Jeff Daniels’ New Netflix Show Sounds Like A Huge Improvement From His 26% RT Crime Drama On Amazon

Summary

• Jeff Daniels returns to television in A Man In Full, based on Tom Wolfe’s novel, with a stellar cast and high potential for success.
• A Man In Full could be Jeff Daniels’ next big hit, redeeming the disappointments of his recent TV series and showcasing his talent.
• Positioned as a high-stakes business drama, A Man In Full has the makings of a binge-worthy Netflix series, potentially elevating Jeff Daniels’ career.

Iconic actor Jeff Daniels has a new series coming to Netflix in May 2024 called A Man In Fulland luckily, this show looks much better than his most recent release, which earned an unfortunate Rotten Tomatoes score. Jeff Daniels has been a film and television star since the 1980s, starting his career with movies such as The Purple Rose of Cairo, Something Wild, and Heartburn. Since then, he has appeared in a significant number of truly iconic projects, like Dumb and Dumber, Steven Jobs, Looper, and The Martian. Now, he is premiering his newest television series.

A Man In Full is a limited series based on a novel of the same name by Tom Wolfe. The story follows real estate mogul Charlie Croker, who begins to be targeted by enemies when he goes bankrupt. Croker is played by Jeff Daniels, while the rest of A Man In Full’s cast includes Diane Lane, William Jackson Harper, and Lucy Liu. The series is set to premiere all six of its episodes on May 2, 2024. A Man In Full is far from the first Tom Wolfe book to miniseries adaptation, and this could help the show succeed.

Jeff Daniels’ A Man In Full Looks Like His Best TV Show Since The Looming Tower

A Man In Full Has A Lot Going For It

What makes A Man In Full so exciting is that it seems like it could be a successful series, and it would be Jeff Daniels’ first since 2018’s The Looming Tower. Though Daniels has appeared in quite a bit of television, not all of his projects have done well. For example, The Looming Tower was a critically acclaimed series that received award nominations, however, the three series that he has done since have gone under the radar. Even if they were well-received, they didn’t make any sort of splash. But now, A Man In Full could change this Jeff Daniels trend.

After The Looming Tower, Jeff Daniels appeared in Washington, The Comey Rule, and American Rust.

A Man In Full has several things going for it. First and foremost, it has a strong cast made up of very well-known and beloved actors, and also some newcomers. Typically, this type of mixture helps make a television series seem reliable, but also keeps audiences intrigued with new faces. Furthermore, A Man In Full is based on a Tom Wolfe story, and the prolific author almost certainly has fans that are eager to see this story come to life. Altogether, A Man In Full has the making of a riveting and bingeable Netflix series.

A Man In Full Can Redeem American Rust’s Rotten Tomatoes Disappointment For Jeff Daniels

American Rust Earned A 26% On Rotten Tomatoes

Another great part of A Man In Full is that, if it does become successful, it can make up for Jeff Daniels’ most recent television flop. Since 2021, the actor has starred in the crime drama, America Rust, which sees Daniels play a chief of police who investigates murder charges against the son of the woman he loves. Although the series was renewed for a second season, it currently holds a 26% on Rotten Tomatoes, hinting that the show may be at its end.

Critics feel that
American Rust
has a talented cast, but the story simply does not hold.

Despite this disappointment, Jeff Daniels has his American Rust replacement, and it’s coming soon. In the coming weeks, audiences can get their fill of Jeff Daniels in A Man In Full. And hopefully, the series will live up to fans’ expectations. Not only can it make up for American Rust’s failure, but it can also become a new favorite among Netflix viewers and Jeff Daniels’ fans.

A Man In Full Could Be Jeff Daniels’ Version Of HBO’s Succession

Jeff Daniels Is Overdue For A New TV Hit

Audiences have shown they love high-stakes business drama with powerful people jockeying for position and control. Succession was HBO’s biggest hit since Game of Thronesone of the last true water cooler shows airing weekly. Depending on how it’s received, A Man in Full could very well be Jeff Daniels’ equivalent of Successionmaking new stars, or, in the case of Daniels, raising his already bright star to new heights in his career. The material, especially based on Tom Wolfe’s taut, gripping writing, the drama, and the excellent cast assembled all bode well for A Man in Full‘s success.

However, one thing working against it is Netflix’s binge model dropping all episodes at once. Whereas Succession gained an audience over weeks, allowing conversation and speculation to brew each week leading up to each new release, A Man in Full’s episodes will be simultaneously released, like all Netflix series. While this works with Netflix’s frothier, more forgettable shows, it’s arguably not the best release strategy for a show the streamer surely intends to be the next big, prestige drama. Still, with the dearth of truly gripping business mogul dramas on TV right now, A Man in Full is positioned to be a big hit with audiences.

A Man In Full Continues Jeff Daniels’ “Dad TV” Trend Alongside American Rust

Jeff Daniels Has Entered His Dad Phase

Jeff Daniels has undoubtedly had a wildly varied career. However, like any actor or artist who has been in the game for decades, Daniels is going through something of a phase right now. Pablo Picasso had his Blue Period; Steven Spielberg had his historical drama period. Now, Jeff Daniels is firmly ensconced in a “Dad TV” phasecontinuing his trend started with shows like The Newsroom and American Rust. Dad TV, like dad movies, are grouped together by tone and vibe rather than being any specific genre, but a viewer knows it when they see it. Yellowstone, Reacher, Jack Ryan, Bosch – they all fall into the “dad TV” category.

Interestingly, however, dad TV doesn’t just target men: plenty of women watch these shows, too. They tend to be fairly middlebrow – not so complicated that one has to watch closely lest they miss an important detail, but not so mindless that one’s brain can be turned off while watching. They generally feature an aging Hollywood star as either a bit of a cantankerous and difficult character or a highly competent loner. However they’re portrayed, plenty of equally aging men find a lot to relate to in the protagonists.

What will be most interesting to see is whether A Man in Full will be more elevated than the usual dad TV genre. It could lean a little more toward Succession or a little more like Billions, and it will be fun to see which path it follows. With Tom Wolfe behind the source material, it could truly go either way: he is, after all, the author who wrote the praised The Bonfire of the Vanitiesbut also the one who wrote the panned I Am Charlotte Simmons. It all depends on how Netflix chooses to handle the material. However it shakes out, it’s exciting to see Jeff Daniels in another small screen role that allows him to flourish.