The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret
Encyclopedia
The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret is an American
-British
sitcom starring David Cross
, Sharon Horgan
, Blake Harrison
, Will Arnett
and Spike Jonze
. The series is produced by IFC
and RDF Television
and premiered on October 1, 2010 on IFC.
. The first season premiered October 1, 2010 on IFC in the U.S.; and on More4
in the UK on November 14, 2010. Cross has stated he is interested in producing a second season if the network renews the series. The plot of the second season would begin the day after the end of the first season and progress to Todd's arrest and the scene in the courtroom.
The pilot was aired in the UK as an episode of the Channel 4
series Comedy Showcase
. Scenes from the first episode were reshot after the Channel 4 airing when the part of Margaret's assistant, Dave, was recast with Blake Harrison
. Russell Tovey
, who played the character in the original pilot, was no longer available when the series went into production.
The show reunites Cross with Arrested Development co-star Will Arnett
; the two also appear together on the FOX
sitcom Running Wilde
, which premiered before, but was produced after, Todd Margaret.
On November 5, 2010, Cross posted news on his Facebook
page of a second season pick-up of "(at least) another eight episodes". The second season will have Jon Hamm join the cast, and is set to start airing in January 2012.
Each episode begins with a scene of Margaret appearing as the defendant in a British court, with various charges against him being read, then flashes back to portray the events leading to Margaret's arrest. The main events of the pilot take place two weeks before the trial and the first season takes place over one week, ending one week before the courtroom scene.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
-British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
sitcom starring David Cross
David Cross
David Cross is an American actor, writer and stand-up comedian perhaps best known for his work on HBO's sketch comedy series Mr...
, Sharon Horgan
Sharon Horgan
Sharon Horgan is an Irish actress, writer and comedienne.Horgan was born in London and moved to Dublin at age seven. She grew up in Bellewstown, Co. Meath, Ireland. She went to school in the Sacred Heart Secondary School in Drogheda. Later she went on to an English degree at Brunel University...
, Blake Harrison
Blake Harrison
Blake Harrison is an English actor who is most well known for playing Neil Sutherland in the E4 comedy The Inbetweeners....
, Will Arnett
Will Arnett
William Emerson "Will" Arnett is a Canadian actor and comedian best known for his role as George Oscar "G.O.B." Bluth II on the Fox comedy Arrested Development. He is also known for his role as Devon Banks on the NBC comedy 30 Rock. Since his success on Arrested Development, Arnett has landed major...
and Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze
Spike Jonze is an American director, producer and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television...
. The series is produced by IFC
Independent Film Channel
The Independent Film Channel is an American cable TV network that airs independent film and related programming. IFC programming includes commercially interrupted feature-length films, original documentaries, shorts, animated series, original series, acquired series, and content exclusively for...
and RDF Television
RDF Media
Zodiak Media is a Anglo-American television production company. It was formed in 2010 when RDF Media Group was acquired by, and merged with Zodiak Entertainment...
and premiered on October 1, 2010 on IFC.
Premise
The series follows an American (Cross) who takes a job running the sales team selling the energy drink Thunder Muscle at the London branch of his company. He has no experience of British culture, knows nothing about sales, and has only one employee.Main cast
- David CrossDavid CrossDavid Cross is an American actor, writer and stand-up comedian perhaps best known for his work on HBO's sketch comedy series Mr...
as Todd Margaret: An American who is promoted overnight to be chief marketer of the Thunder Muscle energy drink in the UK, a position he is wildly unqualified for. He is quick to tell implausible lies to impress Alice or to get out of uncomfortable situations. - Sharon HorganSharon HorganSharon Horgan is an Irish actress, writer and comedienne.Horgan was born in London and moved to Dublin at age seven. She grew up in Bellewstown, Co. Meath, Ireland. She went to school in the Sacred Heart Secondary School in Drogheda. Later she went on to an English degree at Brunel University...
as Alice Bell: The owner of a cafe near Margaret's flat. She aspires to turn her cafe into a showcase for molecular gastronomyMolecular gastronomyMolecular gastronomy is a subdiscipline of food science that seeks to investigate, explain and make practical use of the physical and chemical transformations of ingredients that occur while cooking, as well as the social, artistic and technical components of culinary and gastronomic phenomena in...
. Todd develops a crush on her the first time they meet. Although she finds him annoying and unattractive, she continually takes pity on Todd and helps him out. - Blake HarrisonBlake HarrisonBlake Harrison is an English actor who is most well known for playing Neil Sutherland in the E4 comedy The Inbetweeners....
as Dave: Margaret's sole employee. He often takes advantage of Todd's ignorance of British culture to pull pranks and make him appear foolish. As the series goes on, there are hints that Dave is a far more powerful individual than he first appeared, being responsible for setting up Todd and Brent, although the reason for him doing so is still unclear. - Will ArnettWill ArnettWilliam Emerson "Will" Arnett is a Canadian actor and comedian best known for his role as George Oscar "G.O.B." Bluth II on the Fox comedy Arrested Development. He is also known for his role as Devon Banks on the NBC comedy 30 Rock. Since his success on Arrested Development, Arnett has landed major...
as Brent Wilts (Todd's Boss), who promoted him impulsively thinking he was a tough, take-no-prisoners businessman. He travels all over Europe, gambling and hiring prostitutes, and expects Todd to start producing cash to support his habits immediately. He is, in fact, in a highly similar situation to Todd. - Spike JonzeSpike JonzeSpike Jonze is an American director, producer and actor, whose work includes music videos, commercials, film and television...
as Doug Whitney (Todd's Boss): Margaret's original boss in America, over whom Todd was promoted to become the marketer of Thunder Muscle. He suspects there is something fishy about Brent Wilts and is determined to get to the bottom of it.
Recurring cast
- Steve DavisSteve DavisSteve Davis, OBE is an English professional snooker player. He has won more professional titles in the sport than any other player, including six World Championships during the 1980s, when he was the world number one for seven years and became the sport's first millionaire...
as himself: The face of Thunder Muscle's ad campaign. - Colin SalmonColin SalmonColin Salmon is a British actor best known for playing the character Charles Robinson in three James Bond films.-Personal life:...
as Hudson: Alice's Canadian friend who is currently in Leeds shooting an independent film. Todd often goes to extreme measures to make sure Alice is interested in himself rather than Hudson. Hudson doesn't appear to have much respect for Todd and is quite blunt about it. His film also seems not to have been received well by the local British population.
Season 1: 2010
| Series number |
Season number |
Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Production code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Production
The show was created and written by Cross and Shaun PyeShaun Pye
Shaun Pye is an English actor, comedian, writer, critic, television producer, editor and journalist, known for co-creating the animated sketch comedy Monkey Dust with the late Harry Thompson, and for his role as Greg Lindley-Jones on Ricky Gervais's sitcom Extras.-Career:A former comedy critic for...
. The first season premiered October 1, 2010 on IFC in the U.S.; and on More4
More4
More4 is a digital television channel, run by British broadcaster Channel 4, that launched on 10 October 2005. It is carried on Freeview, on satellite broadcasters Freesat and Sky, UK IPTV broadcaster TalkTalk TV and on UK cable network Virgin Media and in the Republic of Ireland cable networks...
in the UK on November 14, 2010. Cross has stated he is interested in producing a second season if the network renews the series. The plot of the second season would begin the day after the end of the first season and progress to Todd's arrest and the scene in the courtroom.
The pilot was aired in the UK as an episode of the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
series Comedy Showcase
Comedy Showcase
Comedy Showcase is a series of one-off comedy specials featuring some of Britain's fledgling comedy talent. Its format is reminiscent of the much earlier Comedy Playhouse....
. Scenes from the first episode were reshot after the Channel 4 airing when the part of Margaret's assistant, Dave, was recast with Blake Harrison
Blake Harrison
Blake Harrison is an English actor who is most well known for playing Neil Sutherland in the E4 comedy The Inbetweeners....
. Russell Tovey
Russell Tovey
Russell George Tovey is an English actor with numerous television, film and stage credits. Tovey is best known for playing the role of werewolf George Sands in the BBC's supernatural drama Being Human which started in 2008...
, who played the character in the original pilot, was no longer available when the series went into production.
The show reunites Cross with Arrested Development co-star Will Arnett
Will Arnett
William Emerson "Will" Arnett is a Canadian actor and comedian best known for his role as George Oscar "G.O.B." Bluth II on the Fox comedy Arrested Development. He is also known for his role as Devon Banks on the NBC comedy 30 Rock. Since his success on Arrested Development, Arnett has landed major...
; the two also appear together on the FOX
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
sitcom Running Wilde
Running Wilde
Running Wilde was an American comedy television series created by Mitchell Hurwitz for the Fox Network. It starred Will Arnett as Steve Wilde, a self-centered, idle bachelor and heir to an oil fortune...
, which premiered before, but was produced after, Todd Margaret.
On November 5, 2010, Cross posted news on his Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
page of a second season pick-up of "(at least) another eight episodes". The second season will have Jon Hamm join the cast, and is set to start airing in January 2012.
Each episode begins with a scene of Margaret appearing as the defendant in a British court, with various charges against him being read, then flashes back to portray the events leading to Margaret's arrest. The main events of the pilot take place two weeks before the trial and the first season takes place over one week, ending one week before the courtroom scene.