‘United States of Al’: Parker Young & Adhir Kalyan on How ‘These Guys Love Each Other’ (VIDEO)
Not many sitcoms make you both laugh and cry, but CBS’s latest sitcom entry, United States of Al, will likely do just that. The series comes from creators/executive producers David Goetsch and Maria Ferrari (Young Sheldon, The Big Bang Theory), and executive producer Chuck Lorre (Mom, Bob Hearts Abishola, B Positive), and, like Mom, takes uncomfortable territory and makes it both relatable and funny.
In this case, the series focuses on the friendship between former Marine Riley (Parker Young), who is having a hard time getting his life in order back in his hometown of Ohio, and his Afghani interpreter Awalmir “Al” (Adhir Kalyan), who comes to America to start a new life. There’s much humor in Al being a fish out of water and his undying optimism (despite the horrors he’s probably witnessed back home) but the heart of the series comes in the love these two men have for each other and how in Riley helping Al start a new life, Al will more than likely help Riley find some solid footing in his.
Also adding to the solid cast are Elizabeth Alderfer as Riley’s unstable sister, Lizzie, Dean Norris as Art, Riley’s cantankerous father, Kelli Goss as Vanessa, Riley’s frosty ex-wife, and Farrah Mackenzie as Hazel, Riley and Vanessa’s young daughter.
TV Insider talked with Young and Kalyan about the show, and the pair gave us a window into the series humor, and how it’s grounded in reality. Check out the video above.
United States of Al, Thursdays, 8:30/7:30c, CBS.
