Mr Inbetween

Mr Inbetween is an Australian black comedy-crime drama television series which premiered on FX on 25 September 2018 in the United States, followed by Fox Showcase in Australia on 1 October 2018. The series is a serialisation of the 2005 feature film The Magician, which was created, written by and starred Scott Ryan. Ryan reprises his lead role and is also the writer for the series, which is directed by Nash Edgerton.

The program was originally commissioned for FX Australia as its first original drama production, but instead launched in Australia on Showcase following the closure of FX Australia between commission and premiere. Filming took place in various locations in Sydney.

On 9 October 2018, FX and Foxtel renewed the series for a second season which premiered on 12 September 2019. On 26 May 2020, the series was renewed for a third and final season which premiered on 25 May 2021. The series concluded on 13 July 2021, after three seasons and 26 episodes. The series received critical acclaim, with praise for its writing, directing, performances and tone.

Premise
Set within the suburbs of Sydney, Raymond "Ray" Shoesmith (Scott Ryan) is a hitman for hire who makes a life out of balancing his criminal activities with his obligations to friends and family. He tries to be a father to Brittany (Chika Yasumura), his daughter with his ex-wife, Jacinta (Natalie Tran), a loving boyfriend to Ally (Brooke Satchwell), and a good caretaker to his terminally ill brother Bruce (Nicholas Cassim). Ray also covers for his friend Gary (Justin Rosniak) when needed, and follows orders from his boss Freddy (Damon Herriman) without question. Ray deals with criminals and monsters in his own violent way; this behaviour, however, starts to take its toll and affects his relationships.

Main

 * Scott Ryan as Raymond "Ray" Shoesmith, a hitman known as "The Magician"
 * Justin Rosniak as Gary Thomas, Ray's best friend
 * Brooke Satchwell as Ally, Ray's girlfriend (seasons 1–2; guest season 3)
 * Nicholas Cassim as Bruce Shoesmith, Ray's older brother who has a motor neuron disease (seasons 1–2)
 * Chika Yasumura as Brittany, Ray's daughter
 * Damon Herriman as Freddy, Ray's boss

Recurring

 * Matt Nable as Dave, another hitman and Ray's friend
 * Natalie Tran as Jacinta, Ray's ex-wife
 * Lizzie Schebesta as Tatiana, Gary's wife
 * Bryn Chapman Parish as James
 * David Michôd as Peter (seasons 1–2)
 * Kenny Graham as Bill Shoesmith, Ray's father (seasons 2–3)
 * Rose Riley as Michele (seasons 2–3)

Season 1

 * Jackson Tozer as Vasilli
 * Firass Dirani as Davros
 * Edmund Lembke-Hogan as Nick

Season 2

 * Eddie Baroo as Kevin
 * Josh McConville as Alex
 * Kieran Darcy-Smith as Vinnie Williams
 * Ben Oxenbould as Dirk
 * Mirrah Foulkes as Kate Hall

Season 3

 * Sam Cotton as Adam Kelsey
 * Jackson Heywood as Matty
 * Tessa de Josselin as Karen
 * Jeremy Sims as Rafael, a criminal kingpin
 * Brad McMurray as Cullen
 * Emily Barclay as Zoe

Season 1

 * Josh Quong Tart as Luke Henson
 * Benedict Hardie as Lefty

Season 2

 * Daniel Amalm as Sam
 * Hugo Johnstone-Burt as Jason
 * Nash Edgerton as Trent
 * Clayton Jacobson as Benny
 * Simon Lyndon as Pidgy

Season 3

 * Ian Roberts as Graham
 * Justine Clarke as Meaghan Clarke
 * Daniel Henshall as Kenny
 * Julia Savage as Phoebe

Critical response
Mr Inbetween received critical acclaim for its writing and performances. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has an approval rating of 90% based on 20 reviews and an average rating of 7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Mr Inbetween's familiar setup is quickly forgiven thanks to its expertly built tension and a mesmerizing performance from Scott Ryan". On Metacritic, the first season has a score of 75 out of 100 based on 11 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

The Hollywood Reporter called it "One of 2018's best shows... Creator-writer-actor Scott Ryan and director Nash Edgerton deliver a tour de force that gets a lot done in very little time". Entertainment Weekly named it one of Fall 2018's Must-Watch TV, praising the show's dark comedic tone; "Ryan radiates a casual toughness, like he's cheerfully counting your most breakable bones. Mr. Inbetween gets wilder as it goes along, until the season finale becomes a fully surreal, Fargo-ish tale of a hit gone way wrong". The Globe and Mail called it "a little masterpiece of quiet, compulsively watchable comedy/drama. There are no big ideas here, but the strength of its small-scale narrative is breathtaking".

The New York Times included it on their "Best of Fall 2018 TV" list, stating "The balance between dread and deadpan laughs is adroitly maintained, and there's an appealing casual improvisatory vibe". The Boston Globe said of the show's first season, "The killer with a heart of gold isn't a new trope, of course; viewers have repeatedly been put in the position of moral compromise in the past two decades, most recently with HBO's Barry. But Mr. Inbetween gives it a fresh and funny going over".

In 2019, Season 2 premiered to additional positive reviews. Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone praised it, stating "The huge improvement from an already solid first season to this tremendous second one has me wondering if Mr. Inbetween has another big leap in it — or if spending even more time in Ray Shoesmith's world might force Ryan, and us, to start empathizing too much with this very dangerous man". Ben Travers from IndieWire said, "Pair these deeper thoughts with sharp dialogue, an ideally grubby aesthetic, and strong supporting characters, and Mr. Inbetween ends up a rewarding experience worth much more exploration". Screen Rant gave it a positive review, saying "Season 2 elevates the series on nearly every level, from Ryan's writing and acting to the performances of the supporting cast and the directing of Nash Edgerton". The Hollywood Reporter called the "exceptional" second season "a brilliantly taut drama — which jams more into its 23 to 25 minute episodes than most hourlong American dramas — with a lingering emotional after-effect".

The third and final season, which premiered in 2021, received critical praise as well. The New York Times ranked it on their list of "Best TV Shows of 2021" calling it "a smart, deadpan, quietly daft deconstruction of tough-guy clichés". Critic Mike Hale of The New York Times praised it as "a small marvel of sustained tone. The slightest overstatement or sentimentality could capsize the delicate sendup of tough-guy clichés, but Ryan (who writes all the episodes and plays the protagonist, Ray Shoesmith) rarely makes a wrong step".

Awards and nominations
Mr Inbetween has been nominated and won the following awards:


 * Screen Producers Australia Awards
 * Screen Producers Australia Awards


 * Logie Awards


 * Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) Awards


 * Australian Directors' Guild Awards


 * Australian Screen Sound Guild


 * Casting Guild of Australia Awards


 * The Equity Ensemble Awards


 * Australian Writers' Guild Awards