Public Morals (2015 TV series)

This article is about the 2015 drama. For the 1996 sitcom, see Public Morals (1996 TV series).

Public Morals is an American police drama television series, created, written, executive-produced and directed by Edward Burns. Set in New York City during the 1960s, the show focuses on the Public Morals Division of the New York City Police Department and its officers' attempts to deal with vice in the city, while managing their personal lives as Irish Americans. The series aired from August 25 to October 20, 2015, on TNT. The network collaborated with Amblin Television, Steven Spielberg, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, and Aaron Lubin as producers.^[1] On December 15, 2015, TNT canceled the series after one season.^[2]

Public Morals
Genre	Crime drama Police procedural
Created by	Edward Burns
Written by	Edward Burns
Directed by	Edward Burns
Starring	Edward Burns Michael Rapaport Elizabeth Masucci Katrina Bowden Ruben Santiago-Hudson Wass Stevens Keith Nobbs Austin Stowell Patrick Murney Lyndon Smith Brian Wiles Cormac Cullinane
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	10 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Edward Burns Steven Spielberg Justin Falvey Darryl Frank Aaron Lubin
Production companies	Amblin Television TNT Original Productions Marlboro Road Gang Productions
Original release
Network	TNT
Release	August 25 (2015-08-25) – October 20, 2015 (2015-10-20)

Cast and characters

• Edward Burns as Officer Terry Muldoon
• Michael Rapaport as Officer Charlie Bullman, Terry's partner
• Elizabeth Masucci as Christine Muldoon, Terry's wife
• Katrina Bowden as Fortune^[3]
• Ruben Santiago-Hudson as Lt. King
• Wass Stevens as Officer Vince Latucci
• Keith Nobbs as Pat Duffy
• Austin Stowell as Officer Sean O'Bannon
• Patrick Murney as Officer Petey "Mac" MacGuinness
• Lyndon Smith as Deirdre
• Brian Wiles as Officer Jimmy Shea
• Cormac Cullinane as James Muldoon

Recurring

• Neal McDonough as Rusty Patton^[4]
• Brian Dennehy as Joe Patton
• Timothy Hutton as Mr. O'Bannon
• Anita Gillette as Eileen
• Robert Knepper as Capt. Johanson
• Fredric Lehne as Tommy Red
• Kevin Corrigan as Smitty
• Peter Gerety as Sgt. Mike Muldoon
• Aaron Dean Eisenberg as Richie Kane
• Ray Wiederhold as Monk
• Corey Cott as Ryan
• Audrey Esparza as Theresa
• Gus Halper as Sergio Tedesco

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date	US viewers (millions)
1	"A Fine Line"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	August 25, 2015 (2015-08-25)	2.14[5]
2	"Family is Family"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	August 26, 2015 (2015-08-26) (online) September 1, 2015 (2015-09-01) (TNT)	1.53[6]
3	"O'Bannon's Wake"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	August 26, 2015 (2015-08-26) (online) September 8, 2015 (2015-09-08) (TNT)	0.96[7]
4	"Ladies Night"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	August 26, 2015 (2015-08-26) (online) September 15, 2015 (2015-09-15) (TNT)	0.78[8]
5	"A Token of Our Appreciation"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	September 22, 2015 (2015-09-22)	0.63[9]
6	"A Good Shooting"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	September 29, 2015 (2015-09-29)	0.65[10]
7	"Collection Day"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	October 6, 2015 (2015-10-06)	0.62[11]
8	"No Crazies on the Street"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	October 13, 2015 (2015-10-13)	0.53[12]
9	"Starts with a Snowflake"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	October 20, 2015 (2015-10-20)	0.50[13]
10	"A Thought and a Soul"	Edward Burns	Edward Burns	October 20, 2015 (2015-10-20)	0.49[13]

Production

Creator Edward Burns began working on film scripts about Irish-American New York City police officers and Irish-American gangsters when executive producer Steven Spielberg suggested he write a script about his father's experience on the NYPD, while on the set of Saving Private Ryan. Though Public Morals did not draw from those scripts, Burns' research for them helped establish a foundation for the television series.^[14] In May 2015, TNT placed a 10-episode order for the series.^[1] While producing the series, Burns incorporated references to some of his favorite police and gangster films, including references to The Hustler, The Godfather, The French Connection, and Mean Streets, among other films.^[14]

Release

The series premiered on TNT on August 25, 2015.^[15] All other episodes were released on demand before they were broadcast on TV: episodes 2–4 on August 26, and the remaining episodes on September 5, 2015.^[16]

Reception

Public Morals received generally positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the series holds an approval rating of 82% based on 28 reviews, with an average rating of 7.06/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Public Morals is a worthy mob crime drama, with a strong leading man and a talented supporting cast counterbalancing cliché-ridden dialogue."^[17] On Metacritic, the series has a score of 69 out of 100, based on 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".^[18]

References

1. Kennealy, Tim (7 May 2014). "Ed Burns-Steven Spielberg Police Drama 'Public Morals' Greenlit by TNT". TheWrap. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
2. Andreeva, Nellie (15 December 2015). "'Public Morals', 'Legends & Agent X Canceled By TNT". Deadline. Retrieved 15 December 2015.
3. Kroll, Justin (10 February 2014). "Katrina Bowden Lands Leading Role in TNT's 'Public Morals'". Variety.
4. Andreeva, Nellie (8 October 2014). "Brian Dennehy & Neal McDonough Join Steven Spielberg's 'Public Morals'". Deadline.
5. Metcalf, Mitch (26 August 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals(&Network Update):8.25.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 26 August 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
6. Metcalf, Mitch (2 September 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals(&Network Update):9.1.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 3 September 2015. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
7. Metcalf, Mitch (10 September 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals(&Network Update):9.8.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 12 September 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
8. Metcalf, Mitch (16 September 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals(&Network Update):9.15.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 17 September 2015. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
9. Metcalf, Mitch (23 September 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals(&Network Update):9.22.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
10. Metcalf, Mitch (30 September 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals(&Network Update):9.29.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 30 September 2015. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
11. Metcalf, Mitch (7 October 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update: 10.6.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 7 October 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
12. Metcalf, Mitch (14 October 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update:10.13.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
13. Metcalf, Mitch (21 October 2015). "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Tuesday Cable Originals & Network Update:10.20.2015". Showbuzzdaily. Archived from the original on 21 October 2015. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
14. McKittrick, Christopher (25 August 2015). "Ed Burns: An Independent Force". Creative Screenwriting. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
15. Kondolojy, Amanda (6 May 2015). "TNT Moves 'Public Morals' to Premiere August 25, 'Legends' Shifts to Fall". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on 8 May 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
16. Goldberg, Lesley (4 September 2015). "TNT to Release Entire Season of 'Public Morals' for Labor Day Binge (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
17. "Public Morals (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
18. "Public Enemies: Season 1 reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 24 August 2015.

External links

• Official website
• Public Morals at IMDb