Ghosts (American TV series)

Ghosts is an American television sitcom. It was adapted for CBS by Joe Port and Joe Wiseman from the British series of the same name. Port & Wiseman serve as showrunners. The American series premiered on October 7, 2021. In October 2021, the series was picked up for a full season. In January 2022, the series was renewed for a second season; which premiered on September 29, 2022. In January 2023, the series was renewed for a third season; which began filming in Montreal on December 2, 2023. The third season premiered on February 15, 2024. In March 2024, the series was renewed for a fourth season.

Premise

Married New Yorkers Samantha and Jay Arondekar believe that their dreams have come true when they inherit a beautiful country house from Sophie Woodstone, Sam's great aunt, only to find that it is falling apart and inhabited by ghosts from different eras of American history who died on the property and are now bound to the area, appearing as they did at the times of their deaths, until they can reach the afterlife. Jay cannot see or hear the ghosts, but Sam can after a near-death experience.

Cast

Main

Living

• Rose McIver as Samantha "Sam" Arondekar, a freelance journalist who, after an accident that leaves her clinically dead for three minutes, revives with the ability to see, hear, and interact with ghosts. She is based on Alison Cooper from the original British series.
• Utkarsh Ambudkar as Jay Arondekar, Samantha's husband and a chef with many typically "nerdy" interests such as comic books, sci-fi films, video games, and Dungeons & Dragons. He often attempts to communicate with the ghosts despite being unable to see or hear them. He is loosely based on Mike Cooper from the original British series.

Ghosts

• Devan Chandler Long as Thorfinn "Thor", an aggressive, often melodramatic Viking from Norway and the oldest of the ghosts, who set out to explore North America over 1,000 years ago but was abandoned by his shipmates and died from a lightning strike. He has the ability to manipulate electricity and enjoys watching TV as well as regaling his friends with stories of combat, especially against Danes, and his favorite foods, particularly cod. He has a son named Bjorn, now a ghost on an adjacent property, who married a Danish woman. His previous ghost girlfriends include Luella and "Flat Maria", both of whom have since moved on to the afterlife. He is loosely based on Robin the caveman in the original British series.
• Román Zaragoza as Sasappis "Sass", a cynical Lenape man, who often serves as the voice of reason for the other ghosts. He was fatally shot under unknown circumstances and can influence living people's thoughts by interacting with them as characters in their dreams, making him the only ghost who can directly speak to Jay. He enjoys storytelling, stirring up drama, watching TV, and smelling all sorts of food, especially pizza, prepared by the living.
• Brandon Scott Jones as Captain Isaac Higgintoot, an initially closeted gay Continental Army officer who died of dysentery two weeks after the siege of Fort Ticonderoga and has been largely forgotten by history, making him immensely jealous of the more famous Alexander Hamilton. The living can smell a foul odor if he passes through them. At the end of the first season, he begins a relationship with Nigel Chessum, a British officer haunting a shed on the property, whom he accidentally killed with an invention that would become the sniper rifle. They become engaged at the end of the second season. He is based mainly on the Captain in the original British series, while his ghost power is similar to that of Mary the witch trial victim.
• Rebecca Wisocky as Henrietta "Hetty" Woodstone, the uptight lady of the manor, Sam's great-great-great-great-aunt, and wife of the original owner of the Woodstone country estate built during the New York Gilded Age. She takes pride in being wealthy, looks down her nose on the working class and anyone Irish, and experimented with now-illicit drugs throughout her life, including cocaine and morphine. Her husband cheated on her in life with many different women, while her son Thomas was responsible for Alberta's murder. She strangled herself to death in 1895 using an early telephone cord to avoid being arrested for her husband's crimes and allow Thomas to receive his inheritance from her in the process. She is based on Lady Fanny Button in the original British series.
  • Alice Manning as Young Hetty, who could see ghosts as a small child.
• Danielle Pinnock as Alberta Haynes, a flamboyant Prohibition-era Lounge singer who was murdered by drinking strychnine-laced moonshine; solving her murder is a key plot arc of the second season. Her humming can be heard by the living. She can also be heard by Alexa devices.
• Sheila Carrasco as Susan "Flower" Montero, a cheerful and sweet but naive and forgetful hippie who lived in both a commune and a cult in the 1960s. She was mauled to death by a bear she tried to hug while under the influence of drugs. She can put a living person into a hallucinogenic high if she passes through them, and likes being in polyamorous relationships. She shares a closeness and gentle flirtation with Thorfinn, and they start dating later in the second season. She goes missing in the third season, causing her friends to believe she has moved on to the afterlife, but she has actually fallen down a well, leading Hetty to rescue her with the telephone cord she used to strangle herself.
• Richie Moriarty as Peter "Pete" Martino, a friendly and polite but socially awkward travel agent and Pinecone Trooper leader of Italian descent who died in 1985 when one of his scouts accidentally shot him through the neck with an arrow. He has an unrequited romantic interest in Alberta, and Jay considers him one of his best friends despite being unable to perceive his presence due to many shared interests between them. Among his varied interests are improv, basketball, Dungeons & Dragons, and Star Wars films. He is the only ghost in the main group who can leave the Woodstone property and go anywhere he wants. He is based on Pat Butcher in the original British series.
• Asher Grodman as Trevor Lefkowitz, the most recently deceased of the ghosts, a wealthy, womanizing, hard-partying stockbroker and Wharton School alumnus of Jewish ancestry who died in 2000 from a heart attack, caused by an accidental drug overdose, while not wearing pants. Though he claims he lost his pants because he died during a sexual encounter, he simply lent his pants to a friend as a good deed. He can physically interact with the corporeal world to a limited degree, usually with only one index finger, if he concentrates hard enough. He is loosely based on Julian Fawcett MP in the original British series.
  • Sam Ashe Arnold as Young Trevor.

Recurring

Ghosts

• Hudson Thames (Season 1) and Alex Boniello (Seasons 2-present) as the head of Crash, a smooth-talking 1950s-era greaser ghost who was decapitated. He is loosely based on Sir Humphrey Bone in the British version; however, unlike Humphrey, whose head is always present in each appearance, Crash's head goes missing in the pilot episode when Thorfinn accidentally knocks it off his neck. Only his body (played by Matt Keyes) appears until his head is recovered in "Ghost Father of the Bride."
• The cholera victim ghosts (also called basement ghosts): an indeterminate number of ghosts who died during a 19th-century cholera outbreak. Although they can go upstairs if they wish, their sickly appearances disturb the upstairs ghosts, so they spend all their time in the basement and are experts on the house's heating system. They are based on the plague ghosts in the British version.
  • Betsy Sodaro as Cholera Victim Nancy, who becomes Pete's fake girlfriend and lives upstairs briefly, though she continues being a nuisance to him.
  • Stuart Fink as Cholera Victim Stuart
  • Arthur Holden as Cholera Victim Creepy Dirk. When the ghosts decide to elect a representative to petition Sam rather than make requests individually, Creepy Dirk wins after Isaac's attempt to garner their support for his candidacy. He briefly holds the position until Sam rejects the arrangement.
  • Cody Crain as Cholera Victim Cody
  • Nigel Downer as Cholera Victim Nigel
  • Cat Lemieux as Cholera Victim Catherine
  • Tyler Alvarez as Cholera Victim Ralph, a teen who starts a relationship with Stephanie the prom ghost, only to move on to the afterlife.
• The British Revolutionary ghosts: three ghosts who died in the Revolutionary War and occupy the shed on the property that used to be a barracks, as was agreed upon with Isaac after the war ended. They keep mostly to themselves and come up to the main house to redraw the borderlines every few years.
  • John Hartman as Nigel Chessum, the leader of the trio, whom Isaac accidentally shot. They have had secret romantic feelings for one another since they were alive, and they begin a relationship at the end of the first season.
  • Chad Andrews (Season 1) and Steven Yaffee (Seasons 3-present) as Baxter, Nigel's subordinate who plays a fife.
  • Christian Daoust as Jenkins, Nigel's subordinate who possesses a musket. He and Nigel had a physical relationship before Nigel and Isaac started dating, and they "liaison" once more when Isaac and Nigel go "on a respite".
• Odessa A'zion as Stephanie, a senior high school student who was murdered on her prom night by a chainsaw killer in 1987. She sleeps in the attic for months at a time, as extended sleep periods are common for ghosts who die in their teen years, and wakes up around the day of her prom night each year.
• Crystle Lightning as Shiki, a Lenape woman on whom Sasappis had a crush in life. As a ghost, she is bound to the land occupied by the publishing office of the Ulster County Review magazine, so Sam and Jay help her establish a long-distance relationship with Sass.
• Lindsey Broad as Judy, Henry Farnsby's deceased mother, who now haunts their home.
• Christian Jadah as Bjorn, Thorfinn's son, who married a Danish woman and had three children, travelled to find his father, and now haunts the Farnsbys' property, having died at about the same age as Thor. Sam helps him reconnect with his father by having them shout to each other through the windows.
  • Louis Labonville as Young Bjorn.
• Nichole Sakura as Jessica (season 2), a permanently drunk ghost who died in a car crash while driving under the influence of alcohol and is now bound to a small perimeter around her former car, enabling her to travel more freely than other ghosts can. She has a brief relationship with Sass when Freddy, who bought Jessica's car, begins working as an assistant at the manor.
• Caroline Aaron as Carol (guest Seasons 1-2, recurring Season 3), Pete's widow, who cheated on him with his best friend Jerry when he was alive. She becomes a new ghost on the Woodstone property in the third season after fatally choking on a doughnut hole.
  • Tara Spencer-Nairn as Young Carol

Living

• Tristan D. Lalla as Mark, a construction worker involved in renovating Woodstone Manor for Sam and Jay.
• Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll as Todd Pearlman, an obsessive fan of Alberta's who operates a "museum" dedicated to her out of his mother's garage.
• Punam Patel as Bela, Jay's sister who was lured on social media by Trevor. Sam tells her the truth about her talking to ghosts, and while Bela is at first skeptical, Sam is able to convince her with the help of the ghosts. In the second season, she begins dating her coworker Eric.
• Mark Linn-Baker and Kathryn Greenwood as Henry and Margaret Farnsby, Sam and Jay's swinger neighbors and owners of a rival B&B, who promise to support their permit applications for their renovations. Their house is also haunted by a collection of ghosts from across history, including Henry's mother. They are based on Barclay Beg-Chetwynde and his wife Bunny in the British version.
• Punkie Johnson and Carolyn Taylor as June and Ally, Sam and Jay's neighbors who run an organic farm called "Cover Crop Farms".
• Mike Lane as Freddy (Season 2), a deliveryman hired as an assistant at the Arondekars' B&B.

Guests

• Rachael Harris as Sheryl, Sam's mother, who she sees as a ghost at the restaurant where she died. After she and Sam make peace with each other, she moves on to the afterlife. Her belches, which smell of shrimp, can be smelled by the living.
• Matt Walsh as Elias Woodstone, Hetty's husband, who was trapped in a ghost proof vault. He has the power to make people sexually aroused when he walks through them. After he rants about becoming a permanent nuisance and refusing to change himself, he becomes bound to Hell.
• Gregory Zaragoza as Naxasi, Sass's father, who tried to convince him not to be a storyteller.
• Mercedes Morris as Clara Brown, a lounge singer and bootlegger whose illegal activities Alberta reported so she could steal a gig from her.
• Drew Tarver as Micah, a charismatic cult leader who attempts to manipulate Jay into joining his group so they can move into the mansion.
• Hannah Rose May as Molly, an Irish maid with whom Elias had an affair when they were alive. She is brought back from the afterlife briefly through a seance.
• Dallas Goldtooth as Bob, a Lenape man from the Hudson Valley Lenape Culture Center. He corrects the information Sass has given the group about the ancient tree on their land and teaches them about land acknowledgements, and Sass admires his work.
• Kelly Craig as Olga, Thorfinn's wife and Bjorn's mother.
• Mathew Baynton as an actor starring in a reconstruction of Pete's death.
• Rose Abdoo as Paula, the producer of "Dumb Deaths".
• Dana Gourrier as Jennifer, a woman who was one of Pete's scout troops that witnessed his death.
• Kaliko Kauahi as a liquor license inspector.
• Neil Crone as Benjamin Franklin, an American Founding Father and Freemason, with whom Isaac tried to build a good reputation so he could join the society.
• Andrew Leeds as Eric, Bela's friend, whom she starts dating in the second season.
• Hillary Anne Matthews as Beatrice, Isaac's wife, who knew about his sexuality but cared deeply for him regardless.
• Tara Reid as herself attending Trevor's memorial at Woodstone Manor.
• Chris Eckert as George, a Puritan ghost in the Farnsby estate who is now open about his homosexuality due to failing to reach the afterlife.
• Ashley D. Kelley as Alicia, a lawyer and a descendant of Alberta, who is inspired by her ancestor's work to pursue singing.
• David Baby as Jerry, Carol's current husband and Pete's former best friend.
• Asia Martin as Theresa, Alberta's sister.
• Brooks Brantly as Earl, Alberta's bootlegger boyfriend.
• Daniel Rindress-Kay as Thomas Woodstone, Hetty's son and Earl's secret boyfriend, who planted a poisoned whiskey bottle for Alberta to drink when Earl left him for her.
• Jeremy Luke as Al Capone, a famous Chicago crime boss, who almost committed suicide with the poisoned whiskey Alberta ultimately drank.
• Jessie Ennis as a woman claiming to be Sam's cousin and David Woodstone's daughter.
• Brian Cook as David Woodstone, Sam's uncle and Trevor's former coworker, who dumped Trevor's body into a lake before dying of an aneurysm in the depressing strip club that he now haunts with one other ghost who died from eating contaminated sushi.
• Holly Gauthier-Frankel as Laura, Pete's daughter. She has a son named after her father.
  • Emily Mitchell as Young Laura.
• Douglas Sills as Samuel, Hetty's father, who discouraged her from marrying an artist due to his painting her with her ankle exposed.
• Jon Glaser as Jeremy Lefkowitz, Trevor's brother, who refused to take over their father's business.
  • David Kohlsmith as Young Jeremy.
• Lamorne Morris as Saul, a poltergeist and former Negro league baseball player who visits the manor using a guest as his host and starts a brief relationship with Alberta. As a non-traditional ghost, he can travel anywhere by binding himself to different human hosts in near range if he concentrates hard enough. He speculates that his power is a result of his tendency to become overly attached to people in life.
• Geoffrey Owens as Gene, a new guest at Woodstone that Saul is tethered to.

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2021–22)

Season 2 (2022–23)

Season 3 (2024)

Production

Development

On November 29, 2019, CBS announced that they were developing an adaptation of the BBC One series Ghosts. The original British series upon which the series is based was created by Mathew Baynton, Simon Farnaby, Martha Howe-Douglas, Jim Howick, Laurence Rickard, and Ben Willbond for BBC. On February 4, 2020, it was announced that the pilot had been picked up by CBS Studios and was co-produced with BBC Studios and Lionsgate Television. On March 31, 2021, it was announced that the adaptation has been picked up for a full series. In July 2021, it was announced that the series would premiere as a Thursday-night entry on October 7, 2021. On September 23, 2021, CBS changed the premiere to back-to-back episodes. On October 21, 2021, CBS picked up the series for a full season. On December 17, 2021, it was reported that production has been temporarily halted due to a positive case of COVID-19 on the set of the series. On January 24, 2022, CBS renewed the series for a second season which premiered on September 29, 2022. On November 8, 2022, it was announced that the BBC would be airing Ghosts in the United Kingdom under the name of 'Ghosts US' on BBC Three & BBC iPlayer on November 20, 2022. On January 12, 2023, CBS renewed the series for a third season, which premiered on February 15, 2024. On March 12, 2024, the series was renewed for a fourth season.

Casting

On March 4, 2020, Rose McIver was cast in a leading role for the pilot. On July 1, 2020, Utkarsh Ambudkar was cast in a main role for the pilot. On December 9, 2020, Brandon Scott Jones, Richie Moriarty, Asher Grodman, Rebecca Wisocky, Sheila Carrasco, Danielle Pinnock and Roman Zaragoza were cast in main roles for the pilot. On May 12, 2021, Devan Chandler Long joined the cast as a series regular.

Filming

Filming for the third season began in Montreal on December 2, 2023.

Reception

Critical response

For the first season, the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 93% approval rating with an average rating of 7.3/10, based on 27 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Ghosts could stand to ask more of its characters, but an excellent ensemble and a genial wit make for easy, softly spooky viewing." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 69 out of 100 based on 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season has received an approval rating of 100% with an average rating of 7/10, based on seven critic reviews.

Ratings

Overall

Season 1

Season 2

Season 3

Accolades

The first season was recognized with The ReFrame Stamp for hiring people of underrepresented gender identities, and of color.

Home media

Lionsgate Home Entertainment released the complete first season on Blu-ray and DVD on November 29, 2022.

Notes

References

External links

• Official website
• Ghosts at IMDb