In the spring of 2017, Jeff Astrof (The New Adventures of Old Christine) and Matt Miller (Lethal Weapon) gifted NBC’s audience with a new comedy series titled Trial and Error. Billed as a satire of true crime documentaries like Netflix’s Making a Murderer”and HBO’s The Jinx, Astrof and Miller’s show promised mockumentary fans they would have something to laugh at. Sure enough, the first season, which starred John Lithgow as Larry Henderson, a bumbling poetry professor accused of murdering his wife, became a popular diversion for audiences. It wasn’t a runaway television success, of course, but its ratings and critical acclaim garnered enough points to warrant a Trial and Error season 2, which stars Kristin Chenoweth as the new murder suspect and is now subtitled Lady, Killer.
What is Trial and Error about?
Like the first season, Trial and Error season 2 follow a young, novice New York lawyer named Josh Segal and the eclectic defense team he assembles in the small town of Peck, South Carolina. Along with lead investigator Dwayne Reed and head researcher Anne Flatch, Segal tries and ultimately fails to defend Henderson at trial. He is found guilty of murdering his wife and sent to prison, though Segal later discovers that a bird actually killed his wife in a freak accident.
With Henderson’s innocence therefore proven, Segal, Reed and Flatch endeavor to take on the Peck’s next big murder case. They get just that in the form of the new suspect for Trial and Error season 2, the East Peck heiress and popular socialite Lavinia Peck-Foster, who is found with her husband’s body stuffed into a suitcase in the trunk of her car.
Why you should watch Trial and Error season 2
Anyone who’s a fan of true crime documentaries like Making a Murderer and The Jinx, or similar series covering hot-button issues, like Netflix’s Wild Wild Country, will dig Trial and Error season 2. Not only do Astrof, Miller and the writing team find and hit all the right beats of the genre, but they also satirize just as well as The Office and Parks and Recreation mocked the seemingly dramatic happenings of everyday life.
Meet the Trial and Error season 2 cast
Obviously, with Chenoweth’s addition as the new suspect, Lithgow will not be returning in Trial and Error season 2. However, Nicholas D’Agosto, Steven Boyer and Sherri Shepherd are all returning as Segal, Reed and Flatch respectively. Glee alum Jayma Mays returns as Carol Anne Keane, Peck’s Assistant District Attorney and Segal’s love interest. The second season also sees the addition of Amanda Payton as Nina Rudolph, a podcast host who moves to the area from New York to follow the trial in a manner not unlike NPR’s Serial.
Trial and Error season 2 release date
Trial and Error season 2 debuts Thursday, July 19, at 9 p.m. on NBC.
