| The Affair | |
|---|---|
 Television release poster | |
| Genre | |
| Created by | |
| Starring | |
| Opening theme | "Container" byFiona Apple[1] |
| Composer | Marcelo Zarvos |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 5 |
| No. of episodes | 53(list of episodes) |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
|
| Production locations | |
| Cinematography |
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| Editors |
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| Camera setup | Single-camera |
| Running time | 50–90 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | Showtime |
| Release | October 12, 2014 (2014-10-12) – November 3, 2019 (2019-11-03) |
| Related | |
| Saklı | |
The Affair is an Americandrama television series created bySarah Treem andHagai Levi.[2] The series premiered onShowtime on October 12, 2014.[3] It ran for five seasons, concluding with its final episode on November 3, 2019.
The series primarily starsDominic West,Ruth Wilson,Maura Tierney, andJoshua Jackson, and it explores the emotional effects of extramarital relationships. Episodes are often separated into two parts, with each half being told from the point of view of a specific character. The use of this dramatic device has been used by Treem to describeThe Affair as "theRashomon of relationship dramas".[4]
The series won theGolden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama and Wilson won forBest Actress – Television Series Drama at the72nd Golden Globe Awards in 2015. At the73rd Golden Globe Awards in 2016,Maura Tierney won the award forBest Supporting Actress.
The Affair explores the emotional effects of an extramarital relationship between Noah Solloway and Alison Bailey after they casually meet at the diner where Alison works. The series begins with the Solloway family traveling to the resort town ofMontauk, New York. Noah is happily married to Helen with four children (Whitney, Martin, Trevor, and Stacey), but he resents their dependence on his wealthy father-in-law. Alison is a local waitress trying to piece her life and marriage to Cole back together after the death of their four-year-old son. The story of the affair is depicted from Noah's and Alison's perspectives respectively, complete with memory bias which often results in vastly different scenarios.[5] Each episode has two parts, one as remembered by Noah, the other by Alison.
In the second season, the narrative is expanded to include the perspectives of Noah and Alison's original spouses, Helen and Cole, as they all move forward with the dissolution of their marriages and deal with the ramifications.[6] The subsequent death of Alison's brother-in-law, Scott, and the ensuing police investigation and criminal trial, are explored inflashforward scenes at the end of most episodes. Alison gives birth to her second child, Joanie.
The third season is set three years later, following the culmination of the flashforward trial scenes, after Noah is released from prison. Season 3 introduces an occasional perspective, Juliette Le Gall, a professor and Noah's love interest.[7]
In the fourth season, Noah has moved to Los Angeles to be closer to his younger children Trevor and Stacey, as Helen and Vik have moved there. Noah is also an English teacher at a charter school where he gets romantically involved with its principal, Janelle Wilson. Cole and Luisa are living together in Montauk, while Alison is working as a grief counselor. Season 4 features openingflashforward sequences, featuring Noah and Cole, in its first four episodes, which ultimately lead to the discovery of Alison's death. The central perspectives of Noah, Helen, Alison and Cole continue, with the latter two reaching their conclusions; a one-off part from Vik's perspective is also featured.
The fifth and final season takes place in two different time frames: a present-day storyline including Noah, Helen, and their four children and the other decades later featuring a now-adult Joanie Lockhart returning to Montauk and discovering the truth about her mother's death.[8] The season introduces the perspectives of Joanie and Whitney alongside Noah and Helen, as well as one-off parts from the perspectives of Janelle and Sierra.
| Key | |
|---|---|
 | Perspective featured |
 | Non-perspective appearance |
 | Does not appear |
| Character | Season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| Noah | | | | | |
| Alison | | | | | |
| Helen | | | | | |
| Cole | | | | | |
| Juliette | | | | | |
| Vik | | | | | |
| Joanie | | | | | |
| Janelle | | | | | |
| Whitney | | | | | |
| Sierra | | | | | |
| Season | Episodes | Originally released | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First released | Last released | |||
| 1 | 10 | October 12, 2014 (2014-10-12) | December 21, 2014 (2014-12-21) | |
| 2 | 12 | October 4, 2015 (2015-10-04) | December 20, 2015 (2015-12-20) | |
| 3 | 10 | November 20, 2016 (2016-11-20) | January 29, 2017 (2017-01-29) | |
| 4 | 10 | June 17, 2018 (2018-06-17) | August 19, 2018 (2018-08-19) | |
| 5 | 11 | August 25, 2019 (2019-08-25) | November 3, 2019 (2019-11-03) | |
| Character | Actor | Season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | ||
| Noah Solloway | Dominic West | Main | ||||
| Alison Bailey | Ruth Wilson | Main[a] | Does not appear | |||
| Helen Butler | Maura Tierney | Main | ||||
| Cole Lockhart | Joshua Jackson | Main[a] | Does not appear | |||
| Whitney Solloway | Julia Goldani Telles | Main | ||||
| Martin Solloway | Jake Siciliano | Main | Guest | Recurring | ||
| Trevor Solloway | Jadon Sand | Main | ||||
| Stacey Solloway | Leya Catlett | Main[a] | Does not appear | |||
| Abigail Dylan Harrison | Does not appear | Recurring | ||||
| Max Cadman | Josh Stamberg | Recurring | Main | Guest | Does not appear | |
| Luisa León | Catalina Sandino Moreno | Does not appear | Recurring | Main | Recurring | |
| Vik Ullah | Omar Metwally | Does not appear | Recurring | Main[b] | ||
| Juliette Le Gall | Irène Jacob | Does not appear | Main | Does not appear | ||
| Janelle Wilson | Sanaa Lathan | Does not appear | Main[c] | |||
| Joanie Lockhart | Uncredited | Does not appear | Guest | Does not appear | ||
| Reagan and Savannah Grella | Does not appear | Recurring[a] | Does not appear | |||
| Anna Paquin | Does not appear | Main | ||||
On February 8, 2013, it was announced thatShowtime had ordered a pilot forThe Affair.[13] The network officially picked up the series on January 16, 2014, with a 10-episode order.[2] On November 10, 2014, Showtime renewed the series for a 10-episode second season;[14] however, it was later changed to 12.[15] On December 9, 2015, the series was renewed for a third season.[16] On January 9, 2017, Showtime renewed the series for a fourth season.[17] On July 26, 2018, Showtime announced it had renewed the series for a fifth and final season.[18]
Ruth Wilson requested to leave ahead of season four.[19] Although Wilson did not fully disclose the reason for her departure in 2019,The Hollywood Reporter did an exposé alleging that Wilson had been uncomfortable with the amount of nudity required for the role and naming showrunnerSarah Treem and executive producer and directorJeffrey Reiner as behaving inappropriately towards actors on set.[20] Treem would later deny the accusations that she had coerced Wilson into nude scenes while admitting that Wilson was not comfortable with the amount of nudity required for the character and that body doubles were frequently used. Treem also corroborated that there had been an investigation into Reiner after he allegedly shared nude photos of a body double with producer, writer and actressLena Dunham despite the fact that she was not involved in the show in any capacity.[21]
After the conclusion of the fourth season and prior to the start of production on the fifth and final season, several series regulars departed the series.Joshua Jackson did not return for the final season.[8]Omar Metwally andSanaa Lathan appear until episodes 2 and 3 respectively, and are removed from the main cast thereafter.Catalina Sandino Moreno appears in episodes six and seven as a guest star, in both the present-day and flashforward storylines.[22]
| Season | Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 90% (130 reviews) | 85 (28 reviews) |
| 2 | 90% (126 reviews) | 78 (15 reviews) |
| 3 | 71% (21 reviews) | 72 (8 reviews) |
| 4 | 91% (23 reviews) | N/a |
| 5 | 88% (16 reviews) | 77 (4 reviews) |
The first season received praise from critics. On the review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 90%, based on 130 reviews, with an average rating of 8.15/10. The consensus reads: "Thanks to some smart, creative storytelling and spectacular performances,The Affair is a somber, bewitching exploration of truth and desire."[23] OnMetacritic, the first season has a score of 85 out of 100, based on 28 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[24]
The second season received continued positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 90%, based on 126 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. The consensus reads: "The Affair shifts its emphasis in season two, moving psychological drama to the foreground and expanding the show's central crime story to include two new points of view."[25] On Metacritic, it has a score of 78 out of 100 based on 15 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[26] Gwen Ihnat ofThe A.V. Club gave it an "A−" grade and wrote that "With its bold new move to double our number of perspectives, it appears thatThe Affair will sail over that sophomore slump that has felled so many other Showtime dramas.[27]
The third season received positive reviews from critics, although less acclaim than the first two seasons. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 71%, based on 21 reviews, with an average rating of 7.7/10. The consensus reads: "The Affair adds to its cast of strong characters and deepens the mood, tension, and intrigue, even if the plot sometimes struggles to move forward."[28] On Metacritic, it has a score of 72 out of 100 based on 8 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[29]
The fourth season received continued positive reviews from critics.[30] On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 91%, based on 23 reviews, with an average rating of 7.4/10. The consensus reads: "The Affair's captivating character study returns with fewer kinks than its previous outing, resulting in a more emotionally grounded season that regains much of the show's initial allure."[31]
The fifth season received continued positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a rating of 88%, based on 16 reviews, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The consensus reads: "As addicting and outlandish as ever, season five proves the perfect farewell forThe Affair."[32] On Metacritic, it has a score of 77 out of 100 based on 4 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[33]
The first season was released on DVD inregion 1 on August 4, 2015. The set contains all 10 episodes, plus special features, including character profiles and costume featurettes.[48] The second season was released on DVD in region 1 on August 16, 2016.[49] The third season was released on DVD in region 1 on April 25, 2017.[50] The fourth season was released on DVD in region 1 on October 16, 2018.[51] The fifth and final season as well as a complete series collection were released on DVD in region 1 on March 10, 2020.[52][53]
In Canada, the series premiered simultaneously with the American broadcast on October 12, 2014, and aired onMovie Central andThe Movie Network.[54] The series premiered onShowcase in Australia on February 10, 2015.[55]Sky Atlantic bought the rights to airThe Affair in the UK with season one beginning in May 2015.[56]
ATurkish adaptation of the series, titledSaklı, premiered on November 23, 2021, onBluTV.[57][58]