 21, 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
- ↑ Wagmeister, Elizabeth (January 27, 2015). "Katie Holmes Joins ‘Ray Donovan’ Season 3". Variety. Retrieved March 25, 2015.
- ↑ http://deadline.com/2016/02/ted-levine-ismael-cruz-cordova-cast-ray-donovan-1201699922/
- ↑ http://variety.com/2016/tv/news/ray-donovan-gabriel-mann-casting-season-4-1201701786/
- ↑ "Ray Donovan: Season 1". rottentomatoes.com.
- ↑ "Ray Donovan". Metacritic.
- ↑ Tim Goodman. "Ray Donovan: TV Review". The Hollywood Reporter.
- ↑ The BTJA Announces Icon Award Recipient and Most Exciting New Series Honorees (June 10, 2013). criticschoice.com. Retrieved June 29, 2013.
- ↑ Lambert, David (March 10, 2014). "Ray Donovan - 'The 1st Season' of the Showtime Series on DVD and Blu-ray". TVShowsOnDVD.com. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
External links
- Official website
- Ray Donovan at the Internet Movie Database
- Ray Donovan at TV.com
- Ray Donovan at Metacritic
- Ray Donovan at Rotten Tomatoes