The Clearing (TV series)

Australian television series

Elise McCredie
Matt Cameron
Osamah Sami

Directed by

Jeffrey Walker
Gracie Otto

Starring

Teresa Palmer
Miranda Otto
Guy Pearce
Julia Savage

Jeremy BlewittComposerMark BradshawCountry of originAustraliaOriginal languageEnglishNo. of episodes8ProductionExecutive producers

Richard Finlayson
Elizabeth Bradley
Jeffrey Walker
Jude Troy
Elise McCredie
Matt Cameron

ProducerJude TroyRunning time48–49 minutesProduction companyWooden HorseOriginal releaseNetworkDisney+Release24 May 2023 (2023-05-24)

The Clearing is an Australian psychological thriller miniseries produced for Disney+ and inspired by the dark story of a real-life cult with a female leader. The series premiered on 24 May 2023 on Disney+ and Hulu. Directed by Jeffrey Walker and Gracie Otto, it is based on the book In the Clearing by J. P. Pomare, a fictionalised account of the Australian cult group The Family,^[1] and stars Miranda Otto, Teresa Palmer, and Guy Pearce.

Synopsis

A woman is forced to face the demons of her past in order to prevent a cult from kidnapping children.^[2]

Cast

Teresa Palmer as Freya Heywood
Miranda Otto as Adrienne Beaufort
Guy Pearce as Dr. Bryce Latham
Julia Savage as Amy Beaufort
Hazem Shammas as Yusuf Joe Saad
Jeremy Blewitt as Anton Beaufort
Kate Mulvany as Tamsin Latham
Xavier Samuel as Colin Garrison
Anna Lise Phillips as Hannah Wilczek
Mark Coles Smith as Wayne Dhurrkay
Harry Greenwood as Anton Beaufort
Erroll Shand as Henrik Wilczek
Doris Younane as Christine
Claudia Karvan as Mariam Herzog
Miah Madden as Max Dhurrkay
Gary Sweet as Wilkes
Alicia Gardiner as Judith
Matt Okine as Devon
Lily La Torre as Asha
Ras-Samuel Welda’abzgi as Mo
Berlin Lu as Kim Wu
Kristof Kaczmarek as Ari Herzog
Jake Schlieper as Paul Saad
John Voce as Father Campbell

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original release date ^[3]
1	"The Season of Unfoldment"	Jeffrey Walker	Matt Cameron	May 24, 2023 (2023-05-24)
2	"Kindred"	Jeffrey Walker	Elise McCredie	May 24, 2023 (2023-05-24)
3	"Suffer the Little Children"	Gracie Otto	Matt Cameron	May 31, 2023 (2023-05-31)
4	"The Foundlings"	Gracie Otto	Elise McCredie	June 7, 2023 (2023-06-07)
5	"Maitreya"	Gracie Otto	Elise McCredie	June 14, 2023 (2023-06-14)
6	"The Pied Piper"	Gracie Otto	Matt Cameron & Osamah Sami	June 21, 2023 (2023-06-21)
7	"This Too Shall Pass"	Jeffrey Walker	Matt Cameron	June 28, 2023 (2023-06-28)
8	"Island"	Jeffrey Walker	Elise McCredie & Osamah Sami	July 5, 2023 (2023-07-05)

Production

The series is produced by Wooden Horse and based on the best selling crime-thriller In the Clearing by J. P. Pomare and the real-life group The Family and their charismatic leader Anne Hamilton-Byrne. The series was adapted by Elise McCredie, Matt Cameron and Osamah Sami. Directed by Jeffrey Walker and Gracie Otto, the producer is Jude Troy and the executive producers are McCredie, Cameron and Walker with Richard Finlayson and Elizabeth Bradley.^[4]^[5]

Casting

Teresa Palmer, Miranda Otto and Guy Pearce were confirmed as part of the cast in July 2022.^[6]

Filming

Principal photography began in Victoria, Australia in July 2022.^[7]

Broadcast

The series will be broadcast on Hulu in the United States and as a Star Original on Disney+ throughout the world from Wednesday, 24 May 2023 with new episodes being released weekly thereafter on Wednesdays.^[8]

Reception

The series has an 89% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on 18 reviews, with an average rating of 6.5/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Deriving extra flavor from its Australian setting and Miranda Otto's unsettling performance, The Clearing is an eerie thriller with plenty to recommend."^[9] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 61 out of 100 based on 7 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".^[10]

Accolades

The limited miniseries was nominated in the Best Miniseries category at the AACTA Awards, with Teresa Palmer receiving a nomination for Best Lead Actress in a Drama.^[11]

References

^ Quinn, Karl (17 May 222). "Disney gives family a whole new meaning with new TV series on famous Australian cult". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
^ "'The Clearing' Teaser Trailer: Teresa Palmer, Miranda Otto & Guy Pearce Star In A Psychological Thriller Series For Hulu". The Playlist. 14 April 2023. Retrieved 15 April 2023.
^ "Shows A-Z – The Clearing on Hulu". The Futon Critic. Retrieved 23 May 2023.
^ "Disney+: The Clearing, Australian series, cast announcements". August 2022.
^ "All-star cast announced on Disney+ Australian Original 'The Clearing' as cameras roll in Victoria".
^ "A-listers galore in Disney's new local drama, the Clearing". 27 July 2022.
^ "Filming Begins on Australian Disney+ Original 'The Clearing' About Doomsday Cult". 27 July 2022.
^ ""The Clearing" coming soon to Disney+". what’s on Disney+. 13 April 2023. Retrieved 15 April 2023.
^ "The Clearing". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
^ "The Clearing - TV Show Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
^ Cain, Sian (8 December 2023). "The Newsreader, Deadloch and Colin from Accounts lead TV nominations". The Guardian. Retrieved 9 December 2023.