Love & Death (miniseries)

Love & Death is an American biographical crime drama television miniseries directed by Lesli Linka Glatter and Clark Johnson, written by David E. Kelley that premiered on April 27, 2023, on HBO Max. It stars Elizabeth Olsen, Jesse Plemons, Lily Rabe, Patrick Fugit, Krysten Ritter, Tom Pelphrey, Elizabeth Marvel, and Keir Gilchrist.

The series is based on the true story of Candy Montgomery, a housewife from Wylie, Texas. It centers around Montgomery, who is living a stereotypical housewife lifestyle in the late 1970s. She has to go before a jury after an affair with her friend from church leads to a killing.

The series received mainly positive reviews, praising its performances (particularly Olsen's), its cinematography and set pieces, and its take on Montgomery, finding humanity in her. On June 1, 2023, Max announced that Love & Death had become their most watched original limited series globally. At the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards, Plemons was nominated for a Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie.

Production
It was announced in May 2021 that HBO Max had greenlit the miniseries, with Elizabeth Olsen set to star. Jesse Plemons joined the cast later in the month. In June, Patrick Fugit was added to the cast, with Lily Rabe, Keir Gilchrist, Elizabeth Marvel, Tom Pelphrey and Krysten Ritter joining in the following months.

On-location shooting took place in Austin, Texas, and surrounding areas to include La Grange, Coupland, Georgetown, Hutto, Seguin, Kerrville, Lockhart, Killeen, Smithville, Buda and San Marcos.

Release
Love & Death premiered on HBO Max on April 27, 2023, with the first three episodes available immediately and the rest debuting on a weekly basis until May 25. In the UK, the series premiered on September 7, 2023, on ITV's on-demand streaming platform, ITVX.

Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, Love & Death holds an approval rating of 62% based on 50 critic reviews, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "A terrific Elizabeth Olsen gives Love & Death some life, but this rote retelling of a grisly murder does little to distinguish itself from other true crime tales." Metacritic assigned the series a weighted average score of 62 out of 100, based on 18 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Variety said that Love & Death is "well-made" but unoriginal, drawing comparisons to Hulu's 2022 series Candy on the same subject. They credit the true crime boom as a reason for how the show "turn[s] real people into exaggerated, if empathetically rendered, versions of themselves".