Avenue 5

Avenue 5 is a science fiction comedy television series created by Armando Iannucci that premiered on HBO in the United States on January 19, 2020. It stars Hugh Laurie and Josh Gad in lead roles as captain and owner of a fictional interplanetary cruise ship Avenue 5.

The series was produced by HBO in the United States and Sky UK in the United Kingdom. In February 2020, the series was renewed for a second season.

Premise

Avenue 5 has been described as “set in the future, mostly in space.” On board the interplanetary cruise ship, the Avenue 5, a momentary loss of artificial gravity and accidental death of its Chief Engineer sends the titular vessel a few degrees off course. It’s 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.

Cast and characters

Main cast

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

Recurring cast

• Himesh Patel as Jordan Hatwal, a stand-up comedian who takes up an eight-week residency on Avenue 5.
• Jessica St. Clair as Mia, a passenger and Doug’s wife.
• Kyle Bornheimer as Doug, a passenger and Mia’s husband.
• Andy Buckley as Frank, a passenger and Karen’s husband.
• Matthew Beard as Alan Lewis, Rav’s assistant on Earth.
• Daisy May Cooper as Sarah (season 1), bridge crew.
• Adam Pålsson as Mads, bridge crew.
• Julie Dray as Nadia, bridge crew.
• Neil Casey as Cyrus, an engineer.

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	U.S viewers (millions)
1	“I Was Flying”	Armando Iannucci	Teleplay by : Armando Iannucci, Simon Blackwell, and Tony Roche Story by : Armando Iannucci	January 19, 2020	0.571
Avenue 5 is the luxurious passenger ship owned by eccentric billionaire Herman Judd, which is heading back to Earth. A malfunction on the ship causes it to go off course, and it will now take three years to get home. After the main engineer is killed, captain Ryan Clark is called on to fix the situation, but he was originally hired only to reassure passengers and not to actually captain the automated ship, a fact he initially hides. Meanwhile, passenger service employee Matt Spencer attempts to calm the passengers who have discovered that they will not get home for three years.
2	“And Then He’s Gonna Shoot Off…”	Natalie Bailey	Teleplay by : Georgia Pritchett and Will Smith Story by : Armando Iannucci, Georgia Pritchett, and Will Smith	January 26, 2020	0.500
Cyrus runs some numbers and may be able to cut the trip down to six months. On Earth, Judd meets with NASA. Joe’s coffin goes into orbit. Another gravity mishap interrupts a funeral for three passengers who died when the gravity was altered temporarily. The four coffins begin to orbit the ship.
3	“I’m a Hand Model”	Natalie Bailey	Teleplay by : Peter Fellows and Ian Martin Story by : Armando Iannucci, Peter Fellows, and Ian Martin	February 2, 2020	0.297
The crew struggles to adjust to their new reality and a new arrival time of 3.5 years. Meanwhile, Clark discovers that the crew and the bridge, much like his position as Captain, are not real; the crew are just actors and models, and the bridge is no more than a stage. Billie reveals to him the existence of two crews, one for the passengers and one to actually pilot the ship ‘backstage’, created due to Judd’s unrealistic ambitions for his ship to be crewed by the brightest and most attractive.
4	“Wait a Minute, Then Who Was That on the Ladder?”	Natalie Bailey	Teleplay by : Peter Fellows and Ian Martin Story by : Armando Iannucci, Peter Fellows, and Ian Martin	February 9, 2020	0.275
Realizing that he might have to keep up the charade of being a captain for longer than he thought, Clark begins to contemplate studying up on the spacecraft and interacting with the real engineers. He has Billie make introductions and while the bonding session with the crew seemingly goes well it distracts them from their real duties with disastrous consequences.
5	“He’s Only There to Stop His Skeleton from Falling Over”	Annie Griffin	Teleplay by : Peter Baynham Story by : Armando Iannucci and Peter Baynham	February 16, 2020	0.386
Thanks to Billie’s efforts the ship is saved but Clark is declared the hero much to Billie’s annoyance, although Clark’s perceived recklessness results in the breakdown of his trilateral marriage. Blame for the initial accident is placed on Frank who is distracted from the increasing anger towards him by his fellow passengers by suspicions that the captain is trying to seduce his wife. Meanwhile the rest of the passengers and crew gather to celebrate what should have been the voyage’s half-way point.
6	“Was It Your Ears?”	Peter Fellows	Teleplay by : Jon Brown Story by : Armando Iannucci and Jon Brown	February 23, 2020	0.371
A woman goes into labour on board the ship and her baby causes Judd to have an identity crisis. Meanwhile Billie and Clark try to track down the source of a mysterious beeping which they come to realize might be a sign that the ship is leaking oxygen. On Earth, Rav tries to use the goodwill incurred by Clark’s daring heroics in order to secure government funds for a rescue mission.
7	“Are You a Spider, Matt?”	Becky Martin	Teleplay by : Charlie Cooper and Daisy Cooper Story by : Armando Iannucci, Charlie Cooper and Daisy Cooper	March 1, 2020	0.400
Frank thinks he sees an image of Pope John Paul II in the debris orbiting the ship. Harrison, a trillionaire on board the ship, threatens to sue Judd into oblivion, compromising a potential rescue. Back on Earth, the public becomes aware that Rav’s negotiation for government rescue funds has potentially put lives on the line.
8	“This is Physically Hurting Me”	David Schneider	Teleplay by : Georgia Pritchett and Will Smith Story by : Armando Iannucci, Georgia Pritchett and Will Smith	March 8, 2020	0.384
An argument between Judd and Ryan leads to Ryan being de-captained. After Ryan accidentally reveals to the passengers that he isn’t American and is wearing a toupee they begin questioning whether their situation is real or whether they are part of a prank reality show. Seven people, including Sarah (bridge crew) and Harrison, shoot themselves out of the airlock, falsely believing that if they leave the ship though there they will end up back on Earth. Meanwhile Rav realizes that her rash decision to board a vessel bound for Avenue 5 is likely to have unhappy consequences.
9	“Eight Arms But No Hands”	William Stefan Smith	Teleplay by : Ian Martin, Peter Fellows, and Sean Gray Story by : Armando Iannucci, Sean Gray, Ian Martin, and Peter Fellow	March 15, 2020	0.415
Guilt-ridden due to his role in the deaths of the seven people who ejected themselves out of the airlock, Matt decides to go into hiding for the next three-and-a-half years, and changes the codes to access the airlocks. The crew go looking for him in order to enact a plan to shorten the journey time to six months by jettisoning unnecessary objects totalling the equivalent weight of 500 non-essential personnel. After being found at the vending machines, Matt reveals to the crew that the code is 0005, believing that it would have been easy for anyone thinking clearly to guess it but impossible for anyone panicking. However, due to a misunderstanding on Karen’s part, the excess weight is jettisoned out of the portside airlocks rather than those at the rear as intended, resulting in Avenue 5′s journey time being extended from three-and-a-half years to eight. And, after squabbling over the supply shuttle’s only other seat, Iris is accidentally sent back to Earth early, leaving Rav aboard.

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. On February 13, 2020, the series was renewed for a second season.

Casting

In August 2018, it was announced that Hugh Laurie and Suzy Nakamura had been cast in the pilot’s lead roles. On November 7, 2018, it was reported that Rebecca Front had joined the pilot’s cast in another leading role. In February 2019, Zach Woods, Josh Gad, Nikki Amuka-Bird and Lenora Crichlow were cast as series regulars. Himesh Patel was added in June.

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.

Release

The series premiered on January 19, 2020. In New Zealand, the series is distributed by Sky satellite television provider’s SOHO2 channel and Neon streaming service.

Reception

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has an approval rating of 67% based on 51 reviews, with an average rating of 6.34/10. The website’s critical consensus states, “If Avenue 5‘s 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 27 critics, indicating “generally favorable reviews”.

Ratings

Viewership and ratings per episode of Avenue 5

No.	Title	Air date	Rating (18–49)	Viewers (millions)	DVR (18–49)	DVR viewers (millions)	Total (18–49)	Total viewers (millions)
1	“I Was Flying”	January 19, 2020	0.2	0.571	N/A	0.296	N/A	0.867
2	“And Then He’s Gonna Shoot Off…”	January 26, 2020	0.1	0.500	0.1	0.385	0.2	0.885
3	“I’m a Hand Model”	February 2, 2020	0.1	0.297	0.1	0.358	0.2	0.655
4	“Wait a Minute, Then Who Was That on the Ladder?”	February 9, 2020	0.1	0.275	0.1	0.347	0.2	0.622
5	“He’s Only There to Stop His Skeleton from Falling Over”	February 16, 2020	0.1	0.386	0.1	0.292	0.2	0.678
6	“Was It Your Ears?”	February 23, 2020	0.1	0.371	0.1	0.302	0.2	0.673
7	“Are You a Spider, Matt?”	March 1, 2020	0.1	0.400	0.1	0.336	0.2	0.736
8	“This is Physically Hurting Me”	March 8, 2020	0.1	0.384	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
9	“Eight Arms But No Hands”	March 15, 2020	0.1	0.415	0.1	0.236	0.2	0.651