Page 4 - TVTimes.10.21.18

4 October 21 - 27, 2018 cover story
By Kyla Brewer
TV Media
In many areas, church attendance has been on the decline as people continue to question the existence and nature of God. A new television
Internet highway to heaven
Atheist finds divine online in ‘God Friended Me’
El Dorado News-Times
cally grew up in a church, but he hasn’t shied away from tackling the role of atheist Miles. The actor stud- ied drama at New York’s prestigious Julliard School and landed parts in television series such as “Search Party” and “The Mayor” before sign- ing on for “God Friended Me.”
His new co-stars include an Emmy winner, a Tony winner and some talented up-and-comers. TV viewers may remember Beane for her role
as Jesse Chamber Wells/Jesse Quick in the popular CW superhero series “The Flash.” Horror film fans may recognize her from the blockbuster slasher “Truth or Dare” (2018), in which she played Markie Cameron. Her other credits include the TV shows “The Resident” and “The Leftovers.”
Indian actor Sharma shot to fame in the film adaptation of “Life of Pi” (2012), based on the popular novel. He also appeared in the fourth sea- son of Showtime’s political thriller, “Homeland.” Morton won an Emmy in 2014 for his guest-starring turn
as Olivia Pope’s (Kerry Washington, “Django Unchained,” 2012) father, Eli, in ABC’s “Scandal.” He’s also well known for his portrayal of Henry Deacon in the Syfy series “Eureka.”
“God Friended Me” is the first major series role for Leslie, but she’s also appeared in “MacGyver” and “Chef Julian.” Though she may not be instantly recognizable to TV fans, recurring cast member Jones is a re- vered stage actress, having appeared
in many Broadway productions, from “Pippin” to “Dear Evan
Hansen.”
Each episode of “God
Friended Me” brings the characters closer as they
search for the ultimate truth. The drama may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it joins a recent smat-
tering of TV dramas that explore spiritual or religious
themes, including NBC’s “The Good Place” and CBS’s “Liv-
ing Biblically.” It seems Miles Finer isn’t the only one with
a thirst for answers. Join Miles and his friends on his quest in “God Friended
Me,” airing Sunday, Oct. 21, on CBS.
Violett Beane stars in “God Friended Me”
series has the potential to spark thoughtful conversations about spiri- tuality and religion, for believers and non-believers alike.
Brandon Micheal Hall (“The Mayor”) stars as Miles Finer, an atheist whose life is turned upside
down when he accepts a social media friend request from someone claiming to be God in “God Friended Me,” airing Sunday, Oct. 21, on CBS. Through a series of friend sugges- tions, “God” has led Miles to Cara Bloom (Violett Beane, “The Flash”), a struggling young journalist who becomes an unlikely sidekick as he inadvertently helps those in need.
While the premise may require
a leap of faith, TV industry pundits seem to have an open mind about the series, which has been featured in such high-profile publications as Vanity Fair and Variety. In a Septem- ber vanityfair.com article, creator Bryan Wynbrandt (“Gotham”) ex- plained the purpose of the show.
“The hope of the show is to focus on the positive when there is so much negative,” Wynbrandt said.
Before accepting the friend re- quest, Miles had been promoting his atheist views on his podcast, which put him at odds with his fa- ther, Rev. Arthur Finer (Joe Morton, “Scandal”). A prominent preacher at Harlem’s Trinity Church, Arthur
is, not surprisingly, hurt by his son’s lackoffaith.Miles’sister,Ali(Javicia Leslie, “Killer Coach,” 2016), works as a bartender by day and studies psychology at night, often offering up advice to her brother and Cara as they try to solve the mystery behind the God account. They also enlist the
help of Miles’ best friend, Rakesh (Suraj Sharma, “Life of Pi,” 2012), a hacker who tries to find information about the account.
In an effort to promote the show and get people talking about it, CBS served up an early release of the pilot episode, which the network made available on a variety of platforms — including CBS.com, CBS All Access, the CBS app, Facebook Premieres and Twitter — as of Friday, Aug. 31. CBS executive George Schweitzer had high praise for the unique series when the early release was announced.
“This is a show that deserves advance exposure,” Schweitzer said. “Once people see ‘God Friended Me,’ they respond to its positive and life- affirming values.”
In the vein of such iconic televi- sion series as “Touched by an Angel” and “Highway to Heaven,” the show aspires to inspire viewers as Miles helps those in need, whom he finds via “God’s” friend suggestions. Whether he’s saving a doctor from stepping in front of a train or helping Cara reconnect with her long-lost mother (Rachel Bay Jones, “Dear Evan Hansen”), Miles can’t help but wonder if the God account is really
a hoax or something more. As it turns out, Miles discovers he has an unexpected connection to Cara: her mother was a nurse to his mother, who died of breast cancer when he was still a child. His experiences with the God account soon prompt him to question his long-held
stance on spirituality
and religion.
The role is an interesting choice for Hall, whose mother is a preacher. He’s claimed on
more than one occasion that
he practi-
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