| Frasier | |
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The title card depicts the Boston skyline, including the Custom House Tower, Prudential Tower, 111 Huntington Avenue and the Zakim Bridge
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| Genre | Sitcom |
| Based on |
byGlen Charles & Les Charles |
| Developed by |
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| Starring |
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| Ending theme | "Tossed Salads and Scrambled Eggs" by Kelsey Grammer |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 10 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 24-31 minutes |
| Production companies |
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| Original release | |
| Network | Paramount+ |
| Release | October 12, 2023 (2023-10-12) – present |
| Related | |
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Frasier (/ˈfreɪʒər/) is an American television sitcom that premiered on October 12, 2023, on Paramount+.[1][2] It is a revival of and a sequel to the 1993–2004 sitcom Frasier featuring the character Frasier Crane, played by Kelsey Grammer. On February 22, 2024, the series was renewed for a second season and on May 9, 2024, they began production.[3]
Shortly after the death of his father, Martin Crane, the end of his nearly 20-year relationship with Charlotte, and his famous Chicago television show, Dr. Frasier Crane has returned to Boston in the hope of having a better relationship with his son, Frederick, now a Boston firefighter. In order to do so, Frasier takes a professorship at Harvard University, buys and moves into Freddy's apartment building and with the help of his family, friends, and his new colleagues, Frasier starts to embark on his "third act".
| No. | Title [27] | Directed by | Written by [28] | Original release date [29] | |
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| 1 | "The Good Father" | James Burrows | Joe Cristalli & Chris Harris | October 12, 2023 (2023-10-12) | |
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Accompanied by his nephew David, Frasier Crane returns to Boston after his father's funeral and his breakup from Charlotte to give a guest lecture at Harvard University as a favor to an old college classmate of his, Alan Cornwall. While in town, he drops in on his son Frederick, now a Boston firefighter, and Freddy's roommate, Eve, who Frasier assumes is Freddy's girlfriend. Frasier's relationship with Freddy has been tense since Freddy dropped out of Harvard and has been further strained since Freddy did not attend Martin's funeral. While Frasier tries to reconnect with Freddy, Alan's boss, Olivia, tries to recruit him to teach at Harvard and Freddy hides his living arrangements with Eve and her infant son John. Eventually, Freddy admits that Eve was the girlfriend of John's father, a fellow firefighter who fell in the line of duty, and that he did not attend Martin's funeral due to the mental anguish of his survivor's guilt. Frasier quickly decides to accept the job at Harvard and buys Eve and Freddy's apartment building to be a part of his son's life.
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| 2 | "Moving In" | James Burrows | Stephen Lloyd | October 12, 2023 (2023-10-12) | |
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Frasier tries to convince Freddy to move out of Eve's apartment and into his. Eve is eager for Freddy to accept as, while she is grateful for Freddy's support since her boyfriend died, Freddy's habits drive her crazy. Clashes quickly arise between father and son when Freddy's decor and tastes clash with Frasier's as much as Frasier's did with his own father. Olivia is eager to promote the fact that Frasier is now teaching at Harvard until Frasier unknowingly uses metaphors in the presence of a reporter that make it sound like he murdered his son. Meanwhile, Eve comes to rely on Frasier when she discovers that his voice lulls her baby to sleep, a reliance that Frasier misconstrues as romantic interest.
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| 3 | "First Class" | Kelly Park | Lauren Houseman | October 19, 2023 (2023-10-19) | |
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Frasier's teaching career at Harvard gets off to a rocky start, prompting Olivia to lean into his years as the host of daytime talk show "Dr. Crane" to drum up student interest. Embarrassed by this and yearning for the seriousness of academia, Frasier enlists Eve to attend his class undercover and stealthily guide his lecture away from showmanship; this fails when she begins openly arguing with David, who feels slighted that he was not invited to take part. Afterward, Olivia helps lift Frasier's spirits by reminding him of the good he is already achieving, and by revealing the impact that his show had on her in her younger years.
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| 4 | "Trivial Pursuits" | Kelsey Grammer | Bob Daily | October 26, 2023 (2023-10-26) | |
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Frasier, Olivia and Alan attend trivia night with Freddy and his firehouse, where Freddy interprets Frasier's comments on his performance as a slight against his chosen profession. At Eve's suggestion, Freddy invites Frasier to spend the day at the firehouse to see what his job actually entails, but it backfires when Frasier gets along with the other firefighters (aside from their pet Dalmatian) and only gets to ride along on a trivial call. When a major fire breaks out, Frasier admits to Eve that his seeming disdain of Freddy's career is motivated by fear of losing him like he used to fear losing his father as a child. Meanwhile, Alan and Olivia try and convince Eve that she was incorrect about the trivia answers, while Freddy's firehouse assumes that David is a homeless orphan when he shows up disheveled and hungry (he had gotten trapped in a library basement over the weekend) and mentions that his parents aren't around.
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| 5 | "The Founders' Society" | Phill Lewis | Farhan Arshad | November 2, 2023 (2023-11-02) | |
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Frasier, Alan, and Olivia are invited to join the Founders' Society, an elite club of Harvard's most distinguished faculty. They form an alliance to try and get each other accepted, but Alan gets a medieval gauntlet stuck on his hand and Olivia is forced to strike out on her own after hearing that only two positions are open and tricks the other two into talking to a waiter by saying that he's the dean. In the end, Olivia and Frasier are accepted while Alan admits that he does value their friendship. Meanwhile, David's attempt to woo Eve is so bad that it results in Freddy and Eve giving him a crash course in interacting with women, with both predictable and unpredictable results.
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| 6 | "Blind Date" | Kelly Park | Joe Cristalli | November 9, 2023 (2023-11-09) | |
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Frasier and Freddy both agree to be set up on blind dates by Eve; to neutralize Frasier's snobbery and Freddy's fear of intimacy, Eve doesn't tell them anything whatsoever about their dates. When a woman named June turns up at the Cranes' door, she rapidly finds common ground with both of them, leading to attempts to find out whom she's actually been fixed up with. It eventually turns out that June was meant for Freddy, but she ends up liking Frasier more. Eventually, Frasier's date arrives and Frasier wants to think about which woman he wants to pursue. When the women find out about this, they both leave in disgust. Meanwhile Eve invites Alan and Olivia to an experimental play written by a friend of hers, which even she admits is terrible.
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| 7 | "Freddy's Birthday" | Kelsey Grammer | Sasha Stroman | November 16, 2023 (2023-11-16) | |
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The inevitable reunion between Frasier and his infamous ex-wife Lilith finally occurs, much to Freddy's horror. Realizing that their constant bickering will only lead to him cutting both of them out of his life, the pair agree to both attend his birthday party and try to keep things civil. At the party, Lilith and Frasier descend into a predictable fight over who knows their son better. After nearly giving in to whatever tiny spark remains between them, they agree to separate family schedules to spare Freddy the drama. Meanwhile, Alan desperately tries to jog Lilith's memory of him, with hilarious results, while David and Eve try and make the party more enjoyable.
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| 8 | "The B Story" | Kelsey Grammer | Miles Woods | November 23, 2023 (2023-11-23) | |
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Frasier is delighted to discover that when drunk, Freddy sheds his working-class affectations and becomes a hyper-intelligent, erudite snob. Eve tries to get Frasier to do something about the bees that have infested their building's entrance, but Frasier becomes hyper-fixated on obtaining the rank of professor despite his lack of academic experience. Olivia agrees to help, but Frasier's obsession and a series of comic errors lead the tenure committee to believe that he is a drunkard. Meanwhile, Frasier gives David a B on a term paper, which sparks an existential crisis in him, until he too learns of Freddy's drunken personality change. The ending result is a B− which insults Freddy so much that he decides to help David with his next paper.
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| 9 | "The Fix Is In" | Victor Gonzalez | Robb Chavis | November 30, 2023 (2023-11-30) | |
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When Freddy complains about being treated like a child, Frasier suggests that he help with repairs around the apartment, but things get more complicated when Frasier's neuroses - and his age - catch up with him. Meanwhile, after five successive Teaching Assistants quit on Alan, Olivia gleefully assigns David to him.
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| 10 | "Reindeer Games" | Kelsey Grammer | Janene Lin & Jenna Martin & Naima Pearce | December 7, 2023 (2023-12-07) | |
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On Christmas Eve, Freddy stretches himself to be there for Frasier, who's coping with Martin's death by throwing a lavish party, and Eve, who's hiding out at home dealing with her own loss. Alan and David come up with a surprisingly fun party game, while Olivia finds herself drawn into a charming Christmas cliché with Freddy's coworker Moose. When Frasier hits a breaking point, Freddy's gift finally arrives in the form of Frasier's old friend Roz Doyle.
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| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
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| 1 | "Ham"[30] | James Burrows | Joe Cristalli & Chris Harris | September 19, 2024 |
| 2 | "The Dedication"[31] | James Burrows | Matt Kuhn | TBD |
| 4 | "My Brilliant Sister"[32] | Kelly Park | Max Maduka | TBD |
Talks of a revival began in 2016 but were initially denied by Grammer, though they resurfaced in mid-to-late 2018, with Grammer confirming it was being looked into. In February and March 2019, he said in several interviews that a reboot was likely. He indicated a new season would pay tribute to John Mahoney, who portrayed Martin, Frasier's father in the original run of Frasier and passed away in 2018.[33][4][34][35][36]
In late 2019, Grammer said "we've hatched the plan" for a Frasier revival and it was originally reported that it would air in 2020.[37][38] In February 2021, it was reported that the revival was being discussed at Paramount+,[39] possibly for a 10-episode season order for 2022.[40]
On February 24, 2021, the revival was greenlit for an exclusive debut on Paramount+. Grammer said he "gleefully" anticipated "sharing the next chapter in the continuing journey of Dr. Frasier Crane" as he had "spent over 20 years" of his "creative life on the Paramount lot".[41] Paramount+ officially gave the revival a 10-episode season order in October 2022.[42]
Casting director Jeff Greenberg returned.[43] David Hyde Pierce had multiple conversations with the showrunners about reprising his role as Frasier's brother, Niles,[44] but it was later reported that he had declined (as Pierce did not think there was much for Niles to do in the revival) and that the other actors from the original series were also either not returning or unlikely to return.[45][46] Jane Leeves, who played Martin's physical therapist and Niles' love interest (later wife), Daphne Moon, and Peri Gilpin, who played Frasier's producer and close friend Roz Doyle, had previously discussed the possibility of a revival.[47][48]
In January 2023, Jack Cutmore-Scott joined the cast as Freddy Crane.[5] It was also reported that English actor Nicholas Lyndhurst would be joining the cast.[11] Later that month, Anders Keith was cast as Niles and Daphne's son, David, while Jess Salgueiro was cast as Freddy's roommate, Eve.[49] In February, Toks Olagundoye was cast as Olivia.[8]
In March 2023, it was announced that Bebe Neuwirth would be reprising her role as Frasier's ex-wife Lilith Sternin in the revival.[12] In April 2023, it was announced that Gilpin would also reprise her role as Roz.[13] Both would reportedly feature in guest or recurring roles, not main cast.[12][13]
On January 30, 2023, Greenberg shared a picture of a script page from a table read which gave some more information about the show. The first episode would be called "The Good Father" in a reference to the pilot episode of the original series being called "The Good Son". It was written by Joe Cristalli and Chris Harris and directed by veteran sitcom director James Burrows,[50][43] who directed episodes of the original run and will also direct the episode following "The Good Father".[51] The first episode of the revival was filmed in February 2023.[50] Lead actor Kelsey Grammer directed the seventh episode, "Freddy's Birthday", which was filmed on April 4, 2023.[citation needed] Filming for the series wrapped on May 2, 2023; one day after the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike commenced, which meant the writers could not be on set for filming night.[52]
News broke on May 9, 2024, that the series second season had started production, with James Burrows once again tapped to direct the first two episodes of the new season along with the announcement that Peri Gilpin would reprise her role again as Roz for more than just an episode in the season.[53] The show, according to 1iota, the site that gives fans the chance to be part of a live studio audience for Frasier, is filming its second season at Paramount Studios on Stage 18, with tapings taking place every Tuesday.[54][55]
The revival premiered on October 12, 2023, on Paramount+. The first two episodes of the Frasier revival also aired on October 17, 2023, on CBS.[1][56]
An "inside the series" episode was released on October 6, 2023, on Paramount+, and the next day aired on CBS affiliate stations.[57]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 60% of 73 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.1/10. The website's consensus reads: "With Kelsey Grammer safely back in the role he was born to play, Frasier scores as comfort viewing even if it can't quite compare to the classic original series."[58]
{{cite web}}: External link in |title=Cristalli noted that they had "a bunch of conversations" with Pierce about returning, but he ultimately "felt like he didn't have anything left to bring to the show that was new."
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