Tiny Pretty Things

Tiny Pretty Things is an American drama television series based on the novel of the same name by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton, created by Michael MacLennan. It premiered on Netflix on December 14, 2020, and aired for one season.

The series revolves around the goings on at a ballet school in Chicago, and focuses on the school's students, instructors, administrators, and benefactors. The dancing in the show is performed by the actors themselves, not doubles.

Critical reaction to the series has been mixed. According to the actor Brennan Clost, the show was quietly cancelled by Netflix after failing to garner sufficient views in its first season.

Main

 * Brennan Clost as Shane McRae, an openly gay dancer who is secretly sleeping with his roommate, Oren
 * Barton Cowperthwaite as Oren Lennox, a dancer who has an eating disorder and Shane's roommate whom he is secretly sleeping with
 * Bayardo De Murguia as Ramon Costa, one of the best choreographers in the world
 * Damon J. Gillespie as Caleb Wick, a dancer who is secretly sleeping with Monique, the Archer School of Ballet's director
 * Kylie Jefferson as Neveah Stroyer, a dancer from Inglewood, California, who is given a full scholarship at the Archer School of Ballet after a student falls from a rooftop and into a coma
 * Casimere Jollette as Bette Whitlaw, a dancer who is living in the shadow of her older sister, Delia, and Oren's girlfriend
 * Anna Maiche as Cassie Shore, the dancer who falls from the rooftop and is in a coma
 * Daniela Norman as June Park, Cassie's former roommate and Neveah's roommate
 * Michael Hsu Rosen as Nabil Limyadi a French dancer who is Muslim, Caleb's roommate, and Cassie's boyfriend
 * Tory Trowbridge as Delia Whitlaw, Bette's older sister and a graduate of the Archer School of Ballet; she is living with Costa and is considered a rising star
 * Jess Salgueiro as Isabel Cruz, a Chicago Police Department police officer who is investigating Cassie's case
 * Lauren Holly as Monique DuBois, the director of the Archer School of Ballet in Chicago, Illinois, who is secretly sleeping with Caleb

Recurring

 * Alexandra Bokyun Chun as Maricel Park, June's mother
 * Shaun Benson as Topher Brooks, the ballet master at the Archer School of Ballet
 * Michelle Nolden as Katrina Whitlaw, Bette and Delia's mother who is part of the Archer School of Ballet's executive committee
 * Paula Boudreau as Selena Covey, Monique's secretary
 * Jessica Greco as Torri Fuller, the Archer School of Ballet's resident advisor
 * Morgan Kelly as Alan Renfrew, the head of sports medicine at the Archer School of Ballet and Topher's husband
 * Clare Butler as Esmé Halterlein
 * Araya Mengesha as Tyler Stroyer, Neveah's older brother
 * Ashley Coulson as Gwen Resnik
 * Nicole Huff as Paige Aquino
 * Alex Eling as Matteo Marchetti, Bette's love interest
 * Daniel Kash as Sgt. Dan Lavery, Isabel's boss at Chicago Police Department
 * Luke Humphrey as Travis Quinn
 * Josh Pyman as Dev Ranaweera, Shane's love interest
 * Erin Pitt as Laura

Guest

 * Karen Robinson as Makayla Stroyer, Neveah's mother who has served time in prison for murder and is looking to make amends.
 * Tiler Peck as Sienna Milken
 * Emily Skubic as Lindy (uncredited)

Development
Insurrection Media, Inc. optioned the source material from HarperCollins and developed the project for a year before getting a series order on August 6, 2019, from Netflix for 10 episodes. The series is created by Michael MacLennan who executive produced alongside Kiliaen Van Rensselaer, Jordanna Fraiberg, Deborah Henderson, Gary Fleder, Gabrielle Neimand, and Carrie Mudd. Felder also directed the first episode of the series. Production companies involved with the series were slated to consist of Insurrection Media and Peacock Alley Entertainment, Inc. The series premiered on December 14, 2020.

Casting
Upon the series order announcement, Lauren Holly, Kylie Jefferson, Casimere Jollette, Daniela Norman, Brennan Clost, Michael Hsu Rosen, Damon J. Gillespie, Bayardo De Murguia, Barton Cowperthwaite, Tory Trowbridge, and Jess Salgueiro were cast as series regulars. On September 20, 2019, Anna Maiche joined the main cast. On December 9, 2020, it was reported a professional ballet dancer, Emily Skubic is set to make her debut guest role in the series.

Filming
Principal photography for the series began on August 6, 2019 and ended on December 3, 2019 in Toronto, Canada.

Reception
On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, Tiny Pretty Things received an approval rating of 53% based on 19 critic reviews, with an average rating of 5.38/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Tiny Pretty Things has some solid moves, but an over-reliance on empty scandal over emotional substance make for unsatisfying viewing." Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 47 out of 100 based on 6 critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".