The Other Two

The Other Two is an American sitcom created by Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider. The story follows two floundering millennial siblings who must grapple with their 13-year-old brother's overnight fame. The series premiered on Comedy Central on January 24, 2019, and was renewed for a second season shortly after, on February 11, 2019. The second season premiered on August 26, 2021, on HBO Max. In September 2021, the series was renewed for a third and final season, which premiered on May 4, 2023 and ended on June 29, 2023.

Premise
A gay aspiring actor, Cary, and his sister Brooke, a former professional dancer, try to find their place in the world while wrestling with their feelings about their 13-year-old brother Chase's sudden rise to Internet fame.

Main

 * Heléne Yorke as Brooke Dubek, Cary and Chase's older sister and a former professional dancer, who wants to figure out her career path
 * Drew Tarver as Cary Dubek, Brooke's younger brother, Chase's older brother, and an aspiring actor, who struggles to find roles
 * Case Walker as Chase Dubek / ChaseDreams, Cary and Brooke's younger brother, who is thrust into stardom after a viral internet video
 * Ken Marino as Streeter Peter Peters, ChaseDreams' newly hired manager
 * Molly Shannon as Pat Dubek, the three siblings' Hollywood-ready mother (seasons 2–3; recurring season 1)
 * Brandon Scott Jones as Curtis Paltrow, Cary's co-worker and confidant (season 3; recurring seasons 1–2)
 * Josh Segarra as Lance Arroyo, Brooke's upbeat, sweet, and seemingly simple-minded ex who specializes in novelty footwear (season 3; recurring seasons 1–2)

Recurring

 * Wanda Sykes as Shuli Kucerac, an executive from ChaseDreams' record label
 * Andy Ridings as Matt, Cary's roommate, who swears he is straight but makes moves on Cary (season 1)
 * Richard Kind as Skip Schamplin, Cary's agent who also has multiple odd jobs (season 1; guest season 3)
 * Alison Rich as Melanie, a producer on Pat's show (seasons 2–3)
 * Gideon Glick as Jess, Cary's love interest (season 2)
 * Nadia Dajani as Mackenzie, Cary's agent (seasons 2–3)
 * Fin Argus as Lucas Lambert Moy, an actor who Cary dates, whose method acting prevents them from sleeping together (season 3)

Guest stars

 * Beck Bennett as Jeff, Brooke's one-time lover and flight attendant (season 1)
 * Ali Ahn as Jo, a realtor and friend of Brooke (seasons 1–3)
 * Kate Berlant as Pitzi Pyle, a talent agent who meets with Cary (seasons 1 & 3)
 * Jackie Hoffman as Lorraine, an actor hired as a body double for Chase (season 1)
 * Josie Totah as Elijah, a student with a crush on Cary (season 1)
 * Daniel K. Isaac as Jeremy Delongpre, a teacher and love interest for Cary (season 1)
 * Greta Lee as Genevieve Kim, a friend of Brooke from her dancing past (season 1)
 * Jimmy Fowlie as Cameron Colby, an Instagay that befriends Cary (seasons 1–3)
 * Heidi Gardner as Mona, a partier who gives Pat MDMA (season 1)
 * Tuc Watkins and Noah Galvin as Troy and Eddie, a couple who pose as a father-son duo on Pat's talk show (season 2)
 * Dana Delany as Emily Overruled, the star of a legal procedural Cary appears on (season 3)
 * Ann Dowd as Paula Davies, the founder of a safe haven for ex-girlfriends of celebrities (season 3)

Kathie Lee Gifford, Hoda Kotb, Mario Lopez, Tinsley Mortimer, Michael Che, Andy Cohen, Patrick Wilson, Zosia Mamet, Debi Mazar, Ian Ziering, Tavi Gevinson, Jordana Brewster, Alessia Cara, Bowen Yang, Justin Bartha, Leah McSweeney, Dylan O'Brien, Kiernan Shipka, Lukas Gage, Simu Liu, Ben Platt, Cameron Kasky, Edie Falco, and Lawrence O'Donnell also appear as themselves.

Development
A few months prior to being named co-head writers for Saturday Night Live's 42nd season, Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider spent a week in early 2016 developing the premise of The Other Two. They wanted the show to depict the introspection and self-doubt that twenty-somethings face, while incorporating elements of pop culture. Kelly said they wanted to include depictions of the characters' sex lives. Speaking to Vulture, Schneider said they intentionally wrote the character of Chase to be kind and innocent because it would subvert expectations of the story.

The pilot was sold to Comedy Central in late 2016. Schneider and Kelly hired Charlie Gruet, who was the director of photography of the television series High Maintenance. In October 2017, The Other Two received a full series order. The series was produced through executive producer Lorne Michaels' entertainment studio, Broadway Video. The first season began streaming on HBO Max in 2021, where the second season streams exclusively, making the series a "Max Original". The second season premiered on August 26, 2021, on HBO Max with a two-episode release. On September 24, 2021, HBO Max renewed the series for a third season. In an article by The Hollywood Reporter in June 2023, it was confirmed that the series would be ending with the third season.

Casting
In October 2017, it was announced that Drew Tarver, Heléne Yorke, Case Walker, Ken Marino, and Molly Shannon had joined the cast. Kelly and Schneider discovered Walker on social media: Walker was popular on the platform Musical.ly and had over 400,000 followers on Instagram. Tarver was brought in based on his comedic work at Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, while Yorke was cast after Kelly and Schneider had seen her work on High Maintenance. It was announced in February 2020 that Gideon Glick would have a recurring role in the second season as Cary's new love interest, Jess. Shannon was promoted to the main cast in season two.

Filming
Filming for the second season initially began in early 2020 but abruptly halted in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Filming for the second season resumed on February 22, 2021, in New York and Los Angeles and concluded on May 9.

Complaints against Kelly and Schneider
The show's creators Chris Kelly and Sarah Schneider were reportedly the subject of complaints to human resources over their behavior on set and in the writers' room. The allegations, which became known to the public just before the series finale in June 2023, include Kelly verbally abusing writers and overworking the crew and claims that Schneider enabled his behavior. A formal investigation was conducted during which Kelly and Schneider weren't allowed to be on set for a period, although they were formally cleared of wrongdoing and allowed to return. The toxic workplace environment was reported to have been an "open secret," with Tina Fey joking at an awards ceremony, "Nobody indulges writers like Lorne Michaels. Lorne, you have unleashed an army of monsters into the world. You know it, I know it, and the crew of The Other Two knows it."

Reception
The Other Two was met with critical acclaim with its third season being the most acclaimed. The series has an overall approval rating of 97% based on 77 reviews on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic assigned the series a weighted average score of 81 out of 100 based on 35 critic reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

The first season has an approval rating of 94% based on 36 reviews, with an average rating of 8.52 out of 10, on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes. The website's critical consensus reads: "With game leads and a wickedly witty sense of humor, The Other Two skewers and celebrates pop culture with equal aplomb." Metacritic assigned the series a weighted average score of 79 out of 100 based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

The second season has an approval rating of 96% based on 24 reviews, with an average rating of 8.50 out of 10, on the review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes. The website's critical consensus reads: "More mature, but still hilarious, The Other Two 's superb second season solidifies its place as one of TVs best comedies."