A television pilot for the series was announced in October 2019, with production beginning the following year. CBS gave United States of Al a series order in November 2020, and it aired from April 1, 2021, to May 19, 2022. Released to mixed reviews, United States of Al was criticized for its humor, use of antiquated tropes, and casting of an Indo-South African actor to play an Afghan lead with an inauthentic accent. However, the show was praised by some for its attempts to diversify television, and for the cultural representation of its main character. At the 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards, the show's pilot received a nomination for Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Program.[2] In May 2021, the series was renewed for a second and final season which premiered on October 7, 2021. In May 2022, the series was canceled after two seasons.
Premise
The series follows the friendship between Riley, a combat veteran, and Awalmir (Al), an interpreter from Afghanistan who helped the former while he served in the Marines. As they readjust to their normal lives in Columbus, Ohio, Al moves in with Riley and meets his father Art. He later learns Riley is going through a divorce with his wife Vanessa, who has custody of their only daughter Hazel. Trying to help his friend, who is also dealing with PTSD, Al decides to make it his mission to get Riley and Vanessa back together.
Cast and characters
Main
Adhir Kalyan as Awalmir Karimi, an interpreter from Afghanistan (born in Kandahar and moved to Kabul) who also goes by Al
Parker Young as Riley Dugan, a Marine combat veteran trying to readjust to civilian life in Ohio
Elizabeth Alderfer as Lizzie Dugan, the daughter of Art and the younger sister of Riley
Kelli Goss as Vanessa, Riley's estranged wife and the mother of their daughter
Dean Norris as Art Dugan, a veteran and the father of Riley and Lizzie
Farrah Mackenzie as Hazel Dugan, Riley and Vanessa's daughter[a] Like her father, she is a rebellious tomboy who aspires to be a Marine when she grows up.
In Columbus, Ohio, Marine combat veteran Riley, who served in Afghanistan, and his younger sister Lizzie reunite at the airport with Riley's interpreter Awalmir, who goes by "Al", who will spend his first weeks in the United States living in their garage. After learning Riley is going through a divorce with his wife Vanessa, Al meets Riley's father Art, who is also a veteran. At night, Al is pulled over for driving too slow and is let go with a warning by a police officer who is also a Marine. The next day, Al sets up a reunion between Riley and Vanessa, where they drink tea and talk about their failed marriage. In a flashback to Helmand Province, Afghanistan, in 2011, Al yells at Riley for giving him a gun without bullets.
2
2
"Repair / Tarmim"
Nikki Lorre
Teleplay by : Andy Gordon & Bobby Telatovich & Habib Zahori Story by : Maria Ferrari & Dave Goetsch & Chuck Lorre
After a water leak occurs, Riley and Al visit Vanessa at her home to avoid paying for a plumber. Talking with each of them separately, Al learns that Riley cheated on Vanessa while they were still married and that Riley suspected Vanessa of having an affair with their friend Freddy while he was deployed. Riley learns Vanessa and Freddy were platonic friends while he was deployed, but have recently started dating. Later in the day, Riley finishes fixing the leak and talks privately with Vanessa about his past feelings. Meanwhile, Lizzie tells Art that she lost the military dog tags of her late fiance Michael while at a party; the pair uses a metal detector to successfully find the tags. In a flashback set "three years ago", a happily married Riley and Vanessa meet with the recently engaged Lizzie and Michael, where the guys refer to themselves as the luckiest people on Earth.
3
3
"Shorts / Neykar"
Mark Cendrowski
Teleplay by : Maria Ferrari & Dave Goetsch & Andy Gordon Story by : Habib Zahori
Al greets Riley's daughter Hazel and introduces himself as her godfather. On a video call with his mother, Al is berated for wearing shorts, as it is against his religion as a Muslim to do so. The following day, Al and Riley go to the DMV, where Al becomes nervous after seeing that his female driving instructor, Paula, is also wearing shorts and, as a result, fails his driving test. Wanting to adjust to American social norms, Al talks with Riley, Art, and an offended Lizzie to sort things out, deciding to avoid forcing his religion on other people. In his following visit to the DMV with Paula as his driving instructor, Al overcomes his issues by acknowledging both Paula and himself are wearing shorts, only to become nervous once again after stopping at a traffic light next to a charity car wash with bikini-clad women.
4
4
"Spinach / Sabzi"
Nikki Lorre
Teleplay by : Fahim Anwar & Anthony Del Broccolo & Habib Zahori Story by : Emily Ann Brandstetter & Chuck Lorre & Ursula Taherian
Al becomes worried about Riley's parenting style, as he believes Hazel has become a spoiled child. After Al tells Art that Hazel should show signs of respect by helping around the house without requiring something in return, Art falls off the roof while trying to fix the chimney and is sent to the hospital, and Al spends a day taking care of Hazel. At the ER, Riley agrees on a previous offer to work for his father at a construction company, under the condition that Al can work there too. Throughout the week, Al also starts messaging his cousin, Zubair, as the pair enjoy boasting about their possessions; the pair eventually start using Photoshop to show off.
5
5
"Homesick / Deghyat"
Nikki Lorre
Teleplay by : Dave Goetsch & Andy Gordon & Habib Zahori Story by : Reza Aslan & Maria Ferrari & Mahyad Tousi
After failing to communicate and connect with his neighbors by offering his homemade rice pudding as a gift, Al starts wishing he was once again with his family in Afghanistan. Wanting to help, Riley makes Al start boxing in their garage to forget about his worries and express his feelings; Riley admits he would want to be back together with Vanessa if she left Freddy. On a video call, Al tells his sister Hassina that he misses his family. Lizzie overhears and talks to Al, who further explains his homesickness. Later, Riley takes Al to a bar, where Al receives a bartender's phone number. At home, Riley's family hosts a dinner wearing clothes and cooking food from Afghanistan, delighting Al. Al and Lizzie then talk at the fireplace where Lizzie concludes Al's homesickness as grief over leaving Afghanistan for good. The two then bond over their shared heartbreak over Michael's death.
6
6
"Fundraiser / Baspana Towlawal"
Nikki Lorre
Teleplay by : Fahim Anwar & Emily Ann Brandstetter & Bobby Telatovich Story by : Joshua Keller Katz & Chuck Lorre & Chase Millsap
Art invites Riley and Al to a fundraiser to make speeches while Lizzie is told to make a slideshow. While dropping off Hazel, Riley and Freddy have an awkward conversation. At home, Al tells Lizzie that Riley has changed since his return to Ohio, and appears to be "lost". At the fundraiser, Riley becomes anxious and leaves after seeing the slideshow project images of him in uniform. Soon after, Al makes a speech, where he talks about the 17,000 interpreters in Afghanistan waiting for visas, calls Riley a hero and a brother, and sings "It's Not Unusual". Finding him at a baseball park, Vanessa gives Riley food and Aspirin. The pair later see Al's speech on their phone and notice an ecstatic Lizzie.
7
7
"Car / Motar"
Nikki Lorre
Teleplay by : Maria Ferrari & Dave Goetsch & Andy Gordon Story by : Hila Hamidi & Chuck Lorre & Habib Zahori
After receiving his first paycheck, Al states that he wants to help Riley's family and his own in Afghanistan, while also dreaming of buying a car. As a result, Riley takes Al to a car dealership, where the pair negotiate to get a better deal and buy a car for monthly payments. However, Lizzie informs them that they were, in fact, ripped off through future payments with 20 percent interest, and Riley realizes that he also made a bad deal when buying his truck three years ago. Finding out that he can not return the car, Al decides to take another job to pay for it, and is hired at the local supermarket. At home, Riley gives Al cash he received after selling his bike to help Al with his car payments.
8
8
"Roht / Sweet Bread"
Mark Cendrowski
Teleplay by : Miriam Arghandiwal & Maria Ferrari & Habib Zahori Story by : Fahim Anwar & Hila Hamidi & Ursula Taherian
Al is delivered his family's homemade roht (a type of sweet bread) from Afghanistan but becomes disappointed when he finds out that it has gone stale. To surprise him, Riley's family searches for a place selling roht and finds one outside of Cleveland. Along with Al, they go to the restaurant and Al becomes friends with the owner, Kasim, when they reveal they are both from Kabul. After eating, Al is introduced to Kasim's daughter, Ariana, and he experiences love at first sight. A few days later, Al visits Ariana at the restaurant and learns that she helps women from Afghanistan earn scholarships, but after revealing that he helped the Marines, Ariana becomes offended and he leaves. At home, Riley and Lizzie try to console Al, who visits Ariana again and talks to her about his service, concluding that while things in Afghanistan did not improve as he had hoped, he does not feel shame over trying to help his country the best way he knew how. After they look briefly at each other, Al pays for the tea and roht before leaving.
9
9
"Birthday / Kaleeza"
Mark Cendrowski
Teleplay by : Maria Ferrari & Ursula Taherian & Habib Zahori Story by : Anthony Del Broccolo & Dave Goetsch & Bobby Telatovich
As Hazel's birthday is coming up, she suggests inviting Freddy, who is also a magician. Riley rejects the idea and tells her that he will do magic tricks instead. Al, on the other hand, is excited, as this is the first time he will be attending a birthday party. He also tells Hazel that he does not know when his actual birthday is, to her surprise, and the pair decide to share the party. Soon after, Freddy meets Al for the first time, and Riley learns that Hazel wants Freddy at the party, whether or not he performs magic, to his dismay. Overcoming his personal emotions, Riley invites Freddy to the double birthday party, where everyone, including him, has a nice time.
10
10
"Matchmaker / Roybar"
Nikki Lorre
Teleplay by : Anthony Del Broccolo & Dave Goetsch & Andy Gordon Story by : Emily Ann Brandstetter & Chuck Lorre & Ursula Taherian
Al learns about Art's tradition of mourning the loss of his wife by visiting her grave with ice cream and decides to find him a date. As a result, Riley takes Al to a bingo game where they find several women Art might be interested in. At the end of the day, the pair show Art what they have found and schedule him a date with a woman named Barbara. Initially hesitant, Art agrees to go on the date after talking with Lizzie. The following day, Art meets Barbara but leaves after feeling "not ready." Outside, Art meets Lois, a divorced woman who asks for help jump-starting her car; the pair grow an interest in each other and Art decides that he is ready to date again.
11
11
"Blackout / Parchawi"
Nikki Lorre
Teleplay by : Maria Ferrari & Dave Goetsch & Andy Gordon Story by : Emily Ann Brandstetter & Jeff Silverstein & Habib Zahori
Al becomes worried when he wakes up and realizes he can not communicate with his family in Afghanistan using his phone due to a possible power outage. At work, Riley and Al are constantly criticized by a client named Clint, who quickly annoys Al. At home, Al shares his anger and says Clint will go to hell, quietly shocking Riley's family. Trying to help, Hazel plays frisbee with Al to distract him but the pair instead have a conversation about not being able to speak with their families. Back at work, Al confronts Clint about his criticism and tells him his worries about his family. After Clint replies by saying that he does not care about his own family, Al becomes saddened and enraged; Clint fires Al and Riley. Art tries convincing Clint to let the pair finish the job. However, when Clint shares several racist comments about Al, Art becomes enraged and later tells his family: "So I'm not getting that job back." Soon after, Al manages to get in contact with his family and immediately becomes happier.
12
12
"Dog / Spai"
Mark Cendrowski
Teleplay by : Fahim Anwar & Anthony Del Broccolo & Ursula Taherian Story by : Andy Gordon & Chuck Lorre & Habib Zahori
While Art continues dating Lois and they almost share a kiss, Riley and Hazel find a dog while riding their bicycles. A frightened Al encourages them to leave it in the wild while the pair decide to look for its owner. Later in the day, Riley shares his true intentions to Vanessa that he and Hazel want to keep it. After a discussion, Al decides to move with Vanessa until the dog is taken care of. He returns a few days later. Soon after, Riley informs Hazel that the dog's owner called and that they have to return it. In a flashback set "eleven years ago", Lizzie records several videos of Vanessa taking care of a baby Hazel before sending them all to Riley in Afghanistan.
13
13
"Help / Komak"
Mark Cendrowski
Teleplay by : Emily Ann Brandstetter & Anthony Del Broccolo & Bobby Telatovich Story by : Maria Ferrari & Dave Goetsch & Chuck Lorre
Riley is suffering from tinnitus. As a result, Al asks Riley to apply for disability at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Riley, who does not want to, rejects the idea, screams at Al, and gets drunk at a bar. While Hazel goes camping in her backyard and sets up a tent with her family, Lizzie leaves to pick Riley up but is tricked into drinking. Now drunk, she calls Al, who arrives and criticizes Riley and Lizzie for their actions. Back home, Riley apologizes to Art, who also criticizes him; Riley goes to the kitchen and cries. The next day, he drops Hazel off with Vanessa and tells her that he will apply for disability at VA. In a flashback set in Afghanistan, Riley shows Al that he broke his finger.
Teleplay by : Emily Ann Brandstetter & Maria Ferrari & Dave Goetsch & Ursula Taherian & Chuck Tatham & Habib Zahori Story by : Miriam Arghandiwal & Reza Aslan & Hila Hamidi & Chase Millsap & Bobby Telatovich & Mahyad Tousi
With Afghanistan falling under Taliban control, Al and Riley do everything they can to ensure that Al's sister Hassina gets to the Kabul Airport to board a plane for Turkey.
Note: Because of the seriousness of the subject, this episode was taped without a studio audience.
15
2
"Repo / Wapas Geri"
Mark Cendrowski
Teleplay by : Fahim Anwar & Bobby Telatovich Story by : Anthony Del Broccolo & Andy Gordon
Needing money to help his sister get to the USA from Turkey, Al joins Riley in the car repossession business. Al soon quits due to the danger, but Riley seems to enjoy the adrenaline rush. Riley's therapist soon tells him that he is using the repo job as a way to avoid his feelings about the fall of Afghanistan.
16
3
"Mo / Masoud"
Mark Cendrowski
Teleplay by : Emily Ann Brandstetter & Maria Ferrari & Chuck Lorre Story by : Fahim Anwar & Dave Goetsch & Ursula Taherian
"The dream for us has always been to get a Muslim protagonist on network television, someone who could really reframe the perceptions of so many Americans about Muslims or people from this broad region. We knew that Dave and Maria would be the perfect shepherds for this and that Chuck would be the kind of person who could take very heavy topics like immigration xenophobia and transform them into something entertaining and palatable, but without necessarily taking the edge away."[65]
In May 2021, Brian Thomas Smith was cast in the first recurring role confirmed for the series.[66] That same month, Deadline Hollywood predicted that the chances of the show being renewed depended on the status of B Positive, another CBS series from Lorre.[67] On May 15, 2021, CBS renewed both B Positive and United States of Al for second and final seasons.[68][69] In June, it was announced that Rachel Bay Jones would star in a recurring role.[70] In October, it was reported that Azita Ghanizada had been promoted to recurring.[71] The second season premiered on October 7, 2021.[72][73] On May 11, 2022, CBS canceled the series after two seasons.[74]
On review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 31% based on 13 reviews, with an average rating of 4.4/10. The website's critical consensus states, "United States of Al is well-meaning in its ambitions, but its limp humor and the one-dimensionality of its titular character proves that the road to dud sitcom can be paved with good intentions."[75] On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 52 out of 100, based on 11 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[76]
In initial contemporary reviews, United States of Al received mostly negative feedback.[77] However, the Los Angeles Times journalist Lorraine Ali examined reviews from several critics, and summarized them as illustrating "the minefield that exists around good-intentioned efforts to diversify scripted television" due to their ignoring of the cultural representation of the main character and the show's attempts to diversify television, calling the reviews "damaging to future representations of Muslims".[78]
Daniel Fienberg, writing for The Hollywood Reporter, shared his dislike for "the writers' choices for Al", referring to it as "a bad mixture".[79] From TV Guide, Diane Gordon gave the show only 2 out of 5 stars; her criticism leaned toward the show's fish out of water attempts at comedy she found to be "cheap and half-hearted".[80]
Roxana Hadadi from RogerEbert.com criticized the series and its creators' in using antiquated tropes in attempting to be comedic.[81] Caroline Framke from Variety also gave remarks to the show's writing, stating that the show "works so hard to make its Afghan protagonist palatable that it neglects to give him any complexity."[82]
Afghan journalist Ali Latifi shared his criticism of the show in an op-ed for Business Insider and said "it's all flat characters, and cheap, uninspired jokes."[83] While giving praise to Lorre's television series The Big Bang Theory, he also shared a quote from a conversation with Afghan-American social rights activist Mariam Wardak, who he quoted as saying "rather than showing Afghan interpreters as brave men who are putting their lives on the line and are risking being ostracized in their community, we have a short, scrawny awkward brown man standing next to this GI Joe."[83] The Afghan-American Foundation criticized the show's casting of the lead role while they also applauded the show's inclusion of Afghan-American writers as "commendable and unprecedented," hoping the show leads to further thoughtful representations of Afghan-Americans.[84]
Ratings
Overall
Viewership and ratings per season of United States of Al
