Feature Story
It's common to see dramas depicting the clash of culture and history on TV, but the new sitcom “Rutherford Falls” has found a way to give some sensitive subjects a refreshing spin. The new twist on small-town American struggles is set to premiere Thursday, April 22, on Peacock.
Starring Ed Helms (“The Hangover,” 2009) and Jana Schmieding (“Blast”), the series revolves around Nathan Rutherford (Helms) and Reagan Wells (Schmieding), best friends who grew up together as residents in the small Native American town of Rutherford Falls.
Trouble quickly arises for the two friends when both the town and a neighboring community request the removal of a problematic statue — that of the town founder and Nathan's ancestor, Lawrence Rutherford. Surprisingly, their motivation isn't political; the statue is placed, rather inconveniently, in the middle of a central crossroads and has been causing a number of accidents.
Meanwhile, Reagan, a Lakota Sioux tribe performer, is determined to put her tribe on the map by transforming their humble cultural center into an internationally renowned museum with the help of Terry (Michael Greyeyes, “I Know This Much Is True”), whose tribe owns the local casino. Their decisions to fight for the recognition of their respective ancestors is not greeted kindly, and the quiet town soon begins to make some noise. It isn't long before the sudden outcry from the community draws attention from the media, and reporter/podcaster Josh Cogan (Dustin Milligan, “Schitt's Creek”) comes to town in search of a story.
The recently released trailer ended with a funny yet significant message from Terry, who says, “This is why it's not worth being friends with white people.” Welcomingly, the total vibe of the series is a much-needed breather from the usually inaccurate portrayal of Native Americans in the media and is in line with the continued campaign of advocacy groups like the National Congress of American Indians against these harmful representations.
The show is the brainchild of Helms and Michael Schur (“Single Parents,” 2020) but is also the work of screenwriter Sierra Teller Ornelas, who is of Navajo descent and is known for her outstanding writing and production work in a number of successful TV series, including “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Splitting Up Together” and “Superstore.”
“Rutherford Falls” was born out of casual talks between Helms and Schur, who immediately commissioned Ornelas as showrunner as soon as they finalized the theme. The Helms-Schur tandem is, of course, beyond tested, having worked together in the super-successful NBC mockumentary sitcom “The Office.” Schur has also worked with Ornelas on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”
Many things make “Rutherford Falls” binge-worthy, but nothing makes it more special than its huge — the biggest ever in the history of American TV, actually — representation of Indigenous talents in the writer's room. In fact, half of the writers are of Native American heritage.
At Peacock's virtual TV Critics Association press tour, Helms said the concept took inspiration from his and Schur's thoughts about our current society and how it would react if history, particularly that of Native Americans, was ever disturbed. To be credible, he and Schur knew they needed an authentic voice, and providing that became Ornelas' key role in the process, on top of serving as an executive producer.
Ornelas said the diversity of the writing staff gave them ample room to explore ideas, adding that “Rutherford Falls” is a chance to show that Native Americans are regular people who don't really turn into wolves or engage in constant warfare in real life. Aside from Schmieding, Greyeyes and Ornelas, other Native writers in the room include Bobby Wilson (“What We Do in the Shadows”), Tai Leclaire (“A Sip With Vodka,” 2020) and Tazbah Chavez (“Resident Alien”).