Todd Brotzman was having a perfectly mundane life until he stumbled into a case being investigated by Dirk Gently.
Now He’s learning that everything is connected – and he’s not sure he really likes the idea, though it’s far too late.
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency premieres on BBC America on Saturday, October 22nd (9/8C). Read on to learn more about this unique world that sprang from the mind of Douglas Adams (and watch a trailer or two…).
EVERYTHING. IS. CONNECTED!
BBC AMERICA’S NEW ORIGINAL SERIES DIRK GENTLY’S HOLISTIC DETECTIVE AGENCY DEBUTS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22
Douglas Adams Adaptation Stars Elijah Wood and Samuel Barnett
New York – September 15, 2016 – “Perhaps every day before now has been for the most part humdrum and inane, your life a mundane unvarying slog through unfulfilling jobs, shallow depression and boring, BORING sex….? Then suddenly…everything changed.” So goes the life of Todd Brotzman (Elijah Wood); accurately surmised by the intrusive stranger Dirk Gently (Samuel Barnett) … a holistic detective who doesn’t really detect…or find clues…or ever really solved a case… Ok, so he’s a crazy person who’s insinuated himself into the life of a man who literally has absolutely nothing left to lose… An eight-part series penned by Max Landis (American Ultra, Chronicle), Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, adapted from the wildly popular novels by Douglas Adams (“The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”), premieres Saturday, October 22 at 9/8c on BBC AMERICA.
“Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency is a blast of fresh, cosmically weird air,” says Sarah Barnett, President, BBC AMERICA. “Fans of Doctor Who, Monty Python, Sherlock and Barton Fink will find things to love in this sharply original yet reverent gigantic puzzle, at the heart of which are funny messed up people you really care about. And there’s a kitten/shark. Perfect for BBCA.”
Corpses – cops – traps – cult – assassins – Pararibulitis – vampires – lottery ticket – kitten – corgi – everything is connected in this bizarre world. It all begins on the absolute worst day of Todd’s life. After his drug dealing landlord trashes his car, he trudges onto a Seattle bus to make it to his job as a bellhop. Dispatched to the hotel penthouse, the horrific scene of murdered millionaire, Patrick Spring, begets a peculiar chain of events that makes him a person of great interest…and gets him sacked from his job.
Enter Dirk Gently, the fast talking, eccentric detective hired to investigate the case. Dirk, whose philosophy hinges on the interconnectedness of all things, wholly believes he and Todd are destined to untangle the mystery together, and tries his hardest to convince Todd to embrace the madness because let’s face it, what else has he got going on… Once half-convinced, Todd’s world is infiltrated by a collection of wild and dangerous characters who further complicate his life, all because of Dirk Gently.
In addition to Todd’s ailing sister Amanda (Hannah Marks), a former punk-chick, now a Pararibulitis sufferer, there’s Farah Black (Jade Eshete), a security officer assigned to protect the murder victim’s daughter, and friend of Dirk Gently, The Rowdy 3 (Michael Eklund, Osric Chau, Viv Leacock and Zak Santiago), Yes, a quartet of psychic vampires who constantly target Dirk Gently, Zimmerfield (Richard Schiff) and Estevez (Neil Brown Jr.), detectives assigned to investigate the same complex case Dirk Gently was hired to investigate, Gordon Rimmer (Aaron Douglas), a loser cult leader with deep secrets, who’s lost dog is tied to the case, and Colonel Riggins (Miguel Sandoval), the leader of a failed CIA secret experiment and his idiot officer, Sergeant Friedkin (Dustin Milligan) who are ordered to capture Dirk Gently.
Far away from the city, Ken (Mpho Koaho) too is having a really bad day. While minding his business of hacking into a mainframe to make a few bucks, a seemingly deranged assassin, Bartine “Bart” Curlish (Fiona Dourif) insinuates herself into his life…after she tries to murder him…because she mistook him for Dirk Gently…without actually knowing if he was Dirk Gently…because Bart is not a very thorough assassin. But she is a holistic one, that kills whomever the universe tells her to. And you guessed it, it’s told her to kill Dirk Gently.
Each week, viewers will enter the escape room-esque mystery that’ll weave these characters together through seemingly innocuous events; somehow bringing everyone closer to solving the case of the murdered millionaire. And maybe, help to rid Todd of Dirk Gently, and restore his mundane, unvarying, shallow, depressed and boring, BORING sex life…
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency is an eight-part co-production of AMC Studios, IDEATE MEDIA and IDW Entertainment, with Circle of Confusion producing for BBC AMERICA. Max Landis writes and executive produces the series with Robert Cooper (Stargate Atlantis, Stargate Universe) serving as executive producer and showrunner, and Oscar-winning director Dean Parisot (Justified, Masters of Sex) serving as executive producer and director of the series’ first two episodes. Arvind Ethan David and Zainir Aminullah for IDEATE MEDIA executive produce along with Ted Adams and David Ozer for IDW and David Alpert and Rick Jacobs for Circle of Confusion. Kim Todd serves as producer.
SYNOPSES
EPISODE ONE – HORIZONS – SATURDAY OCTOBER 22, 9/8c
After Todd Brotzman happens upon a murder scene, he meets self-proclaimed detective, Dirk Gently; and is drawn into a case involving the death of reclusive millionaire, Patrick Spring, and the kidnapping of his daughter Lydia. As multiple characters and storylines seem primed to converge, tangling endlessly in towards the center, it’s clear to Todd that his life will never be the same.
EPISODIC TWO – LOST & FOUND – SATURDAY, OCTOBER 29, 9/8c
Todd is drawn further into the case as they learn more about the fiends who captured Patrick Spring’s daughter, Lydia. Mysterious characters take a step closer to a collision, culminating in an absurd hostage exchange, wherein corgi is tossed off a high bridge and a determined woman enters Dirk and Todd’s life.
EPISODIC THREE – ROGUE WALL ENTHUSIASTS – SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 9/8c
Digging into Patrick Spring’s past, Farah and Dirk discover the first really big clue into his murder. Todd goes to the police only to learn he has no safe harbor left. Amanda must deal with a looming presence in her life, and Bart and Ken hurtle towards a violent clash with a biker gang.
CHARACTERS
DIRK GENTLY (Samuel Barnett)
Funny, eloquent, rude and a tiny bit presumptuous, Dirk Gently has strange psychic abilities that enable him to sense tangential connections. He’s turned these abilities into his new profession: that of a “holistic detective,” a term that reflects his belief in the fundamental interconnectedness of all things. However, his abilities have condemned him to a lonely life devoid of human connection. A
man with an interesting sense of style and a brusque manner that quickly annoys, Dirk exists on the assumption that everyone around him will instantly recognize his authority… even though said authority doesn’t exist, and pretty much no one ever acknowledges it, ever.
TODD BROTZMAN (Elijah Wood)
A frustrated loser and fallen punk rock front man, Todd’s life is a dead-end. But when he stumbles into a bizarre murder scene, everything drastically changes. A random encounter with the eccentric detective, Dirk Gently, draws him into a web against his will. As Todd reluctantly joins Dirk, he quickly discovers he’s just flat out better at detecting and pretty much everything else than Dirk. He always attempts to solve matters with the fewest steps possible. But despite being a compassionate, smarter-than-average man with biting wit, Todd often finds himself at a moral crossroads. His bad habits of lying and stealing have dire consequences that he won’t be able to avoid forever. He’s not a bad person… he’s just not a good person, but he’ll get there. Maybe. Hopefully?
AMANDA BROTZMAN (Hannah Marks)
Amanda always wanted to be in a band like her brother Todd. Her spunky, smart, wild and impulsive personality defines who she is… or at least who she was. Sidelined by Pararibulitis – a hereditary disease that turns everything around her into a potentially agonizing physical hazard – she’s remained isolated, leaning on her brother for support. She’s deeply connected to her brother but a number of issues in their relationship are slowly being triggered, and Amanda will find herself drawn towards the dark forces converging on Todd’s life.
FARAH BLACK (Jade Eshete)
A neurotic, bad-ass security officer to a millionaire, Farah has brooding, nervous energy and an easy snarl that’s triggered at the slightest provocation. A tactical prodigy, Farah is a dominant figure who is also a bit odd… much more than she’s prepared to accept. She subconsciously talks to herself and if provoked, unleashes a biting deadpan sarcasm. After her boss is killed and his daughter kidnapped, Farah is determined to solve the case alongside Dirk and Todd without the help of police. She makes every attempt to keep the group safe, even if she herself isn’t so sure she’s capable of doing so.
KEN (Mpho Koaho)
A nerdy, friendly-faced tech trapped in increasingly difficult and bloody circumstances, Ken’s side job as a hacker lands him face-to-face with some odious characters, including Bart, a self-identified holistic assassin.
BARTINE (BART) CURLISH (Fiona Dourif)
Bart is a terrifying, homicidal, deranged, fearless, and nearly invincible self-identified holistic assassin. Like Dirk, she is a causality psychic. Bart doesn’t determine who she kills or when and how she kills them. It’s all instinctual. Drawn towards people who kill or endanger others, she feels a second nature urge to eliminate them, which she can do with very little effort. She’s rough, rude, kind of gross and an upsetting person, but there’s a complex sweetness to her. Bart is comfortable with who she is and unlike Dirk, she’s found peace with her power.
THE ROWDY 3 (Michael Eklund, Osric Chau, Viv Leacock and Zak Santiago)
The Rowdy 3 – all four of them – composed of the aloof Martin, the manic Vogel, the ever-stoic Gripps and the deranged Cross, are vampires. Not the night walking bloodsucking kind, but rather something much stranger…if that’s possible. They feed on emotion and the electrical energy of the human mind, which they extract in blasts of crackling electricity. Ex-test subjects, the Rowdy 3 have tried to make a life for themselves out in the real world, forever hunting Dirk Gently; deliberately entering his life in moments where it will cause him the most emotional terror.
GORDON RIMMER (Aaron Douglas)
Rimmer is an enigmatic loser with an impressive series of horrible secrets. A high ranking member of a cult called Men of the Machine, Rimmer is by nature, a perpetually scrambling, unreliable, egomaniacal agent of the Brotherhood’s intent. Rimmer loves giving orders and whenever possible, remind his fellow brothers of his seniority within the cult.
ESTEVEZ AND ZIMMERFIELD (Neil Brown Jr. and Richard Schiff)
Estevez and Zimmerfield are missing person’s detectives operating increasingly off book as they follow the trail of a complex and mystifying case. As bizarre events continue to converge around one person, they find themselves more and more flummoxed by the investigation.
COLONEL SCOTT RIGGINS AND SERGEANT HUGO FRIEDKIN
(Miguel Sandoval and Dustin Milligan)
Beleaguered CIA head of a defunct secret bureau investigating the paranormal called Black Wing, Riggins used to be a bright-eyed West Point grad. A born optimist with a cheery demeanor, Riggins is a true believer: Aliens? Yes. Psychics? Yes. Demons? Magic? Past lives? Yes, yes and yes. He’s hoping to rebuild Black Wing but gets stuck with Friedkin, an unpredictable, wildly ambitious and dangerous moron. Though he supports Colonel Riggins in his quest to peacefully achieve his goal, his boneheaded nature may derail the Colonel’s plans altogether.
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CAST AND PRODUCTION CREDITS
Dirk Gently: Samuel Barnett (Penny Dreadful, The History Boys)
Todd Brotzman: Elijah Wood (Wilfred, Cooties)
Amanda Brotzman: Hannah Marks (The Amazing Spiderman)
Farah Black: Jade Eshete (Deadbeat)
Ken: Mpho Koaho (Falling Skies)
Bartine (Bart) Curlish: Fiona Dourif (True Blood)
Martin (Rowdy 3): Michael Eklund (Wynonna Earp)
Colonel Riggins: Miguel Sandoval (Bad Judge)
Sergeant Friedkin: Dustin Milligan (Schitt’s Creek)
Gordon Rimmer: Aaron Douglas (iZombie)
Estevez: Neil Brown Jr. (Straight Outta Compton)
Zimmerfield: Richard Schiff (Ballers)
Vogle (Rowdy 3): Osric Chau (Supernatural)
Gripps (Rowdy 3): Viv Leacock (Kong, King of the Apes)
Cross (Rowdy 3): Zak Santiago (The 100)
Dorian: Ty Olsson (War for the Planet of the Apes)
Writer/Executive Producer: Max Landis (American Ultra, Chronicle)
Showrunner/Executive Producer: Robert Cooper (Stargate Atlantis, Stargate Universe)
Directors: Dean Parisot (Eps 1-2)
Michael Patrick Jann (Eps 3-4)
Tamra Davis (Eps 5-6)
Paco Cabezas (Eps 7-8)
Executive Producers: Arvind Ethan David, Zainir Aminullah, Ted Adams, David Ozer, David Alpert, Rick Jacobs, Dean Parisot (Eps 1-2)
Producer: Kim Todd
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency is an eight-part co-production of AMC Studios, IDEATE MEDIA, IDW Entertainment and Circle of Confusion producing for BBC AMERICA.