Based on a True Story (TV series)

Based on a True Story is an American comedy thriller television series created by Craig Rosenberg, starring Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina. The series premiered on Peacock on June 8, 2023. In October 2023, the series was renewed for a second season.

Main

 * Kaley Cuoco as Ava Bartlett, a pregnant real estate agent who is passionate about true crime
 * Chris Messina as Nathan Bartlett, Ava's husband and a tennis coach at the Beverly Club who used to be a famous tennis player before a career-ending knee injury
 * Tom Bateman as Matt Pierce, a plumber who befriends Nathan
 * Priscilla Quintana as Ruby Gale, Ava's affluent friend
 * Liana Liberato as Tory Thompson, Ava's younger sister who lives with her and Nathan
 * Natalia Dyer as Chloe Lake, a bartender who catches the eye of Matt and Nathan at a bar one night

Recurring

 * Li Jun Li as Michelle, Nathan's colleague at the country club
 * Annabelle Dexter-Jones as Serena, one of Ava's best friends
 * Aisha Alfa as Carolyn, another of Ava's best friends
 * Alex Alomar Akpobome as Ryan, a client of Ava's who is looking to buy a mansion
 * June Diane Raphael as Lipinski sister No. 1
 * Brandon Keener as Paul, Serena's husband
 * Miles Mussenden as Detective Quincy Burrell
 * Pierson Fodé as Jamie
 * Sebastian Quinn as Carlos, Ruby's paramour

Guest

 * Jessica St. Clair as Lipinski sister No. 2
 * Aaron Staton as Simon, Ruby's husband
 * Timm Sharp as Richard, Carolyn's husband
 * Yvonne Senat Jones as Detective Jessie Peterson
 * Lizze Broadway as Dahlia Stone
 * Ever Carradine as Melissa Lake, Chloe's mother
 * Claire Holt as a TV writer
 * George Sear as Jacob, Tory's Bumble date

Production
In April 2022, it was announced that Peacock had given a straight-to-series order to a comedy thriller series created by Craig Rosenberg and Jason Bateman. In August, it was announced that Kaley Cuoco had joined the main cast as a realtor, Ava Bartlett. In October, it was announced that Chris Messina had been cast as Nathan, the husband of Ava, with additional casting including Tom Bateman, Liana Liberato, Priscilla Quintana, Natalia Dyer, and Li Jun Li announced the following month. In October 2023, Peacock renewed the series for a second season. In March 2024, Rosenberg had been replaced by Annie Weisman as showrunner for the second season as he still remains as an executive producer, but wanted to pursue other projects.

The series will be executive produced by Jason Bateman and Michael Costigan through Aggregate Films, and Craig Rosenberg. Roxie Rodriguez will serves as co-executive producer for Aggregate Films. Production companies for the series include Aggregate Films and Universal Content Productions.

Release
All eight episodes were released to stream on Peacock on June 8, 2023.

Reception
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 74% based on 42 critic reviews, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "True crime enthusiasts have been satirized more sharply, but engaging leads and a lightly humorous touch make Based on a True Story worth investigating." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 60 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".