The time period “Dad TV” has been round for years. Sometimes it refers to a collection with a male lead that’s relatable and an professional in a selected area who overcomes some sort of problem or surprising hardship. Throw in a contact of humor, a way of nostalgia, and a canine or little one to guard, and you’ve got a TV collection any dad could be pleased to look at.
Whereas some could argue that tv has at all times been Dad TV (if you happen to’re over 40, chances are high your dad at all times managed the distant once you have been a child), the style has just lately advanced. Due to sturdy feminine leads in what was once seen as prototypically male roles, the style has fully advanced from Dad TV into Grown-Up TV.
Eric Deggans, a TV Critic and media analyst for NPR has additionally seen this evolution. Citing two explicit causes for the shift: “Girls watch TV extra than males do, so it’s by no means made sense to make TV reveals that focus solely on guys as a result of it downplays your largest potential audiences,” Deggans wrote, referring to procedurals centered on regulation and crime. “As a substitute of going for the viewers that’s arduous to get and charging advertisers extra, which is what networks used to aim to do with younger viewers, they understand it’s a greater enterprise resolution to offer content material for the viewers that’s already there… Placing a girl in a historically male-centered atmosphere, like in Particular Ops: Lioness, for instance, performs with relationship dynamics, provides storytellers extra instruments to work with, and might create stress. Characters that stick with conventional gender roles can result in predictable storytelling.”
Over the previous few years, there have been a number of examples of feminine protagonists with vast enchantment that illustrate the evolution of Dad TV into Grown-Up TV. Most impressively, they now cowl a myriad of genres. Right here’s a glance.
Michael Greenberg / CBS
Procedural dramas
Maybe the realm the place feminine leads have helped evolve Dad TV probably the most is in authorized, police, and medical procedurals. Mariska Hargitay (Legislation & Order: SVU), Ellen Pompeo (Gray’s Anatomy), Angela Bassett (9-1-1), and Queen Latifah (The Equalizer) have performed sturdy, beloved characters for years. In 2024, there’s been an inflow of much more feminine crime fighters and high docs.
Oscar winner Jodie Foster reinvigorated the True Detective franchise earlier this 12 months and received an Emmy for her function as Detective Liz Danvers within the Alaskan-set Evening Nation. Excessive Potential, which debuted this fall and stars Kaitlin Olson as a single mother with a excessive IQ and a knack for fixing crimes, is ABC’s most-watched collection in six years. Matlock, a reboot that’s not a reboot starring one other Academy Award winner, Kathy Bates, has been an enormous hit for CBS and has a 100% assessment rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The collection was renewed for a second season after simply two episodes. And Pulse, Netflix’s upcoming foray into hospital dramas, will likely be led by Willa Fitzgerald.
Apple TV+
Sci-Fi
The sci-fi TV style has lengthy been a house for layered feminine characters comparable to Dana Scully (The X-Information), Kara Thrace (Battlestar Galactica), and Olivia Dunham (Fringe). The previous couple of years have seen a resurgence of those sorts of roles.
Silo, which premiered with its second season on November 15, facilities its post-apocalyptic story round probably the most quintessential of Dad TV characters: the neatest particular person within the room (Rebecca Ferguson) making an attempt to get to a reality suppressed by a authorities company. Three of this 2024’s most talked about collection – The Acolyte, Agatha All Alongside, and Fallout – are all largely female-led reveals and took difficult TV subgenres (Star Wars, Marvel, and online game diversifications) into daring instructions. Heck, with Fallout, Yellowjackets, Sweetpea, and Arcane, Ella Purnell is single-handedly redefining the Dad TV style.
Paramount+ / Courtesy Everett Assortment
Household dramas
Academy Award winner Alfonso Cuaron’s collection Disclaimer, based mostly on the 2015 novel of the identical title by Renee Knight, is one more instance of a job shift that works. We’ve all seen the implications of males having an affair on tv, however on this collection, viewers are hypnotized when witnessing how a long-buried secret of journalist/documentarian Catherine Ravenscroft (Cate Blanchett) unravels her life.
Yellowstone, which has slowly turned Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) into the collection lead instead of Kevin Costner, and The Excellent Couple (Nicole Kidman) are two different well-liked reveals which are constructed round sturdy, sophisticated feminine characters in household dramas.
Amazon Prime Video
Army/Spy
Not surprisingly, the navy/spy TV style has been dominated by male leads for many years however that started to alter within the 2000s. Reveals like Alias (Jennifer Garner), led to Homeland (Claire Danes), Covert Affairs (Piper Perabo), and Hanna (Esme Creed-Miles).
In the present day the navy/spy style is pushed by the female-led Citadel (Priyanka Chopra Jonas), its two spin-offs Citadel: Diana (Matilda De Angelis) and Citadel: Honey Bunny (Samantha Ruth Prabhu), and Lioness (Zoe Saldana) which was created by the king of Dad TV, Taylor Sheridan.
What does the evolution of Dad TV into Grown-Up TV really imply?
The most important takeaway from female-led reveals gaining widespread reputation in what was once male-dominated subgenres is that at this time’s TV viewers have demonstrated that they largely need the identical factor. No matter gender, audiences get pleasure from rooting for relatable, expert protagonists coping with an easy dilemma.
To make sure, there’s loads of nuance. Characters in Grown-Up TV reveals have their complexities however when it comes proper right down to it, TV collection with clear good guys and dangerous guys makes for a satisfying expertise. However whether or not that good man is a person or a girl not issues. Throw in a contact of humor, some nostalgia, and a canine or little one to guard, and you’ve got a TV collection anyone could be pleased to look at.
