One Dollar (TV series)

One Dollar is an American mystery thriller drama streaming television series created by Jason Mosberg that premiered on August 30, 2018 on CBS All Access. The series centers on the denizens of a small rust belt community and shifts perspective from person to person as a dollar bill changes hands. The ensemble cast consists of John Carroll Lynch, Nathaniel Martello-White, Philip Ettinger, Christopher Denham, Kirrilee Berger, Joshua Bitton, Níkẹ Uche Kadri, Gracie Lawrence, and Hamilton Clancy. On December 12, 2018, it was announced that the series had been canceled after one season.
Premise.
"One Dollar" is set in "a small rustbelt town in post-recession America, where a one-dollar bill changing hands connects a group of characters involved in a shocking multiple murder. The path of the dollar bill, and point of view in each episode, paints a picture of a modern American town with deep class and cultural divides that spill out into the open as the town's secrets get revealed."
Production.
Development.
On August 1, 2017, it was announced that CBS All Access had given the production, then titled "$1", a series order. The series was created by Jason Mosberg and was set to be executive produced by Matt DeRoss, Alexandre Dauman, and Craig Zobel, who was also expected to direct. Production companies involved with the series were slated to include CBS Television Studios and Anonymous Content. On July 2, 2018, it was announced that the series had been retitled "One Dollar" and that it would premiere on August 30, 2018. On December 12, 2018, it was announced that CBS All Access had canceled the series.
Casting.
On March 6, 2018, it was announced that John Carroll Lynch, Philip Ettinger, Chris Denham, Nathaniel Martello-White, Kirrilee Berger, and Gracie Lawrence had joined the main cast as series regulars and that Jeff Perry, Leslie Odom Jr., and Sturgill Simpson were cast in recurring roles. Later that month, the cast was rounded out with the addition of Nike Kadri, Joshua Bitton, and Hamilton Clancy as series regulars and Ashlie Atkinson as a recurring guest star. On April 10, 2018, it was announced that Aleksa Palladino had joined the cast in a recurring capacity.
Filming.
Principal photography for the first season began on March 27, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Release.
On July 2, 2018, a promotional poster for the series was released. On August 5, 2018, a teaser trailer for the series was released. On August 13, 2018, the official trailer was released.
Reception.
The series has been met with a generally positive response from critics upon its premiere. On the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an 80% approval rating, with an average rating of 6 out of 10 based on 10 reviews. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 64 out of 100 based on 6 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."
In a positive review, "Los Angeles Times"s Robert Lloyd praised the series saying, "The excellence of the acting and the admirable, one might almost say English naturalism of the production balance the sometimes improbable, even implausible action and the occasional sacrifice of sense to drama; it is true that in life, people do not act sensibly, but fictional characters should be held to a higher standard of consistency. Still, the writing gives the actors a lot to play with." In a more mixed critique, "TV Guide"s Liam Mathews discussed the show's various sub-plots saying, "They writers are much more interested in the vignettes that build out the town...These smaller side stories give the show an indie movie-like texture about people trying to make it in America. They're sort of like short films within the bigger show, and they contain much of the show's best writing and acting. They would be better if they didn't have the unnecessary dollar bill gimmick connecting them all, but it's not that distracting." In an outright negative assessment, "The Hollywood Reporter"s Tim Goodman criticized the series saying, "There's not enough good writing here, not enough motivation to follow characters that are either intentionally half-baked or are merely uninteresting. Characters have quirks, but the quirks prove there's not much else there. Smart people eventually do exceptionally dumb things."