Show of the week: Feudal

This Nova Scotia-set drama straddles numerous genres, incorporating the backdrop of financial hardship with small town intrigue and family secrets.

And as showrunner Sheri Elwood tells TBI, it doesn’t really fit neatly into any traditional category. “It is a comedy, drama and crime story that explores the damage secrets can have on a family – an epic romp about generational dysfunction which is both relatable and, we hope, infinitely surprising.”

The show revolves around the Finley-Cullens and stars Corrine Koslo (Anne With An E) and Peter MacNeill (This Life) as the heads of a family who are trying to work out which of their flawed children should take over their much-loved but ailing coastal business, The Moonshine.

“The theme of family is something everyone can relate to,” Elwood continues. “It doesn’t matter how old you get, when you return home, you revert to being a 12-year-old kid, still craving your parent’s love and approval, hell-bent on continuing the dysfunction with your siblings and in the case of the Finley-Cullen’s, being willing to fight for control of the family business. Yet while tensions may be high, we’ll see that no matter how insane things get, this family is worth fighting for.”

Elwood says the show is anything but “your standard family drama” and as with many of this season’s picks, it has come to market despite the challenges posed by Covid-19. Casting took place virtually, Elwood says, but the current climate means audiences are ripe for a show such as Feudal.

“The world is a raging dumpster fire right now and we could need a little escapism. Yet while Feudal is a fun, raucous show, it also speaks to a broader need: simpler, non-Covid times where our biggest problems were sleeping with a siblings’ spouse and finding out your gentle, hippie parents just might be criminal masterminds.”

Distributor: eOne
Producers: Six Eleven Media, eOne
Broadcaster: CBC (Canada)
Logline: Raucous drama that follows the Finley-Cullens, a dysfunctional clan of half-siblings battling for control of their ancestral business