While Matt Reeves is making headlines this weekend for his new film Batman, which is already on its way to huge box office, the TV series “Ordinary Joe”, which he created for NBC, received the ax. Variety reports that the series was canceled online after only thirteen episodes. The show brought mixed reviews when it was released, averaging 0.5 ratings and 3.3 million viewers per episode, which led to the show ending quickly. James Walk of Watchmen and Mad Men starred in the series as the titular Joe, which included a rather comic premise exploring alternate universes where Joe made different decisions, leading to drastically different outcomes for his life.
Given the time he worked on Batman, it should come as no surprise that fans learn that Reeves’ participation in the show is limited. The Planet of the Apes director originally introduced and sold the series to NBC in 2006, a few years after the end of his other television series, Felicity. However, executive producers Russell Friend and Gareth Lerner of House further developed the project, which led to its actual creation. The series somewhat opposed the test from the start, although it was commissioned as a pilot in February 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic forced it to postpone production until the 2021-2022 season.
NBC’s previously published description of the series hte reads: “Life is about the choices you make – and sometimes what you do at one point can change everything. This new heartfelt, life-affirming drama follows Joe Kimbro, who faces one of those decisions when he graduates from college. The three parallel stories that diverge that night find Joe and the people around him with different careers, relationships, and family lives, showing the unexpected ways things change – and stay the same. But when it comes down to it, there is no “right” choice; No matter what happens, Joe’s life is always confusing, exciting, difficult, unpredictable … and beautiful. “
Although best known for his work on feature films, including recent films about Planet of the Apes and Cloverfield, Reeves has a rich history on television. In addition to co-creating Felicity with JJ Abrams, Reeves directed episodes of Murder: Street Life, Miracles, and Verdict. He is also the executive producer of the original Netflix Away series and the Amazon Prime Video Tales From the Loop series.