Ever since The Silence of the Lambs was released and became a classic, and Hannibal premiered on NBC, tales of exploring the criminal mind have been one of the hottest stories in the movie industry/ television. This begs the question: what makes a psychopath a psychopath? And the depiction of the answer to that question, whether on the big or small screen, is compelling enough to have studios and television networks throwing millions at it. This has led to several shows exploring the minds of killers and psychopaths and Mindhunter is one of those shows.
Netflix, the big streaming service on its way to producing everything worth watching, decided to jump into this market in 2016 when it announced the production of Mindhunter. The show began filming in May 2016. Perhaps due to the talent of the talents attached to the project or the service’s ability to make big bets, the show was renewed for a second season ahead of its premiere on the channel. . David Fincher is one of Hollywood’s finest directors. The bet paid off and the show was a critical success when it was released in 2017. It was named one of the best shows of that year by several major media publications.
Mindhunter – Synopsis
Mindhunter is a crime drama story that explores the psyche of serial killers in American history through the eyes of two Federal Bureau of Investigation agents. The premise and story of the series are inspired by a book of the same name, Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Serial Crime Unit. The book was written by John E. Douglas and Mark Olshaker in 1995.
The story follows agents Holden Ford and BillTench played by Jonathan Groff and Holt McCallany respectively and Wendy Carr, a psychologist (played by Anna Torv) whom they follow during their search to understand the minds of imprisoned serial killers in order to to help them track and solve current serial crime cases. The show delves deeply into the graphic nature of the crimes and its impact on the lives of members of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit team, as they delve into the space of a rabbit who is the mind of a psychopath.
The characters in the series are mostly based on real-life versions of the people in the story. Holden Ford and Jonathan Groff are the portrayals of the authors of the book the show is based on, John E. Douglas and Mark Olshaker. Psychologist Wendy Carr is based on a Boston College professor who worked with FBI agents and won grants to meet with serial murderers and rapists to conduct research on them.
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The main cast of Mindhunter is a small group of B-list actors and actresses Its 10-season run helps the series tell a compact story that helped it become one of the best early seasons of a TV show. The show features five main characters: Holden Ford, Bill Tench, Debbie Mitford, Shepard, and Wendy Carr. Apart from the main character, the show features a host of recurring characters. Here’s a more in-depth look at the cast and their respective characters.
Jonathan Groff
Before he began traveling across America trying to understand the minds of serial killers like Holden Ford in Mindhunter, Jonathan had made a name for himself in the theater. He is a leading actor who has been twice Tony nominated for his performances in Spring Awakening and overall theater sensation, Hamilton. He is also a Grammy winner as part of the cast recording for the ‘Hamilton Theater album’. The Pennsylvania-born actor also starred in other projects such as Walt Disney’s Frozen as Kristoff and played Jesse St. James on the hit series, Glee.
Jonathan Groff was chosen as one of two leads on Mindhunter in 2017. He previously battled melanoma skin cancer in his early 20s and came out of the closet as a gay man. He is set to reprise his role as Holden Ford on the hit series for the upcoming second season.
Holt McCallany
Holt McCallany has played a lot of straight executive characters over his 30-year career. A career that began with him literally running away from home at the age of 14 has seen him appear in more than 20 films, including iconic films like Fight Club and Tyson. Holt was cast as Bill Tench, the second half of two lower-level FBI agents who have alternate ideas about the series’ serial crime investigation model. In a recent interview, Holt credits his late father for inspiring his characterization of Bill Tench. Holt’s portrayal of the character has been described as one of the important elements in the show’s success.
Hannah Gross
After earning a bachelor’s degree from New York University, having a credit on one of modern television’s most critical shows is a decent thing for her to show. Hannah Gross plays Debbie Mitford, Holden Ford’s smart girlfriend, who set him on the series’ story path. Hannah Gross is a Canadian actress from an acting family. She has primarily featured in films, with her only television work being Mindhunter and The Sinner. She is also a theater actress who has performed in three plays.
Cotter Smith
Cotter plays Shepard in the show, the unit chief placed under the supervision of the work of the FBI Academy’s Behavioral Analysis Unit. Cotter is not new to TV shows. Since his debut on television in 1982, he has subsequently appeared on more than 20 television shows, including popular ones. Law and Order, Person of Interest and Madam Secretary. The credits of the American actor also touches film and stage productions. Outside of acting, Cotter Smith is a teacher at the New School for Drama in New York.
Anna Torv
Anna Torv rounds out the main cast of Mindhunter as Doctor Wendy Carr, who lends her academic expertise to interviews conducted by FBI agents Holden Ford and Bill Tench. Anna Torv joins the team after her thoughts on early interviews conducted by the duo were seen as having a huge impact. Her role in Mindhunter marks her second major role on a hit show since her lead in Fringe. Apart from television, she is also a theater actress and has appeared in a number of feature films. She is an Australian actress who started her acting career in 2002, although she started acting in theater since 1986.
Recurring characters in the series are played by Stacey Roca as Nancy Tench, wife of Bill Tench. Michael Park stars as Peter Dean, an OPR (Office of Professional Responsibility) investigator assigned to investigate an incident involving the unit. Cameron Britton plays Ed Kemper, a clever serial killer who was interviewed by the team. Although Cameron Britton isn’t a major cast member on the show, his portrayal of Ed Kemper earned him an Emmy nomination in what has been described as a visceral and chilling portrayal of the sociopath. Sonny Valicenti plays a military ADT who is presumed to be high-profile serial killer Dennis Rader.
The show was produced by Charlize Theron and David Fincher. It was written by Joe Penhall, and the show’s production was filmed in McKeesport, Pennsylvania.
Comments
As mentioned earlier, the show was a critical success. Rotten Tomatoes’ consensus statement, titled ” Mindhunter stands out in a cluttered genre of ambitious cinematic visuals and meticulous attention to character development.” On major review sites like Metacritic and Rotten Tomatoes, the show is highly rated, with Metacritic giving it a 79/100 rating and Rotten Tomatoes giving it a 96% rating. The show, with its strong overall scores, was named one of the top 10 shows of the year by major publications including Time Magazine, Vanity Fair, The Guardian, New York Observer and The Independent.
The show has been nominated for several awards, including Emmy for Cameron Britton, who portrays Ed Kemper as Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series. Mindhunter season one received seven nominations from six award bodies. He only won one award, however.
Mindhunter Season 2 – Release Date, Spoilers
Mindhunter was renewed for a second season ahead of the release of the first season. According to showrunner David Fincher, there are five seasons planned for the show, but it remains to be seen if Netflix will keep the show in its line-up for that long.
As for the second season, so far, the information about the release date “with David Fincher only insisted that the second should be released in 2018. The second season will be broadcast with two episodes less than the first season.
With the series’ crime stories based on the real-life dramatization of real-life incidents, the second season will focus on the Atlanta child murders that took place in 1979 and 1981. David Fincher also confirmed that the second season will add Damon Herriman to play Charles Manson for the See the Manson Murders story.
All main cast members are expected to return for the second season.