Chris O’Dowd wins a high-concept comedy in The Big Door Prize trailer
Blending the high-concept sci-fi of Severance and the feel-good comedy of Ted Lasso, Apple’s comedy The Big Door Prize looks primed to fill the void of both
Following the success of Severance, Apple TV+ is coming in hot with more high-concept sci-fi comedies. Behind door number two is the aptly-titled The Big Door Prize, a new comedy starring Chris O’Dowd that turns Big’s Zoltar machine into an online personality quiz. Apple could only improve the show if the machine told users what Friends character they were, and the show tracked them as the cast figures out what it really means to be a “Phoebe.”
Here’s the synopsis:
Based on M.O. Walsh’s novel of the same name, The Big Door Prize tells the story of a small town that is forever changed when a mysterious machine appears in the general store, promising to reveal each resident’s true life potential. Dusty Hubbard (O’Dowd), a seemingly content, cheerful family man and high school teacher, watches everyone around him reevaluate their life choices and ambitions — based on the machine’s printouts — and is forced to question whether he is truly as happy as he once thought. While he remains skeptical of the machine, his wife, Cass (Gabrielle Dennis), indulges in the dream that there’s something bigger out there for her. Like many of Deerfield’s residents, the couple has lived a relatively safe, uncomplicated life, until the arrival of the Morpho machine. However, all of that is about to change when the community is forced to reconcile with their unfulfilled achievements in pursuit of a better future. In addition to O’Dowd, the series stars includes Gabrielle Dennis, Ally Maki, Josh Segarra, Damon Gupton, Crystal Fox, Djouliet Amara and Sammy Fourlas
Could it be that everyone’s potential was inside them the whole time? That the calling revealed by the Morpho machine was actually the one they were already following? Is it possible that Chris O’Dowd’s potential is simply that he’s a good whistler? These are all questions the show will answer across its 10-episode first season.
Based on the trailer, the show lives in that space between Severance and Ted Lasso, combining a fantastical sci-fi concept with slice-of-life humanity and empathy that made Jason Sudeikis a motivational guru.
The Big Door Prize premieres on Apple TV+ on March 29.