Rutherford Falls – alongside Saved By the Bell, Girls 5Eva, and A.P. Bio – will join Peacock’s sophomore cast of original content, as the small-town sitcom has just been renewed for second season. The Sierra Teller Ornelas (Superstore, Splitting Up Together), Ed Helms (The Office, The Hangover) and Mike Schur (The Good Place, Parks and Recreation) created comedy stood as a groundbreaking moment for Native representation in television comedy both on and off-screen when it premiered this spring.
“While it pisses me off that it didn’t happen until 2021,” Rutherford Falls star and writer Jana Schmieding (Blast, Woman of Size) editorialized about the series’ representation in Vanity Fair prior to the news of renewal, “I’m completely tickled every time an Indigenous woman tweets, ‘Holy shit. I am Reagan.’” Schmieding’s Reagan serves as the series protagonist, finding her best friend in Helms’ Nathan Rutherford, with The A.V. Club describing her character as “both the show’s comic, and [its] moral, center.”
“Schmieding and Helms star as friends at a crossroads when their sleepy town of Rutherford Falls gets an unexpected wake-up call,” The Hollywood Reporter cites the official logline for Rutherford Falls. After production disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic, the series officially landed on Peacock’s premium streaming service in April. While streaming data is limited, Rutherford Falls received an overwhelmingly positive critical response, earning it second season renewal within three months of its arrival on the platform, via The A.V. Club.
Not only did the Rutherford Falls’ cast and crew take to social media to celebrate the series’ renewal, but officials at NBCUniversal likewise lauded their new hit comedy. “Rutherford Falls embodies the modern, original, and inclusive storytelling viewers want and we are excited to develop season two alongside Sierra, Mike, Ed and the incredible cast,” Deadline quoted President of Scripted Content at NBCUniversal Television and Streaming, Lisa Katz.
Rutherford Falls co-creator, executive producer, and showrunner, Teller Ornelas, appeared eager to jump back into her fictional New England town for season two of the Peacock comedy. “Can’t wait to get new eps in front of your eyeballs soon,” the force behind the series wrote to fans on Twitter.
Breakout star of the series, Schmieding commented on the series success to Vanity Fair: “Native Joy is trending and the culture is ready to gobble it up.” Before season two serves up even more Native Joy, late-comers can find Rutherford Falls debut season on Peacock, available with a premium subscription.
Only a handful of months after its debut, Rutherford Falls has already appeared on lists such as The A.V Club’s Best TV of 2021 So Far and garnered significant Emmy-buzz. Though it will take time for season two’s production to get underway, there could be more news from the town of Rutherford Falls come award season.