Brothers & Sisters is an American family drama television series that centers on the Walker family and their lives in Los Angeles and Pasadena, California. The series aired for five seasons on ABC from September 24, 2006, to May 8, 2011.^[1] For the entirety of its run, it was broadcast on Sunday nights following Desperate Housewives.

Brothers & Sisters features an ensemble cast led by Sally Field as Nora Walker, with Rachel Griffiths as Sarah, Calista Flockhart as Kitty, Balthazar Getty as Tommy, Matthew Rhys as Kevin and Dave Annable as Justin Walker, Nora's grown children. Patricia Wettig co-starred as Holly Harper, with Emily VanCamp later joining the cast as Rebecca Harper, as well as Ron Rifkin as Saul Holden.

Throughout the series, Field won both a Primetime Emmy Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for playing Nora, while Griffiths received nominations for two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards for portraying Sarah Walker.

On May 6, 2011, ABC canceled the series after five seasons.

• Justin Walker, son of Nora and William Walker; ten years younger than Kevin; paramedic, war veteran and former med school student; recovering alcoholic and drug addict; ex-husband of Rebecca Harper.
• Nora Walker, widow of William Walker, mother of Sarah, Kitty, Tommy, Kevin and Justin; Grandmother to Paige, Cooper, Evan, Elizabeth, William II, Olivia and Daniel; homemaker.
• Kitty Walker, daughter of Nora and William Walker, one year younger than Sarah;^[2] adoptive mother of Evan; writer and former communication director, television and radio host; widow of Robert McCallister.
• Sarah Laurent, eldest daughter of Nora Walker and Nick Brody; mother of Paige and Cooper; president of Ojai Foods and former CFO of Greenatopia; ex-wife of Joe Whedon and wife of Luc Laurent.
• Tommy Walker, son of Nora and William Walker, two years younger than Kitty; father of Elizabeth and William II; former president of Ojai Foods; ex-husband to Julia Ridge and fiancé of Rose.
• Joe Whedon, ex-husband of Sarah Walker; father of Gabe, Paige and Cooper; music teacher.
• Julia Walker, ex-wife of Tommy Walker; mother of Elizabeth; teacher.
• Kevin Walker, son of Nora and William Walker, one year younger than Tommy; adoptive father of Olivia; father of Daniel; biological father of Elizabeth and William II; pro bono lawyer and former communications director and corporate lawyer; husband of Scotty Wandell.
• Saul Holden, brother of Nora Walker; restaurant owner and former CFO of Ojai Foods; fiancé of Jonathan Byrold.
• Holly Harper, ex-mistress of William Walker; mother of Rebecca; former chairwoman and CEO of Ojai Foods and actress; fiancée of David Caplan.
• Paige Whedon, daughter of Sarah Walker and Joe Whedon.
• Rebecca Harper, daughter of Holly Harper; former advertising executive at Ojai Foods; ex-wife of Justin Walker.
• Cooper Whedon, son of Sarah Walker and Joe Whedon.
• Robert McCallister, husband of Kitty Walker; father of Sophie and Jack and adoptive father of Evan; former California senator; ex-husband of Courtney McCallister.
• Scotty Wandell, husband of Kevin Walker; father of Daniel and adoptive father of Olivia; restaurant owner and head chef.
• Ryan Lafferty, son of William Walker and Connie Lafferty; former employee at Ojai Foods.
• Luc Laurent, husband of Sarah Walker; painter and former underwear model.

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The series is from producer Ken Olin (star of thirtysomething and producer of Alias) and Jon Robin Baitz, one of Broadway's most prominent playwrights (The Substance of Fire). Noted producer Greg Berlanti was also an executive producer and showrunner during season one. Berlanti continued to serve on the series as executive producer. Mark B. Perry (The Wonder Years and One Tree Hill) served as the showrunner for twelve episodes before departing the show in the aftermath of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike. Perry was replaced by Monica Owusu-Breen and Alison Schapker who served as showrunners until they were replaced by David Marshall Grant shortly into season 4.

After the series pilot was shot, and the show was picked up by ABC, the series underwent some moderate changes. Most notably, several of the roles were recast:

• The Walker family had originally been the March family, and the original matriarch of the show was Iva March, who'd been cast with veteran theater actress Betty Buckley. The role was ultimately renamed Nora and cast with Sally Field.
• The character of Kevin had originally been named Bryan, and had been cast with actor Jonathan LaPaglia. Like the current Kevin character, the Bryan version of the character was also gay, but had been married, and was going through a divorce. The Bryan incarnation of the character also had a child, and he and his ex-wife were going through a custody battle. Bryan's child later reappeared during the first season as the show, where he was recast as "Gabe," Joe's child from his first marriage. The show has subsequently received positive press attention for its depiction of Kevin Walker, who came to be seen as a breakthrough in the depiction of gay men on television: he has had several love interests, has kissed his boyfriends on-screen, and had a commitment ceremony with his partner Scotty in the second-season finale—the first such ceremony ever shown on American network television between series regulars rather than minor recurring or guest characters.^[20]
• The character of Jonathan, the man with whom Kitty was involved as the show began had originally been cast with writer and actor Dan Futterman. They had previously acted alongside each other as lovers in the film The Birdcage. The role was ultimately recast with actor Matthew Settle.
• The roles of Sarah and Joe's children, Paige and Cooper Whedon (originally named Paige and Teddy Traylor), were initially portrayed by Gage Golightly and Jimmy Pinchak. Their son also had autism in the original pilot. However, the roles were ultimately recast and the autism storyline was dropped.

Robert McCallister was the name of a character on a previous Greg Berlanti production, Jack & Bobby, about a boy who grew up to be the president of the United States. As with the Robert McCallister on Brothers & Sisters, the character on Jack & Bobby was a Republican who had a wife named Courtney and a son named Jack.

Brothers & Sisters is produced by Berlanti Television, After Portsmouth, and Touchstone Television (Fall 2006–Spring 2007), which is now ABC Studios (Fall 2007–2011).

On May 13, 2011, ABC canceled the series after five seasons.^[21]

Brothers & Sisters was filmed in the Greater Los Angeles area, including Los Angeles, Santa Monica, South Pasadena, Pasadena, and other locations.

Brothers & Sisters's first season received mixed to positive reviews from critics but positive reviews from fans. However, the reviews became warm and earned acclaim even from critics. ^{[citation needed]} McGaughy describes the series as "exceptional".^[22]