“The Good Place” creator Michael Schur insists his show is not meant to be a theological commentary.
“This isn’t a religious show … Religion is almost irrelevant. It’s really about ethics,” Schur said during the Television Critics Association summer press tour on Tuesday. “The intention is not to make any current specific commentary on people or things except that the behaviors we all exhibit in our everyday lives have ramifications.”
“The only objective is to discuss the main question of ‘What does it mean to be a good person?’ That’s the only intention,” he continued.
Kristen Bell stars in the series as Eleanor, a dead woman from New Jersey who comes to realize that she hasn’t been a very good person after she is accidentally admitted into paradise, a.k.a The Good Place. She decides to turn over a new leaf by learning what it actually means to be “good” or “bad,” and then trying to make up for her past behavior.
Ted Danson plays Michael, an angelic figure who comes to be Eleanor’s guide through her self-designed self-improvement course. NBC ordered 13 episodes of the show last August. The series also stars D’arcy Carden, William Jackson Harper, Jameela Jamil and Manny Jacinto.
The series will be produced by Universal Television, 3 Arts Entertainment and Fremulon. Schur will executive produce with David Miner, Drew Goddard and Morgan Sackett.
“The Good Place” is set to premiere this fall on NBC.
'Timeless,' 'This Is Us,' 'The Good Place': Watch Trailers for New NBC Series (Videos)
"Timeless": From Eric Kripke (“Revolution,” “Supernatural”), Shawn Ryan (“The Shield”) and the producers of “The Blacklist” comes this action-adventure series in which a mysterious criminal steals a secret state-of-the-art time machine, intent on destroying America as we know it by changing the past. Our only hope is an unexpected team: a scientist, soldier and history professor who must use the machine’s prototype to travel back in time to critical events. While they must make every effort not to affect the past themselves, they must also stay one step ahead of this dangerous fugitive. Can this handpicked team uncover the mystery behind it all and end his destruction before it’s too late?
"This Is Us": Sometimes life will surprise you. Starring Mandy Moore (“A Walk to Remember”), Milo Ventimiglia (“Heroes,” “Gilmore Girls”) and Sterling K. Brown (“The People V. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story),” this series follows a unique ensemble whose paths cross and their life stories intertwine in curious ways. We find several of them share the same birthday, and so much more than anyone would expect. From the writer and directors of “Crazy, Stupid, Love.” comes a dramedy that will challenge your everyday presumptions about the people you think you know.
"The Good Place": From Michael Schur, executive producer of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “Parks and Recreation” and “The Office,” comes a new comedy that follows Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell, “House of Lies,” “Veronica Mars”), an ordinary woman who, through an extraordinary string of events, enters the afterlife where she comes to realize that she hasn’t been a very good person. With the help of her wise newfound afterlife mentor (Ted Danson, “Bored to Death,” “Cheers”), she’s determined to shed her old way of living and discover the awesome (or at least the pretty good) person within. Directed by Drew Goddard, the Oscar-nominated writer of “The Martian.”
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Here’s your first look at the network’s fresh fall slate
"Timeless": From Eric Kripke (“Revolution,” “Supernatural”), Shawn Ryan (“The Shield”) and the producers of “The Blacklist” comes this action-adventure series in which a mysterious criminal steals a secret state-of-the-art time machine, intent on destroying America as we know it by changing the past. Our only hope is an unexpected team: a scientist, soldier and history professor who must use the machine’s prototype to travel back in time to critical events. While they must make every effort not to affect the past themselves, they must also stay one step ahead of this dangerous fugitive. Can this handpicked team uncover the mystery behind it all and end his destruction before it’s too late?
