The Real O'Neals | |
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Genre | Sitcom |
Created by | |
Developed by |
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Starring |
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Narrated by | Noah Galvin |
Composer(s) | Transcenders |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 28 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Cinematography |
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Camera setup | Single-camera |
Running time | 22 minutes |
Production company(s) |
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Distributor | Disney-ABC Domestic Television |
Release | |
Original network | ABC |
Picture format | 720p (16:9 HDTV) |
Original release | March 2, 2016 | – present
External links | |
Website |
The Real O'Neals is an American single-camera sitcom that debuted on March 2, 2016 on ABC. The series, based on an idea by Dan Savage (who also serves as executive producer), was picked up to series on May 7, 2015. The series was renewed for a second season on May 12, 2016, which premiered on Tuesday, October 11, 2016.
The series chronicles the lives of a close-knit, Irish-American Chicago Catholic family whose matriarch takes their reputation in the community very seriously. In the pilot episode, their perfect image is shattered when each family member has a secret revealed to the community: middle child Kenny is gay, oldest child Jimmy is anorexic, youngest child Shannon is running a money scam and might be atheist, and parents Eileen and Pat are no longer in love and wish to divorce. Subsequent episodes explore the new family dynamic as Pat and Eileen separate and everyone reconciles Kenny's sexuality with their faith.
The series received a generally favorable response from critics. On review aggregator site Metacritic, The Real O'Neals has a metascore of 62 out of 100 based on 22 critics signifying "generally favorable reviews". On another review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, the show has a 67% approval rating, based on 27 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The site's critical consensus: "Funny writing and a solid cast save The Real O'Neals from traditional sitcom perils."
The news of the series' pick-up attracted attention and controversy before its debut. On May 12, 2015, the day it was announced that the series had been added to the ABC network schedule, Christian right and pro-family groups such as the American Family Association and the Family Research Council called for a boycott and petitioned to prevent the series from airing. They also cited Savage's views on religion, sexuality, and same-sex marriage, which they believed had been infused into the series due to it being based on his life, but Savage claimed that the concept went in a different direction since he was not involved in the writing.