In 1994, Denis Leary starred in the Christmas-themed dark comedy The Ref. It wasn’t the comedian’s first non-standup gig by any stretch of the imagination, as he’d had smaller parts in films like The Sandlot, Judgment Night, and Sylvester Stallone/Wesley Snipes sci-fi joint, Demolition Man. But it was one of the first roles to not only capitalize on Leary’s standup persona, but to rely on it almost entirely. Sure, the film from the late Ted Demme also starred Judy Davis and a pre-canceled Kevin Spacey, but its charm and appeal were largely the result of Leary’s presence as Gus, the cantankerous but likable criminal holding Davis and Spacey hostage at a holiday dinner gone horribly awry.
What a difference a quarter century makes, as Leary’s latest, The Moodys, finds the comedian and actor returning to a holiday-themed project where he’s now the aging parent, Gus Sr., trying to keep sane while his dysfunctional family gathers for what may be their last Christmas as a family.
Adapted from an Australian series, The Moodys comes to FOX as a six-episode event set to play in one-hour installments over three nights. It’s an unusual holiday special, but one that speaks to the challenges facing the broadcast networks nowadays. And while many have turned to live musical performances (FOX included), an event filled with family dysfunction, dark humor, and the sort of middle-class holiday woes seen in films like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, Home For the Holidays, or Dutch, feels somehow riskier, but also potentially more rewarding.
There is something infinitely appealing in watching family dynamics unfold during the holidays, but also when every member of the family in question is experiencing some kind of crisis. That’s certainly the case with the Moodys as Sean Sr. and his wife Ann (Elizabeth Perkins) welcome two of their three children — Bridget (Chelsea Frei) and Dan (François Arnaud) — home. Their third and eldest son, Sean Jr. (Jay Baruchel), still lives at home, trapped in a kind of perpetual state of arrested development.
The kids all have their own problems. Dan just ended a relationship with a woman due to his commitment issues and is pining for Cora (María Gabriela de Faría), the artist girlfriend of his cousin Marcos (Josh Segarra, Arrow). For her part, Bridget reveals to her siblings she cheated on her husband and is in the process of blowing her life up, and getting it back on track (literally) with the help of the very funny and affable high school wrestling coach, Monty (Kevin Bigley). Meanwhile, Sean Sr. is keeping a cancer diagnosis from his kids, while Ann is just trying keep the family together, despite all signs it’s falling apart.
What The Moodys has going for it is plenty of heart and character. Everyone in the family — as well as the extended family, like Sean’s driving directions-obsessed brother — all have their own unique personalities, and they all play off one another very well. Writers Bob Fisher, Rob Greenberg, and Tad Quill find a seemingly endless array of character combinations, all of which show off a different side of the family and its various dynamics.
Though it is essentially a story about familial dysfunction, The Moodys also works as a heartfelt comedy, particularly when exploring the relationship between the three siblings. Sean Jr., Bridget, and Dan. The three are all walking catastrophes and never miss a beat in letting each other know that. But such reminders are part of an unbreakable sibling bond, one that makes the series funny and sincere without being as saccharine and ridiculous as, say, a Lifetime holiday movie.
For his part, Leary takes to playing the weary father well, as he and Perkins share a convincing chemistry that suggests a couple who’ve been through the wringer and come out stronger. Their collective frustrations with their children are undercut by their ongoing devotion to them, and efforts to make sure they’re making the right choices, even when it seems all the Moody kids can do is make the wrong ones.
It all adds up to a charming and often very funny (you could watch the series for Segarra’s bro-tastic Marcos alone) holiday special that once upon a time probably would have been a movie. Instead, it becomes a three-hour event that’ll get audiences in the holiday spirit.
The Moodys premieres Wednesday, December 4 @8pm on FOX.