So Help Me Todd
So Help Me Todd is an American legal drama television series, created by Scott Prendergast, that premiered on September 29, 2022, on CBS. The series follows a talented but directionless private investigator, who begrudgingly agrees to work at his overbearing mother's law firm. It stars Marcia Gay Harden, Skylar Astin, Madeline Wise, Tristen J. Winger, Inga Schlingmann, and Rosa Evangelina Arredondo. In February 2023, the series was renewed for a second season. Premise
So Help Me Todd follows Todd, who has good instincts as a private investigator, but lacks direction and is the black sheep of his family. After his strong-willed mother, Margaret, negotiated dropping criminal charges against Todd two years previously, he reluctantly agrees to work at her Portland, Oregon, law firm as an in-house investigator. Margaret believes in strictly adhering to the law, which is at complete odds with Todd's tendency to bend the law to navigate sticky situations. Cast

Main

 Marcia Gay Harden as Margaret Wright, a defense attorney who completed her Juris Doctor degree after the death of her first husband, who was the father of her children
 Skylar Astin as Todd Wright, Margaret's youngest child, a former private detective hired by Margaret's firm
 Madeline Wise as Allison Grant née Wright, Todd's married sister, an ER doctor
 Tristen J. Winger as Lyle Burton, a fastidious in-house investigator at Margaret's firm
 Inga Schlingmann as Susan Yang, Todd's engaged ex-girlfriend, a lawyer at Margaret's firm
 Rosa Evangelina Arredondo as Francey Jones, Margaret's executive assistant

Recurring

 Jeffrey Nordling as Gus Easton, a fellow attorney and a potential love interest for Margaret
 Leslie Silva as Beverly Crest, a partner at the law firm where Margaret works
 Matthew Wilkas as Lawrence Wright, eldest son of Margaret Wright, married to Chet and works for the governor. In addition, Clayton James co-stars as Chuck Grant, Allison's husband and Thomas Cadrot co-stars as Chet Venables, married to Margaret's son Lawrence and a reporter. Notable guest stars
 Briga Heelan as Amy

Episodes

Production

Development
On February 3, 2022, it was announced that CBS had given a pilot order to an untitled mother and son legal drama from Scott Prendergast. The series is produced by Prendergast, Phil McGraw, Jay McGraw, and Julia Eisenmann. The pilot episode was also written by Prendergast. On March 15, 2022, Liz Kruger and Craig Shapiro joined the series as showrunners and executive producers. On May 12, 2022, it was announced that CBS had given the production, titled So Help Me Todd, a series order. It was also announced that Elizabeth Klaviter had replaced Kruger and Shapiro as the series' showrunner. On October 19, 2022, the series received a full season order. On February 2, 2023, CBS renewed the series for a second season. Casting
In March 2022, it was announced that Geena Davis had signed on to star in the series. Shortly after, Skylar Astin was announced to star opposite her, as her son. Madeline Wise and Inga Schlingmann also joined the cast in lead roles. After having filmed the pilot, it was announced that Davis had exited the series. On March 23, 2022, it was announced that Marcia Gay Harden had replaced Davis. A few days later, it was announced that Rosa Evangelina Arredondo and Tristen J. Winger had also joined the cast in series regular roles. On March 3, 2023, it was reported that Briga Heelan is set to guest star on the series' March 30 episode titled "Twelve Worried Persons". Filming
Production on the pilot began in March 2022 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Filming for the rest of the season began on July 27, 2022, and concluded on April 11, 2023. A TD Bank office in downtown Vancouver serves as Margaret's law firm. Broadcast
On May 18, 2022, CBS announced its fall broadcast schedule for the 2022-23 television season, with So Help Me Todd airing on Thursdays at 9:00PM ET. The series began airing on September 29, 2022, on CBS. It also simulcasts on Global TV in Canada. The first season finale aired on May 18, 2023. Reception

Critical response
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 50% approval rating based on 8 critic reviews. Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 51 out of 100 based on 6 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Ratings

See also
Crazy Like a Fox, a mid-1980s CBS series with a similar premise

References

External links

2020s American workplace drama television series
2020s American legal television series
2022 American television series debuts
American legal drama television series
CBS original programming
English-language television shows
Television series about families
Television series by CBS Studios
Television shows set in Portland, Oregon