Hightown (TV series)

Hightown is an American crime drama television series that premiered on Starz on May 17, 2020. The series is created by Rebecca Cutter and executive produced by Cutter, Gary Lennon, Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman, and KristieAnne Reed and stars Monica Raymund and James Badge Dale. In June 2020, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on October 17, 2021. In March 2022, the series was renewed for a third season. The third and final season premiered on January 26, 2024.

Premise
Jackie Quiñones (Monica Raymund) is a National Marine Fisheries Service Agent in Provincetown, Massachusetts who abuses alcohol and drugs. She finds the body of a murdered woman, which launches an investigation by Detectives Alan Saintille (Dohn Norwood) and Ray Abruzzo (James Badge Dale) into Cape Cod organized crime and the local opioid epidemic.

Main

 * Monica Raymund as Jackie Quiñones, a National Marine Fisheries Service Agent in Provincetown, Massachusetts, who is a lesbian suffering from alcoholism, drug addiction, and obsessive behavior
 * Riley Voelkel as Renee Segna, an exotic dancer at Xavier's Bar and Lounge and the fiancée of Frankie Cuevas Sr.
 * Shane Harper as Junior McCarthy (season 1; guest season 2), a drug dealer and fisherman who is Jackie's friend
 * Atkins Estimond as Osito Delgado, Frankie Cuevas Sr.'s ambitious lieutenant, who is running the criminal organization during Frankie's incarceration
 * Amaury Nolasco as Frankie Cuevas Sr., a drug kingpin who is in jail and married to Renee
 * Dohn Norwood as Alan Saintille, a trooper with the Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Cape Cod Interagency Narcotics Unit (CCINU)
 * James Badge Dale as Ray Abruzzo, a Massachusetts State Police detective and Alan's partner, with a history of sex addiction

Recurring

 * Rumi C. Jean-Louis as Frankie Cuevas Jr., Renee and Frankie Cuevas Sr.'s son
 * Imani Lewis as Charmaine Grasa, niece of drug kingpin Wayne Grasa who takes over his empire after he goes to jail
 * Mike Pniewski as Ed Murphy, Jackie's National Marine Fisheries Service partner, confidante, and mentor
 * Masha King as Sherry Henry (season 1), Ray's confidential informant, and the murder victim whose corpse is discovered by Jackie
 * Crystal Lake Evans as Krista Collins (season 1), Sherry's best friend who witnesses her murder
 * Ana Nogueira as Donna, Junior's on-and-off girlfriend with whom he has a child, and Renee's coworker at Xavier's
 * Edmund Donovan as Kizzle (season 1), an irresponsible criminal working for Osito
 * Gia Crovatin as Devonne Wilson (seasons 1–2), Jackie's ex-girlfriend
 * Michael Mulheren as Lt. Velekee (season 1), Ray's disgruntled boss approaching retirement
 * Joy Suprano as Patricia, a sarcastic precinct clerk who works with Ray
 * Tonya Glanz as Trooper Leslie Babcock (seasons 1–2, guest season 3), Ray's old Massachusetts State Police partner whom he had an affair with and Jackie's Massachusetts State Police partner, becoming involved with Jackie in the second season
 * Luis Guzmán as Jorge Cuevas (season 2), Frankie's cousin who mistrusts Renee
 * Dominic L. Santana as Chuleta (seasons 2–3), Frankie's muscle
 * Jona Xiao as Daisy (season 2), an exotic dancer who dates Jorge
 * Charline St. Charles as Henriette (season 2)
 * Crystal Lee Brown (season 2) and Taja V. Simpson (season 3) as Janelle, Osito's no-nonsense physical therapist
 * Cecil Blutcher as Vernon (seasons 2–3), Osito's cocky but intelligent cellmate
 * Carlos Gomez as Rafael (season 2), Jackie's neglectful, drug addict father
 * Barbara Weetman as Callie (seasons 2–3), Renee's overbearing mother
 * Garret Dillahunt as Shane Frawley (season 3), a Boston gangster who comes to Provincetown and feuds with Osito
 * Michael Drayer as Owen Frawley (season 3), Shane's impulsive, loose cannon nephew
 * Jeanine Serralles as Rachel (season 3), a lonely woman who lives with her grandmother and finds comfort in writing letters to Frankie
 * Kaya Rosenthal as Sarah (season 3), a young rookie undercover narcotics officer working with Ray
 * Ellie Barone as Veronica (season 3), a tough working girl who goes missing after a drunken night with Jackie, and becomes her latest obsession
 * Mark Boone Junior as Petey, Jackie's dealer (seasons 2–3)

Development
By November 27, 2017, Starz had put the production, then titled P-Town, into development. The series was created by Rebecca Cutter, with Gary Lennon as showrunner and both serving executive producers alongside Jerry Bruckheimer, Jonathan Littman, and KristieAnne Reed. Production companies involved with the series were slated to consist of Jerry Bruckheimer Television. By November 26, 2018, Starz had given the production, now titled Hightown, a series order. On February 5, 2019, it was announced that Rachel Morrison would serve as director for the series. On June 11, 2020, Starz renewed the series for a second season. More recently, the creator signed a deal with Lionsgate Television. The second season premiered on October 17, 2021. On March 1, 2022, Starz renewed the series for a third and final season which premiered on January 26, 2024.

Casting
On September 14, 2018, Monica Raymund had been cast in a leading role in the pilot. On January 9, 2019, James Badge Dale and Riley Voelkel had joined the main cast. In February 2019, Shane Harper, Atkins Estimond, Amaury Nolasco, and Dohn Norwood had been cast in the series in starring roles. On November 19, 2020, Luis Guzmán was cast in a recurring role for the second season. On December 16, 2020, Crystal Lee Brown, Cecil Blutcher, Carlos Gomez, and Barbara Weetman joined the cast in recurring capacities for the second season. On June 15, 2022, Garret Dillahunt, Jeanine Serralles, Kaya Rosenthal, Michael Drayer, Ellie Barone, and Taja V. Simpson were cast in recurring roles for the third season.

Filming
Principal photography for the series was scheduled to commence in March 2019. The Provincetown, Massachusetts, Select Board voted on April 29, 2019, to allow filming from May 20 to June 11 at locations including MacMillan Pier and the harbor, the West End rotary, and Provincetown Inn. Commercial Street between Standish and Ryder streets was scheduled to be closed for part of June 4 in order to recreate a Carnival parade scene. Production for the second season began on November 19, 2020, and concluded on April 2, 2021. Starting in season two the show's production moved to Wilmington, North Carolina. Production on season 3 started in May 2022 and wrapped at the end of July.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 80% based on 20 reviews with an average rating of 6.07/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Monica Raymund's charms rise above any formulaic tendencies in Hightown highly entertaining first season. On Metacritic, the series has a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, based on 8 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".