Imagine having to take on a job that you had no experience doing, or any remote interest in doing. Now, imagine if that job just happened to be the most important one in the world – being the President of The United States. On top of all that, what if you had to reluctantly assume that role after your sister, the sitting President, the Vice President and the Speaker of the House unexpectedly die?
As unbelievable as that sounds, that very situation is depicted in hilarious fashion in all 8 episodes of season 1 of the new Left Brain Digital comedy series THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT, produced by Joe Thomas and Ed Lamberg. The series debuted January 5th, and is now streaming via the official Left Brain TV web site (see link below).
Based on a series of books, written by Dixie Swanson (who also serves as the show’s co-executive producer), THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT follows Abigail Adams (Sarah Shoemaker), a hospital physician with no knowledge of, or experience in, the dog eat dog world of politics. In fact, Abigail just wants to go back to her regular duties of being an ER doctor.
Instantly, her life is turned upside down once she finds that her sister Priscilla, a powerful U.S. Senator who is dying of cancer, expresses her last wish – to have her assume her former seat. After having been appointed to fill that position by Tennessee Governor Michael Malloy (Mike Shiflett), Abigail begrudgingly agrees to do so. Incredibly, her climb up the political ladder doesn’t stop there.
No sooner than she takes her oath of office does Abigail, along with the rest of the world, learn of the sudden deaths of the President, Vice President and Speaker Of The House. Abigail’s stunning rise to the highest seat of power in D.C. is complete, having been sworn in as the first female President of the United States. Now, she finds herself having to contend with the day to day responsibilities of governing, as well as keeping the morale of the country high.
The series’ talented ensemble cast also features Terry Kiser (WEEKEND AT BERNIE’S, JOHNNY DYNAMO) as Adams’ chief of staff David Jericho, Rob Wilds as Defense Secretary O’Neil, and Greg Standifer (MR. FROST) as Congressman Andy Katz. Guest stars include veteran actor Eric Roberts as Vice President Barker, and Tommy “Tiny” Lister as House Speaker Jernigan.
Inspired by both Swanson’s original book series, plus his love of politically themed TV dramas and comedies, Thomas jumped at the chance to adapt those books into a new web series. “I loved the whole concept from the minute I read it, and the idea of creating a political series really intrigued me,” says Thomas, who adds that although Swanson’s novels provided him with plenty of inspiration to adapt them into a web series, there’s a key difference between them.
“The books deal more with the family life of the lead character but the series deals more with political aspects of her Presidency,” he says. “We take a look at some of the burdens, stereotypes and unique obstacles a female President might encounter and it’s been a lot if fun so far. I’m sure our feminist fans will either applaud our effort or despise it – I don’t think there’s going to be much of a middle ground.”
For Thomas, THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT is not just a mere comedy about the topsy turvy world of big time politics. It’s also a show filled with considerable depth and indescribable appeal; one that Thomas truly takes enormous pride in.
“It’s definitely a comedy, but there are heavy doses of drama throughout,” he adds. “Personally, I am extremely proud of this show and I think it’s one of the most unique series out there. There is a certain charm to the show – and you know, sometimes you can’t really put your finger on it, but it’s just different.”
Unlike their work on past projects like JOHNNY DYNAMO and MR. FROST, Thomas and his team found that bringing THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT to the screen would not be as easy as simply casting a ballot in the voting booth. For one thing, given the depth of the original source material, and how different Swanson approached the book series’ main character, writing the series proved to be the first of many challenges for Thomas.
“The books didn’t really get into a lot of the political wrangling and we changed quite a bit of the storyline on how our heroine assumes the Office,” he says. “It took almost 3 months to actually write the first couple of episodes. Once we had the initial scripts and cast, we spent quite a bit of time in pre-production. So far it’s been one of our more complicated projects.”
As anyone who’s ever created a fictional portrayal of the American presidency can attest, it’s a tough task to effectively recreate the White House, and especially, the Oval Office, on a studio soundstage.
Thomas, Lamberg and the entire production team found that out the hard way during shooting of THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT, and it proved to be an even more daunting task than merely adapting and transforming the written source material.
“The process for this series was a lot more challenging for us just based on the setting. You can’t shoot a show like this without an incredible set design team,” Thomas adds. “We constructed a complete replica of the Oval Office and then had to decorate it accordingly. We had many an argument about sofas and tables.”
Thankfully, the author of THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT was on hand to guide the producers on the finer points of the show’s scenic design. “Dixie Swanson actually played a big part in helping to choose the furniture and artwork,” recalls Thomas. “We were really lucky to find a Resolute Desk, so our main set is incredibly realistic.”
Despite those problems, Thomas, Lamberg and the Left Brain Digital production unit benefitted from the one thing that resulted in the success of MR. FROST and JOHNNY DYNAMO – their long working relationship and dedication to producing quality content.
“We’re lucky in that our production crew remains consistent with all our projects and that’s really beneficial for us,” Thomas says. “We work together extremely well and everybody is completely committed to the projects we do.”
Thanks to its distinctive characters and comedy, and its incredible “fish out of water” story of a mild mannered woman who suddenly finds herself thrust into the toughest, most scrutinized job in the world, Thomas feels that THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT will appeal to all those who enjoy a little comedy with their politics – no matter if they lean left, right or somewhere in between.
In fact, says Thomas, it may make viewers pause to consider just how crucial their role in the political process can be. “Even if you’re not a political person, I think there are things about this show that will make you stop and think about what’s important to the average American,” he says. “It’s about thinking outside the box to solve some of our issues. It’s about taking the politics out and putting the people in.”
(Note: Thomas says that THE ACCIDENTAL PRESIDENT, along with all other Left Brain Digital shows, are currently being closed-captioned.)
ON THE WEB: www.leftbraintv.com
No Comment