The Riches

Updated on Dec 26, 2023

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The Riches (styled as the Ri¢hes in promotional material) is an American television series which was originally broadcast from March 12, 2007, to April 29, 2008, on FX. The series starred Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver.

History

Originally named Low Life, the show was created and head written by Dmitry Lipkin for Maverick Films and FX Networks. The one-hour pilot was written by Lipkin and Eddie Izzard, and directed by Carl Franklin. The pilot was then rethought and reshot over 10 days by Peter O'Fallon. It first aired on March 12, 2007, followed by a further 12 episodes. Additionally, the first two episodes were made available on the Internet prior to their television air dates. FX announced on May 8, 2007 that The Riches would return for a second season, the first episode of which aired on March 18, 2008. The second season ran for 7 episodes. FX President John Landgraf described The Riches as a "family show", albeit one featuring "a family unlike any television viewers have seen before". Todd Stashwick, one of the actors, announced on his blog that the show was canceled on September 26, 2008, almost five months after season two ended. The series was officially canceled by the network a few days later. One suggested reason for the show's cancellation was the delay caused by the writers' strike.

Plot

The show features Izzard and Driver as Wayne and Dahlia Malloy who, along with their family, are Irish Traveller con artists and thieves. They travel with their children Di Di (Delilah), Cael, and Sam.

As the series begins, Dahlia has just been paroled from prison. During her 2-year sentence, she has developed various drug addictions. In her absence, Wayne and the children have been continuing to act as con artists across the U.S. After a brief reunion with their Traveller clan, the family flees to avoid an arranged marriage for Di Di. Wayne steals a large amount from the clan's hoard of cash, and the family runs off. After getting into an altercation and RV chase with another Traveller family, the Malloys are involved in a car accident that kills a very wealthy couple, the eponymous Riches. In the hopes of pursuing a "better life", they adopt the Riches' identities in an affluent gated community in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. They struggle to adjust to their new lives as buffers, as they call people who are not Travellers.

Cast and characters

Wayne Malloy (Eddie Izzard) – Wayne is the paternal head of the Malloy family (not to be confused with the extended Malloy 'clan'). He is a consummate, intelligent grifter and thief who experienced an 'existential crisis' while his wife was serving time in prison. He has become disillusioned with the nomadic, scamming lifestyle of the Travellers; it was his idea to steal the identities of deceased Doug and Cherien Rich and settle down into a normal life. Dahlia has referred to him as a 'halfbreed' or 'half buffer', because he did not come from a Traveller bloodline.

Dahlia Malloy (Minnie Driver) – Dahlia is Wayne's newly paroled wife. Her behavior is erratic and unpredictable, exacerbated by drug habits picked up in prison. A recovering methamphetamine addict, Dahlia imbibed a wide array of legal and illegal drugs since her parole, but recently she appears to be trying to get clean. Dahlia is considered 'royalty' in their Traveller clan, and her connection to the clan (both by blood and ideology) appears to be much stronger than Wayne's. She was initially very skeptical of Wayne's plan to leave their old lifestyle and impersonate the Riches and has struggled to live as Cherien Rich.

Cael Malloy (Noel Fisher) – Cael is the eldest Malloy son. He is quiet and intelligent. His skills include carrying out petty cash-register cons, faking epileptic seizures, picking locks, creating fake identity documents, disabling alarm systems, and stealing cars. While his sister Di Di is more supportive of their father, Cael is more supportive of their mother and the traditional Traveller lifestyle and beliefs. Likewise, his reception to the "Rich" lifestyle is less enthusiastic than that of his ambitious father and siblings.

Delilah "Di Di" Malloy (Shannon Marie Woodward) – Di Di is the adolescent daughter of Wayne and Dahlia. Like her siblings she is intelligent, crafty, and adept at various scams and thievery. In the pilot's opening scene she is seen pickpocketing people at a high-school class reunion while Wayne distracts them. Di Di's relationship with her mother appears to be strained; at one point when angered, she lies to her mother about sleeping with her boyfriend Erick. When it temporarily seemed the family would split up, Di Di chose to stay with her father. She embraced the Riches' way of life and no longer seems interested in the Traveller lifestyle.

Sam Malloy (Aidan Mitchell) – Sam, the youngest Malloy child, is transgender and frequently dresses in feminine clothing. The idea for Sam's non-binary gender expression came about before Izzard—a gender non-conforming comedian—joined the show. Sam's gender expression is accepted and respected by their parents and siblings. On their first night in the Rich home, Sam draws a large mural on a bedroom wall depicting the family's recent adventures, including the car accident and Dahlia's release from prison. In addition to artistic skill, Sam is interested in French and very earnest about getting a good education. Like the rest of the family, Sam appears to be very clever and adept at trickery. In episode 3, Sam is the key player in an elaborate con of Dahlia's to get the Malloy children into Rosemere Academy. During the season 1 finale, Sam expresses reluctance and even denial in leaving Eden Falls.

Dale Malloy (Todd Stashwick) – Dale is cousin to Dahlia. He and Wayne were raised like brothers in the Malloy clan. Within the code of the family Dale expected that one day he would marry Dahlia and take his rightful place as head of the family once his father, Earl, died. A borderline sociopath whose life becomes slowly unhinged. Feeling wronged many times over by Wayne he is hell bent on revenge against Wayne and his family. Feeling the pain of his unrequited love and the fact that his father was going to pass the reins of the clan on to Wayne, Dale goes to murderous lengths to protect his legacy. Eventually discovering the Riches' secret, he now finds himself in an unholy alliance with Wayne, leveraging the truth to his selfish needs.

Lexicon

The Travellers use a variety of terminology. In addition to slang, some of the vocabulary is taken from Shelta (also known as "the Cant"), which is sometimes used as a code by Travellers.

Buffer – An ordinary person, a non-Traveller.

Half Breed – A Traveller not born into the clan, but associated through, for example, marriage or one of two parents.

Kale – Money.

Koosh – Money or other valuables, particularly ones the Travellers can steal.

Sajick – Police officer or law enforcement official.

Skaal Krush – Pertaining to the end of the con. Krush means "clear out* run away" in Shelta.

Season 1: 2007

The first season's episodes began airing on March 12, 2007. The pilot episode and episode 1.2 ("Believe the Lie") were made available early for online viewing at MSN, Yahoo!, and TV.com at various times.

The original airdates (US) are listed here for each episode.

Season 2: 2008

A second season of 13 episodes was announced on May 8, 2007 by FX for broadcast in the first half of 2008. It premiered on March 18, 2008. Due to a long writer's strike, only 7 episodes were produced.

Ratings

The pilot episode of The Riches drew 3.8 million viewers. With 2.5 million of those viewers in the 18–49 demographic, The Riches scored second only to the premiere of The Shield, thus beating out the premieres of other FX dramas such as Rescue Me, Over There, and Dirt. The pilot was also FX's first-ever Sunday night premiere of an original series, and more than doubled the channel's highest-ever ratings for the Sunday 10pm slot. The show averaged 5.9 million cumulative viewers per week in the USA, sufficient for FX to commission a second season. The Riches has gained popularity through online resources, such as Hulu and iTunes' "What We Are Watching" for April 2008.

Critical reception

Television critics were generally favorable in their reviews of The Riches. The Baltimore Sun described it as "the kind of TV drama that makes one think while being entertained". and The Boston Globe lauded a "layered drama" full of "unexpectedly soulful pleasures". Some critics thought the show "lacks originality", but there was praise for the principal actors, with The New York Times reporting "together, [Izzard and Driver] are superb".

Time magazine's James Poniewozik named it one of the Top 10 New TV Series of 2006, ranking it at #7, while Minnie Driver was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Actress in a Dramatic Series for her performance.

The second season garnered similarly positive reviews. The Hollywood Reporter review said that "Izzard and Driver remain a joy to watch in this odd but fascinating series that is derivative of nothing on TV", while the San Francisco Chronicle described it as "gloriously inventive, daring and provocative".

Home releases

Season Releases

Film

Eddie Izzard said in a 2007 interview that he is currently putting together a script for a movie as a conclusion. He said the plan is to "pick up exactly where we left off, and we think we're going to make a film of the next bit".

Syndication

United States: The Riches (FX)

United Kingdom: The Riches (Virgin 1)

Australia: The Riches (Showcase, 7TWO)

Canada: The Riches (Showcase, Télé-Québec)

Brazil: The Riches (FX)

Croatia: Izmuzljivci (HRT1)

Hungary: Gazdagék (Cool TV)

Finland: Petolliset (MTV3)

Russia: The Riches (Channel One)

Germany: The Riches (RTL Nitro)

Italy: The Riches (Sky Cinema Cult)

Israel: The Nouveau-Riches (Yes Stars 2)

Slovenia: Izmuzljivci (POP TV)

References

The Riches Wikipedia

(Text) CC BY-SA

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