a long writer's strike, only 7 episodes were produced. Ratings The pilot episode of The Riches drew 3.8 million viewers. With 2.5 million of those viewers in the 18–49 demographic, The Riches scored second only to the premiere of The Shield, thus beating out the premieres of other FX dramas such as Rescue Me, Over There, and Dirt. The pilot was also FX's first-ever Sunday night premiere of an original series, and more than doubled the channel's highest-ever ratings for the Sunday 10pm slot. The show averaged 5.9 million cumulative viewers per week in the US, sufficient for FX to commission a second season. The Riches has gained popularity through online resources, such as Hulu and iTunes' "What We Are Watching" for April 2008. Critical reception Television critics gave The Riches enthusiastic reviews. The Baltimore Sun described it as "the kind of TV drama that makes one think while being entertained". and The Boston Globe lauded a "layered drama" full of "unexpectedly soulful pleasures". The New York Times wrote that "together, [Izzard and Driver] are superb". Meanwhile, The Los Angeles Times complained that the show lacked originality. Time magazine's James Poniewozik named it one of the Top 10 New TV Series of 2006, ranking it at #7, while Minnie Driver was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for her performance. In a review of the second season, The Hollywood Reporter said that "Izzard and Driver remain a joy to watch in this odd but fascinating series that is derivative of nothing on TV", while the San Francisco Chronicle described the second season as "gloriously inventive, daring and provocative". Home releases Film In 2008, Eddie Izzard said that a low-budget Riches movie was being developed, and added "We'll shoot it guerilla-style, using gorillas to actually shoot it. We're going to give them cameras...No, we're going to just get in there and maybe not have permission to do things, but just film it." But the film never materialized. References External links 2007 American television series debuts 2008 American television series endings 2000s American comedy-drama television series 2000s American crime drama television series 2000s American LGBT-related drama television series Baton Rouge, Louisiana Eddie Izzard FX Networks original programming Identity theft Serial drama television series Television series about dysfunctional families Television series by 20th Century Fox Television Television shows set in Louisiana Transgender-related television shows Works about Irish Travellers