ROOSTER – Review by Abby Perkins

Posted by awfj-admin on Mar 15, 2026 | 0 comments

Parents are supposed to help their children through all of life’s struggles, especially the struggles they’ve been through themselves. However, what do you do when your child faces the biggest obstacle they’ve ever faced, but you have no advice for them, since you aren’t close to getting over the same obstacle you’ve faced yourself? Rooster, starring Steve Carell (The Office, Despicable Me, Crazy Stupid Love) and Charly Clive (The Lazarus Project, All My Friends Hate Me, Pure), reminds us that everyone is living life for the first time.

Rooster follows beach-read author Greg Russo, who is spending time at his alma mater after Katie, his daughter and a professor at the college, is left by her grad-student-banging husband. The pilot, Release the Brown Fat, shows a father and daughter, riddled with their own insecurities and personal issues, realizing that they are both hot messes. Greg was cheated on by his wife several years prior, and his heart is not fully healed yet.

When debating whether to watch the show or not, I read it was edited by Ali Greer, who won the Emmy for Best Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series for Barry. Greer’s attempts to use quick cuts and audio transitions to make subpar jokes funnier are excellent, but not completely successful. When you have an A-Lister like Carell who has a very specific comedic cadence, it is hard for other actors to totally match that energy. Charly Clive keeps up the fastest, and Danielle Deadwyler, who plays a professor and potential love interest for Greg, Dylan Shepard, has significant enough chemistry with Carell to make it work. However, Phil Dunster, who plays Archie, sticks out like a sore thumb. Maybe it’s the British accent, but I don’t feel like Greg had ever met Archie before their scene together. I am interested to see how his and Katie’s relationship is portrayed over the next episodes.

While the heart of the show takes the lead, and many of the jokes fell a little flat, there were several moments that had me cackling. My favorite line from the pilot, “Why did you cheat on my daughter? Sounds like you want to make love to that book?,” which Greg says to Archie after confronting him in his home, plays on repeat in my head. When Katie threw his copy of War and Peace in the fireplace, I realized the clever way that line was used – instead of burning his mistress with fire, Katie burns the one other thing Archie would “make love to.”

I can see some younger viewers, especially those who are fans of The Office, getting into the show, but I think it will appeal mostly to millennials and Gen X. Anything with a slower pace and dialogue-heavy structure has slowly lost its younger audience, but maybe Rooster can evade that. It’s a little underwhelming, but charming, sincere, and relatable all the more.

I’m excited to see where Rooster goes, especially after we were left with the (SPOILER) house fire cliffhanger and Archie’s pregnancy news. It was a decent start, getting its footing just enough to make me want to continue watching. Episodes will be released every Sunday on HBO Max.

ABOUT ABBY PERKINS

Raised in Richmond, Virginia by a large family of actors, artists, dancers, and singers, Abby Perkins has been surrounded by art since she was born. As a directing student at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Abby has developed short films and scripts focusing on coming-of-age, social commentary and satire, and the perspective of women. She will be moving to Brooklyn in Spring 2026, hoping to chart a career in digital marketing and short form content in the commercial and independent filmmaking worlds.

ABOUT AWFJ/UNCSA MENTORSHIP PROGRAM

The University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) and the Alliance of Women Film Journalists (AWFJ) have partnered to launch the AWFJ/UNCSA Mentorship Program, an initiative designed to bridge the gap between academic study and the professional world of film criticism. The program creates a vital pathway for the next generation of cultural commentators to transition into the industry. Its mission is to support aspiring film, television, and streaming reviewers by providing them with a professional platform and direct mentorship from established critics. By connecting UNCSA’s rigorous arts conservatory training with the AWFJ’s extensive journalistic experience, the program seeks to cultivate critics who are not only knowledgeable about cinema but also skilled in the craft of engaging, analytical writing for a broad audience. This collaboration underscores a shared commitment to the future of film criticism, ensuring that emerging talent is nurtured, equipped with practical skills, and given the opportunity to build a professional portfolio before graduation.