| The Girls on the Bus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Political drama |
| Created by | Amy Chozick & Julie Plec |
| Inspired by | Chasing Hillary by Amy Chozick |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Blake Neely |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 10 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Cinematography |
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| Running time | 42–49 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | Max |
| Release | March 14 (2024-03-14) – May 9, 2024 (2024-05-09) |
The Girls on the Bus is an Americanpolitical drama television series created byAmy Chozick andJulie Plec, inspired by Chozick's 2018 memoirChasing Hillary. It is produced byBerlanti Television, My So Called Company, andWarner Bros. Television Studios, and it premiered onMax on March 14, 2024.[1] In May 2024, the series was canceled after one season.[2]
The Girls on the Bus chronicles four female journalists who follow every move of a parade of flawed presidential candidates, while finding friendship, love, and scandal along the way.
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date [1] | Prod. code |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | Jesse Peretz | Teleplay by :Amy Chozick &Julie Plec Television story by : Amy Chozick & Julie Plec | March 14, 2024 (2024-03-14) | T64.10201 |
| 2 | "She's with Her" | Marta Cunningham | Rina Mimoun | March 14, 2024 (2024-03-14) | T64.10202 |
| 3 | "The Audacity of Nope" | Marcos Siega | Amy Chozick | March 21, 2024 (2024-03-21) | T64.10203 |
| 4 | "Two Americas" | Maggie Carey | Jenna Richman | March 28, 2024 (2024-03-28) | T64.10204 |
| 5 | "Everything Is Copy" | Marcos Siega | Candace Jackson & Amy Chozick | April 4, 2024 (2024-04-04) | T64.10205 |
| 6 | "The Debate" | Erica Dunton | Kevin A. Garnett | April 11, 2024 (2024-04-11) | T64.10206 |
| 7 | "She Was Against It, Before She Was For It" | DeMane Davis | Tawal Panyacosit Jr. | April 18, 2024 (2024-04-18) | T64.10207 |
| 8 | "Life Is a Highway" | Kyra Sedgwick | Tim Stack & Rina Mimoun | April 25, 2024 (2024-04-25) | T64.10208 |
| 9 | "Slouching Towards Brooklyn" | Marcos Siega | Jenna Richman & Kevin A. Garnett | May 2, 2024 (2024-05-02) | T64.10209 |
| 10 | "The Everydays" | Erica Dunton | Amy Chozick | May 9, 2024 (2024-05-09) | T64.10210 |
The series first began development in August 2019 atNetflix, inspired by the novelChasing Hillary byAmy Chozick, who created the series withJulie Plec.[4] However, by September 2021, Netflix had dropped the series, which would then move over toThe CW and receive a rework by Chozick and Plec.[5] The series would again change networks in February 2022 toHBO Max, where it was issued a series order.[6]Melissa Benoist would enter negotiations to star in the series that same month as well as serve as a producer.[7] In June,Rina Mimoun joined the series to serve as showrunner,[8] while Benoist would be confirmed to participate in the series and Natasha Behnam was cast.[9][10] In July,Christina Elmore joined the cast.[11] The following month,Brandon Scott was added to the main cast, whileScott Foley andGriffin Dunne were among several additions to the recurring cast.CNN anchorAbby Phillip would also join the production to serve as a consultant.[12][3] In September,Carla Gugino would join in a lead role,[13] andMark Consuelos would join in a recurring role in October.[14]
Production on the series had begun by October 1, 2022, when Chozick announced onInstagram that filming had wrapped on the pilot episode.[15] On May 24, 2024, Max canceled the series after one season.[2]
The series premiered on March 14, 2024, launching with its first two episodes, followed by a new episode every week until May 9 onMax.[1]
Thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes reported a 55% approval rating with an average rating of 6.4/10, based on 20 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "The Girls on the Bus goes round and round a fictionalized campaign trail with high drama and ideals to spare, although it swerves bumpily between its frothy and civic-minded lanes."[16]Metacritic assigned a score of 64 out of 100 based on 12 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[17]
