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The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, December 4, 2020 4 By Kyla Brewer TV Media F ew parents like to see their children in trouble, but sometimes life lessons are best learned when young people face the music. Howev- er, there may be consequences that are just too dire for even the most scrupulous parents. A new miniseries explores the fine line between protection and corruption as a man scrambles to save his son at all costs. Emmy winner Bryan Crans- ton ("Breaking Bad") stars as Judge Michael Desiato, a fa- ther determined to protect his son in the wake of a terrible ac- cident in "Your Honor," pre- miering Sunday, Dec. 6, on Showtime. Soon after he learns that his son, Adam (Hunter Doohan, "Schooled"), has been involved in a fatal hit- and-run, Michael discovers that the victim was none other than the son of a notorious New Orleans crime boss. With few other choices, the respect- ed judge abuses his power and uses his influence to cover up the crime in the hopes of sav- ing his son — and himself. The new thriller sparks a number of ethical questions, including: "How corrupted can a man become before he lets his child go?" Writer and exec- utive producer Peter Moffat ("Criminal Justice") asked that very question in an official re- lease for the 10-part minise- ries, and it appears that view- ers may find out the answer in "Your Honor." Inspired by the Israeli TV drama "Kvodo," the program marks Cranston's return to a leading television role since his critically acclaimed turn as Walter White in "Breaking Bad." A mild-mannered high school chemistry teacher, White became a TV anti-hero after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer and decided to cook methamphetamine to make enough money to leave his family with a comfortable life after his death. Although Cranston has appeared in epi- sodes of "Curb Your Enthusi- asm" and "Electric Dreams," the actor hasn't had a regular TV role since "Breaking Bad" wrapped up in 2013. In Octo- ber, Cranston talked to EW about the role that brought him back to TV. "Whenever there's a charac- ter who is facing an emotional, ethical dilemma, it draws me in," Cranston said to EW. In "Your Honor," Cranston seems to have found another role he can sink his teeth into. The official trailers for the mini- series show another tortured soul. "My son," Cranston's char- acter, Michael Desianto, says in a trailer. "I dedicated my whole life to him. That level of love can just crack you open, make you someone you never thought you'd be." News of Cranston's casting in "Your Honor" broke in Janu- ary 2019, and it was likely wel- come news for his fans. AMC's "Breaking Bad" earned the ac- tor four Emmy Awards for Out- standing Lead Actor in a Dra- ma Series and two for Out- standing Drama Series for his role as a producer. Many TV pundits consider his work as White to be one of the all-time best performances in television history. The actor will be in good company when he returns to television in "Your Honor." Young up-and-comer Doo- han has been amassing high-profile TV credits with roles in ABC's "Schooled," HBO's "Westworld" and Netflix's "What/If." Interest- ingly, he recently appeared in the Apple TV+ drama "Truth Be Told" as the teen- age version of Aaron Paul's character. For those not in the know, Paul co-starred with Cranston in "Breaking Bad" as his partner in crime, Jesse Pinkman. Sofia Black-D'Elia portrays Adam's secret girlfriend, Fran- nie, in the new miniseries. Since honing her skills on the set of "All My Children" as a teenager, the actress has made a name for herself with roles such as Tea Marvelli in "Skins," Sage Spence in "Gossip Girl" and Sabrina Pemberton in "The Mick." Veteran performer Isiah Whitlock Jr. plays opposite Cranston as Michael Desiato's best friend, Charlie, who gets drawn into the judge's cover- up. Best known for his role as corrupt state senator Clay Da- vis in "The Wire," Whitlock Jr. has also appeared in several Spike Lee films, including "She Hate Me" (2004) and "BlacK- kKlansman" (2018). coverstory Hunter Doohan as seen in "Your Honor" The anti-hero returns: Bryan Cranston is back in 'Your Honor' By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: Does the movie "Last Christmas" have anything to do with the song? A: The 2019 holiday comedy "Last Christmas" has plenty to do with the song. The plot of the film is based, somewhat loosely, on the poppy '80s Christmas tune by Wham!, and the film also fea- tures a number of other songs by the band's frontman, George Michael. Emma Thompson ("Saving Mr. Banks," 2013), who came up with the script and also stars in the movie, said she even received Michael's blessing to write the film, even though she didn't think she was the best choice. In an interview with Britain's The Independent newspaper, Thompson said she was asked by producer David Livingstone if she wanted to write a movie based on the song, and she initially turned him down: "I said, 'Not really, because it's not my favorite Christmas song.'" Livingstone gave her some time to think about it, and she eventually came up with "an interesting, sideways way" of retelling the song's story. It was loose enough that she decid- ed to run the idea past the man himself, George Michael, who wrote the lyrics to the song. Fortunately, he liked her adaptation; so much so, in fact, that he got directly involved with the production. Unfortu- nately, he died suddenly in 2016, before the movie even went into production. He is, however, all over the final product, even having contributed a new song written especially for the film. Wham! wasn't just Michael, however — it was a duo — and his former bandmate, Andrew Ridgeley, is also a part of the movie. He even had a cameo in one scene, in which the main character (played by "Game of Thrones" star Emilia Clarke) performs the song "Last Christmas" on stage (an ex- perience she said was harrowing, knowing that Ridgely was watching her do it). Q: Has Benedict Cumberbatch done any voice work? A: With a commanding baritone like that, how could he not? English "it boy" Benedict Cumberbatch has done loads of voice work, covering the whole range from high-profile kids' stuff to darker fantasy roles, narration and a few just-for- kicks gigs. In 2018 alone, he did two very high-profile kid-friendly roles: one as the title character in 2018's "The Grinch" and the other as the menacing tiger Shere Khan in "Mowgli: Leg- end of the Jungle" (a remake of "The Jungle Book"). A few years earlier, he voiced a wolf named Classified in "Penguins of Madagascar" (2014). Actually, his hard fantasy stuff was pretty high-profile, too. He voiced both the Necromancer and Smaug in the three films made from J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit" in 2012, 2013 and 2014. The films, together, grossed roughly $3 billion. He's also done a bunch of non-fiction narration work on the small screen, most notably, perhaps, in the 2010 Discov- ery Channel miniseries "Into the Universe with Stephen Hawking." Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Personal replies will not be provided. hollywoodQ&A Towne Floring 3 x 2

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